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| Image credit: castelinok |
Odds are good that sometime this holiday season you’ll watch
a Christmas movie in which the characters struggle to find “the true meaning of
Christmas.” Of course, it’s unpopular for mainstream films to identify the real
reason we celebrate Christmas, the birth of Jesus Christ, so they spout off
various “true meanings,” such as giving gifts or serving others, spending time
with family and friends, or the idea that joy comes from people, not things.
These are great aspects of the holiday, but they only represent how we
celebrate Christ’s birth. One of my favorite themes in Christmas movies is anti-materialism
, such as in A Charlie Brown Christmas.
I’m embarrassed to say, however, that I was ignorant of the delicious irony of
these films until recently. The creators of these movies are selling you
something that tells you not to buy stuff. How can they pull this off? Because
anti-materialism sells. Oh, man, this is the kind of irony that I just
loooooove.
You might think that I’m bashing these movies, but I’m
really not. Honestly, I’ll probably enjoy A
Charlie Brown Christmas more now that I can appreciate the irony. You see,
I’ve come to believe that there’s nothing wrong with buying things or with
money. The problem comes when we “set [our] hearts upon riches and upon the
vain things of the world” (Alma 4:8). I remember when I was younger, I used to
think that the items I put on my Christmas list would change my life. One
particular example I can think of is when I asked for a Game Boy Advance. I was
so excited when I opened it up on Christmas morning, and I thought my life
would be drastically improved, but as it turns out, my life was pretty much the
same. Sure, it brought me some pleasure, but that was it. In time, I’ve come to
view what I put on my Christmas list differently. I think the items will bring
me some pleasure, entertainment, and possibly even enrichment, but overall, I’ve
come to understand that joy in life comes from people, not things.
