Do They Know it’s Christmas?- Advent Musings #2

 

As a reminder of where I left off last week, I outlined that at Advent, Christians are asked to remember and reflect upon the past, present and future of what Christ’s coming means to us and to the world. I admitted my own impatience as I wait for Christ’s final return where He will set all of creation right again, but I also acknowledged that as I not-so-patiently wait for this, in the meantime I get the privilege of witnessing glimpses of grace and hope right here and right now.

It’s during the 2^nd weekend of Advent that, among other things, we remember the feast of St. Nicholas. He was a holy man in the 5^th century striving to live out the Christian life in the best way that he knew how. Legend has it that when his parents died he inherited so much money that he’d never be able to spend it all. But instead of living a life of luxury, he chose to use that money to help people who were struggling through poverty.

Legend has it that there was a widow that he knew of that had 3 daughters. The widow had no source of income and so was very close to turning her three daughters out to the streets as prostitutes in order to pay the bills and put food on the table. But good old St. Nick was having none of that so he filled 3 bags full of gold and either slipped them in the house through a window or a door, or actually dropped these bags down their chimney. The woman and her daughters were spared a life of humiliation and degradation.

Long story short, this is the origin of our current form of gift giving at Christmas as well as what has now become Santa Claus. This very righteous act of kindness has been destroyed over the centuries by human greed and turned into the disgusting self-centred shop-till-you-drop nastiness that is Christmas today.

At Gateway, thankfully we’ve seen some resistance to this.

Every year we have a Christmas store. We know that the men who stay with us have loved ones (a child, a parent or family member, a partner, etc.) that they want to give a gift to. But being homeless doesn’t exactly make it easy to go and buy something for them. So unfortunately every year they have to go and beg for these gifts from some gift depot or toy distribution place and give it to their loved one. But deep down inside it becomes another humiliating reminder of their inability to provide for the ones they love. So we at Gateway buy about $1000 worth of toys and trinkets and set up a Christmas store. Then our residents can either buy these gifts at very discounted prices, or they can do chores to earn coupons to purchase them. This way, when they give their loved ones a gift at Christmas, they know that they’ve earned it and didn’t have to beg for it. After all, as Jesus Himself has said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”

But some guys are so alone and so alienated from anyone that they once loved, that they have no one to give a gift to at Christmas. So last year a group of men who fit this description showed me a beautiful glimpse of wonder and hope and community. These 3 or 4 men decided they’d do a bunch of chores and earn as many coupons as they could, and then buy up as many things as possible from our Christmas store and donate them back to a gift distribution centre so that they could help less fortunate families at Christmas. After all, it is more blessed to give than it is to receive.

Now, while this was quite a bit awkward for us as it sort of defeated the purpose of what we were trying to do, it was a moving display of beauty and selflessness that really demonstrated that while the world certainly isn’t all right, there are some miraculous things to witness right here and right now that remind us that there is still much to hope in; even amongst those that much of the rest of the world has discarded and left behind as having no value.

So in this 2^nd week of Advent, let’s reclaim the legacy of St. Nicholas and let’s keep our eyes open for glimpses of hope. They’re all around us; especially in places we least expect to find them.

Still waiting.

Dion

Writer: The Concise Oxford is written by Dion Oxford who, along with his wife, Erinn, and daughter, Cate, live in Toronto, Canada and are committed to journeying alongside people in the margins of society. He and Erinn have spent a combined 30 years working amongst folks who are living on the streets of Toronto. Dion is a recovering Salvationist who currently worships at an evangelical Anglican church but still works for The Salvation Army at the Gateway, a shelter for men experiencing homelessness. He and his wife see the solution to homelessness as the church taking seriously the two great commandments of loving God and loving our neighbour. He likes to read, write, fly kites, cycle long distances, watch TV, play in his band and hang out with his friends.

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