The Christmas holidays in the United States feel like Chuseok or Lunar New Year holidays in Korea. In the United States, where it is common for everyone to live far apart, they find time from Christmas to New Year's Day, to meet, share food, and spend time with family they have not seen for some time.
This year's Christmas was no different from previous years. Beautiful Christmas decorations everywhere, cafes and stores with carols blaring, excited people, and supermarkets and stores that were busier than usual were all things that made his heart flutter.
However, there was something he felt particularly different while spending this Christmas season in the States. People’s greetings have changed. Obviously, the representative Christmas greeting is ‘Merry Christmas,’ but many people who use it have disappeared. Instead, more people say ‘Happy Holidays!’
The United States is a multi-ethnic country and people of various religions live there, including Jews, Muslims, and Hindus. At some point, the concept that greeting people without emphasizing 'Christmas' was being open to other peoples' feelings, and being more inclusive. Consequently, Happy Holidays for people of different religions began to spread in society, and as a result, with the best of intentions the use of Merry Christmas as a greeting continues to decrease.
But in fact, the meanings of these two greetings are very different. ‘Happy Holidays’ literally means saying ‘Have a nice holiday!’ The holidays are coming soon, so have a good time. ‘Merry Christmas’ has a much bigger and more important meaning.
‘Merry’ means ‘rejoicing’ rather than ‘happy’, and ‘Christmas’ means ‘Christ’s Mass’. Therefore, when put together, it means ‘Rejoice in the Mass of Christ!’
‘Merry Christmas’ means for believers to remember and be thankful for the birth of Jesus, the Creator of the world, who came among us as a child. ‘Happy Holidays’ to people of different religions may be hiding Jesus and not sharing the gospel with those who are Christians.
Jesus said this: “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to every creature.” (Mark 16:15) Therefore, the mission of proclaiming the gospel has been given to all of us. Although becoming a missionary and receiving a mission to proclaim the gospel is something else. He thinks that the greeting of proclaiming the gospel, “Merry Christmas,” is something that all of us can do.
In a world where it is difficult to find Jesus among all the fancy things we see during the season, one thing that is indispensable to Christmas is Jesus Christ. If 'Christ' is missing from Christmas, if Jesus Christ, who came to the world as an infant to save us, was not lying in a manger, there would be no brilliant Christmas tree, no sound of carols, no Santa Claus waiting for children to say 'Merry Christmas' but a ‘fun holiday’. Even though it might be a little embarrassing, how about remembering this next Christmas? 'Merry Christmas!'
