Tuesday Tidbit

God Made Moms To Teach Their Children...The True Meaning of the Christmas Tradition

“The Christmas Tradition” by Myles Monroe

From the earliest records of human existence, we have captured our experience in a very powerful medium called tradition. You have heard the terms cultural tradition, oral tradition, and even ethnic traditions. Tradition exists in every culture, every nation, and every generation. A generation is not valid without tradition. In many cases, traditions have been the sole provider of our sense of history and identity. They also give a sense of self-awareness. You really become aware of your identity when you look at what your culture and history were. Also, tradition furnishes us with a sense of perspective that is necessary for a healthy self-concept. In its pure state, tradition is good and necessary. However, people can have negative thoughts towards it.


What is tradition? It comes from the word ‘trade.’ Tradition refers to the trading of a national, personal, or cultural experience that is considered worthy of transferring to the next generation. In other words, tradition is a product of reality and the truth of a person, culture, or nation that is deemed worthy and valuable for preservation. All traditions find their roots in fact, truth, and reality.

If you understand the purpose of tradition, then you would know what a tradition should not be. The goal of tradition is to preserve, protect, and to deliver experience and established truth from one generation to the next. Therefore, tradition is only valid when it delivers the original truth. I would like to suggest that tradition could become the burial ground of truth. The danger of tradition is when it takes the place of the truth that it was supposed to deliver.

One of the biggest traditions on this planet is Christmas. Everyone celebrates something around this time of year. Even nations at war lay down their weapons temporarily. However, the present Christmas tradition is not effective in delivering the message, which it is supposed to convey. What we have done is that we have removed the tradition of Christmas from its original truth. Is Christmas delivering the message that it was supposed to preserve?

Christmas has become confusing because we do not know where faith ends and fantasy begins. Jesus is competing with Santa and the angels with the elves. We mix religion with revelry. Christmas has become a trade. Unfortunately, everything is traded except Jesus. The tradition is not trading the right merchandise. Christmas was intended to be a tradition that contained the truth of trading the good news about the Savior. However, many have embraced the tradition of Christmas without embracing Christ. We need to rediscover the original purpose of Christmas.


Be blessed and encouraged today, it's your choice. ~ Delphine