Blessings For Another Holiday Season

Summary: The Old Man on a Sunday Morning We are at that time of year when almost everyone seems to be celebrating something. And I have to say “something” because when we step away from the singular celebration of any particular faith or belief system we find that there are more than 60 holidays or faith-based celebrations during the month of December. Given that knowledge, it seems more than a little egotistical, and horribly presumptive, to simply go around wishing anyone the blessings of a particular holiday. When you meet a person on the street or in the store who is not a personal friend, you don’t know what they believe and it is horribly, terribly wrong to assume they believe the same as you on any level. Look, I know there are those who fear an alleged war on Xmas. First, let’s be very clear that there is no such thing. If anything, those within the most conservative areas of Christianity are guilty of posing a war on every other December holiday, and that’s something they’ve been doing since the third century when Constantine started moving holidays around so that they would all fall on the same day. If you know that someone celebrates a specific holiday, then sure, go ahead and wish them a happy or joyous occasion. But if you don’t know, and feel that you must say something, an inclusive “happy holidays” is pretty much the only appropriate greeting. Or perhaps you simply leave it at, “have a pleasant day,” and not invoke a holiday at all. For all the celebrations around the world, there are plenty of people who don’t celebrate anything at all. They don’t have a reason to do so. They don’t claim adherence to any organized belief system outside themselves, they don’t feel compelled to exchange gifts, prepare large meals, or gather with people they don’t really like. Still, you never know who is celebrating Hannukah (which starts tonight), Bodhi Day, Las Posadas, the Winter Solstice, Kisan Diwas, Boxing Day, Kwanzaa, Holy Innocents Day, or even Taylor Swift’s birthday. I wish I was kidding. There are dozens of cultural and religious observations particular to specific cultures and regions and as people have migrated heavily over the past few years it’s impossible to know who celebrates what. What is consistent, regardless of what one believes, is that December finds almost everyone under some special kind of pressure, feeling their efforts are less than appreciated, that end-of-year deadlines are going to be missed, or, like me, the uncertainty of changes that take effect at the turning of a new year. So, for all those people, for everyone who feels rushed, or pushed, or stressed, or depressed, and all the other emotions common to this season, please allow me the privilege of slipping into my vestments as a properly ordained minister of the Church of the Latter-Day Dude and offer for everyone a series of blessings for this holiday season. Take them if you wish. Ignore them if you’d rather. Please know that we offer them in a spirit of caring and compassion for everyone. General Blessings Blessed are the poor, whose numbers have grown despite their $15/hr wages and an improved economy. Inflation has rendered your gains meaningless and left many of you struggling harder now than you were a year ago. May you find wisdom in keeping all the pieces together and peace as you file for another deferment to your student loan. Blessed are the stressed, who thought vaccines would bring some relief and allow the world to return to some form of normalcy. Not only have you dealt with variants complicating our plans for recovery,

Blessings For Another Holiday Season

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