Christmas Trivia Series

One of the great paradoxes of Christmas is that almost everything the Bible tells us about

this most sacred event, is secular in nature. It is filled with what is temporal rather than

eternal; physical rather than spiritual; and world oriented rather than heaven oriented.

Christmas is really a very earthly event. This was by design, of course, for it marks the

beginning of God's personal involvement, in the flesh, on this earthly level of reality. When

God became man he went all the way, and participated fully in the secular realm common to

all men.

Just being born of a woman was as commonplace as it gets, for this is the universal

experience of all men. The Buddhist, the atheist, the cultist, and every other type of person,

comes into this world by the same method Jesus came. Birth does not take place in a sacred

setting, but in a secular setting, such as a hospital or the home. In the case of Jesus, the

setting was even more secular than usual, for he was born in a stable. It is also a very secular

job to be running an inn, and keeping up a stable, and shepherding sheep. Taking the census

was also very secular, along with paying taxes. The point is the whole setting of the first

Christmas is a secular setting. There is not a priest, rabbi, prophet, or preacher anywhere on

the scene. The angels do appear to the shepherds in the field and add the heavenly

involvement to the story, and the star is seen by the wise men afar, but the fact is, most of

what we see is simply secular.

Some of the secular props on the stage of history during this greatest of dramas have

played a important role. The church fathers considered the wise men to have been Persians.

In 614 A.D. when the Persians invaded and conquered the Holy Land, they did not destroy

the oldest church in the world-the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. The reason was

because they saw on the golden mosaic over the doorway the wise men depicted as Persians

with their native headdress. This was the only holy site they did not attack. This trivial

secular detail changed the course of history, as far as this site of the birth of Jesus goes.

Without it, the church could have been destroyed. The trivial can play a tremendous role in

history. Never underestimate the impact of the seemingly insignificant.

The book, The Ugly American, is about an ugly-faced American engineer, Homer Atkins.

He was brought to Vietnam to build dams and roads. While he was there he solved a century

old problem by designing a bicycle treadmill pump. No longer did the women have to carry

water in pails up the hillside to water the paddies. His wife Emma made this suggestion, for

she was concerned about the fact that every woman over 60 had a bent back. The broom

the women used had such a short handle, because wood was expensive and in short supply.

Emma discovered a long stock reed and planted some near her door. Then she bound

coconut fronds to one of the long reeds she cut. She invited women to her house to see her

sweep with a long handled broom. It caught on, and years later when Homer and Emma

were living back in Pittsburgh, they received a letter from the villagers, part of which went

like this-

"In the village of Chang 'Dong today, the backs of

our people are straight and firm. No longer

are their bodies painful and bent. You will be

pleased to know that on the outskirts of the

village we have constructed a small shrine in

your memory... At the foot are these words:

'In memory of the woman who unbent the backs

of our people.' "

Her concern about such a trivial thing as the length of broom handles had a significant

impact on the life of a whole people. As we approach another Christmas it is of interest to

focus on some of the trivial secular details the Bible records about this event. We will see that

trivia could be called significa.

Significa are the small and minor matters which, nevertheless, have great impact and

influence. Every trivial thing that Jesus touched He transformed into significa.

A cradle was a lowly thing

And held of little worth

Till Jesus in a cradle slept

When first he came to earth.

A woman was a chattel owned

To pamper, scorn, or sell

Till Jesus proffered Living Truth

To one at Jacob's well.

A child? Just one more mouth to feed!

Not held in high esteem

Till Jesus made a little lad

The center of his Theme.

The lowliest death there was to die