Boycott XMas?

Recently I was driving to work and passed a church where I saw a sign that said "Boycott Xmas." It was followed by four more signs "Burma Shave style" proclaiming "love more," "buy less," "give more," and "worship wholly." At first glance the signs just didn't make sense. As I drove home later in the day, I saw the signs again and yes, I did agree that we should buy less, give more, and love more, and certainly I should worship my Lord wholly with all my heart, soul, and mind.

But "Boycott Xmas? I was somewhat offended by the message in front of a church. Why would I want to boycott Christmas? Don't Christians know that X is the Greek letter standing for Christ and that Xmas began as an abbreviation rather than an effort to take Christ out of Christmas? The Greek letter "X" has been used as a shortened form of Christ in many compounds, including Christmas, for more than 1000 years. Use of Xmas for Christmas goes back to the 18th century where the use of the Greek letter X was used for conciseness in many early writings. It was by no means devised by modern secularization to take Christ out of Christmas.

It bothers me that we as Christians have taken such offense at the use of Xmas in place of Christmas when we could be using it as a reminder of our Lord just as much as the word Christmas. I am not offended when I see the word "Xmas." Instead I see it as a shortened form of Christmas - often because there is not enough space to spell out the word. I would much rather see Xmas than the C-mas that I have seen at some places. At least X stands for Christ. Give me Xmas over "happy holidays," "season's greetings," and "winter holiday" anytime because I am reminded of the true meaning of Christmas. Let's stop decrying the use of Xmas and use it as an opportunity to proclaim to the world the X of Xmas - Jesus Christ our Savior and Lord!

So Merry Xmas to all of you! Enjoy celebrating the birth of Jesus with your family and friends. Concentrate on the true "reason for the season." And be reminded to "buy less, give more, love more, and worship wholly." But please, don't boycott Xmas!

Vacation - Part 3

Yesterday was a beautiful sunny day. We were going to visit Monticello again (we had been there several years ago), but out wonderful host Chris suggested that if we had enjoyed Monticello we would probably be interested in visiting Poplar Forest, Thomas Jefferson's summer retreat. We thought that sounded like a good idea so we set off over a winding mountain road toward Lynchburg. Believe me the road wound around and around in very serpentine directions down and up the mountains - it was actually worse than any of the curves on the Skyline Drive. I had to close my eyes and lean back against my seat and even then I felt nauseous. I was glad when we reached the main road again!

Poplar Forest was fascinating. Thomas Jefferson was ingenious in his architecture and designs. He had a penchant for octagons and so this house was also built as an octagon. Quite intriguing, really. The site is a work in progress, so even if we go back in several years, it will be different.

After visiting Poplar Forest we came back to the B&B via Bedford, VA where we stopped to see the D-Day memorial. It is quite a moving monument to our men and women who served during the invasion of Normandy. Back at the B&B we relaxed and read for awhile before dinner at the Southern Inn. I am certain that the world's best pecan pie is found there!

This morning after breakfast and visiting some more with our hosts, Chris and Linda Best, we headed home. If you are ever in the Lexington, VA area I would highly recommed their B&B, Applewood Inn as a place to stay. Out in the country, back a dirt road it is a picturesque place to relax and rest. This was our second opportunity to stay there and if we are in the area again, we will certainly make that our place to stay! By the way, the picture at the top of this blog was taken along the narrow, winding road leading back to the Applewood Inn last fall when we visited.