How can Traditions help us Remember the True Meaning of Christmas?

Christmas is a season filled with traditions.

One of my favorites is going with my husband’s family to pick out the family Christmas tree. After selecting the tree, we spend the evening together decorating it and the rest of the house. When the work is finished, we sit together in only the light of the tree to admire our handiwork with doughnuts and homemade hot chocolate in hand. 

Over the years, this tradition has changed shape and form. Eighteen years ago when I first joined the family for this special occasion there were only six adults. Slowly our numbers grew. First spouses were added then the grandchildren. This year thirty-two hands joined together to bring Christmas to life. 

While the look and feel of this treasured tradition has ebbed and flowed, the core of it has remained the same.

Tradition holds in it the gift of remembering. Handing ornaments to my young nephews reminded me of when my now teenage daughter was a toddler. Every ornament handed to her ended up on the same branch of the tree. Watching my father-in-law find a seat on the couch opposite the tree reminded me of the years he would throw ornaments across the room as his way of helping decorate. This always led to a scolding from his wife and daughter and giddy laughter from his sons. No matter how the tradition plays out, the core of the event stays the same.

Just as traditions trigger memories, we celebrate Christmas every year to remember.

We remember a baby in a manger, his virgin mother, shepherds, and angels. Why is it so important to remember the story of Jesus’ birth? We often point to the fact that without Christmas we could not have Easter, which is very true. If Jesus did not come into the world as a baby and grow into a man, he could not die on our behalf as an atonement for our sins. But I think there is something more to remember.

Jesus being born as an infant reminds us he was fully man. The night of his birth was likely far from silent. As a first-time mother, Mary may have struggled to help her son figure out nursing or how to comfort him when he was upset. Jesus would have cried when his tummy hurt from gas or when he was over tired. He likely fell and scraped his chin when his little toddler legs tried to figure out how to walk. Jesus probably experienced a time when his feelings were hurt by a friend, leading him to seek comfort in his mother’s loving embrace.

Year after year when we pull out the nativity scene and neatly arrange it, it can become easy to think of baby Jesus as only a character in the Christmas story.

He becomes the cartoon we watch with our children or the mythical being we sing about in our favorite carols. But the truth is, Jesus was fully human (Galatians 4:4, Philippians 2:7, John 1:14). He hit all of the same milestones we eagerly watch for our children to achieve as he grew from infancy to manhood. 

When we view the humanity of Jesus in this way, it takes him from being less like a ceramic figurine and more like the baby we have held in our own arms at one time or another. A figurine does not feel the emotions we feel, experience and overcome temptation, or attend dinner parties with friends. But Jesus did all of these things. He wept at the loss of a close friend (John 11:35) and rejoiced at the successes of other friends (Luke 10:21-24). 

This year as we celebrate all of our favorite Christmas traditions, let’s remember the humanity of Jesus and his relatability to us.

As part of God’s divine plan, He came to earth as a man to have a personal relationship with us. He wants to be so much more to us than the caricatures of many of our Christmas decorations.

When you think of the baby Jesus, what image comes to mind? How does acknowledging the humanity of Jesus change the way you relate to him? What is one way this Christmas you can help yourself and others around you remember that the birth of Jesus is more than just a mystical story?