Not "Happy Holidays." Not "Season's Greetings." If it walks like a duck, and it talks like a duck...
I have often said that my real talent is my lack-of-originality. What I mean by this is that I am of above-average intelligence with mostly average writing skills. My true brilliance can be seen in the ability to find quotes and writings by individuals who possess far greater talent than I could even hope to have.
This week's missive by Danny Gordis [As I think I may have noted in an earlier posting, Rabbi Daniel Gordis (www.danielgordis.org) is Director of the Mandel Jerusalem Fellows, and the author, most recently, of If a Place Can Make You Cry: Dispatches from an Anxious State (Crown). If you ever have the chance to hear him speak, I highly recommend it!] is one of these gems. In Why Christmas is Good for the Jews, Rabbi Gordis articulates the true religious nature of our country and how it can strengthen American Judaism.
Today is not my holiday. Well, my holiday actually does start tonight...but you know what I mean. Christmas isn't about me. Nor is it about asserting my rights as a minority to be included in the biggest event of the year. Today is about the belief, held by the majority of this country, that on this day, for one moment, perfection existed in the form of an innocent, beautiful baby. A gift, Christians believe, of eternal salvation given to them in love. It is not right for me to lessen that message. And acknowledging that the Christmas message is an essential part of the Christams holiday in no way detracts from my faith, legitimacy, or freedoms.
And so, out of genuine respect and love for my friends and family who celebrate today, I wish them a Christmas filled with peace, warmth, and faith.
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