A parade by any other name would be a controversy

This post was published in the Wilson Times on Sept. 28, 2019.

It would take a dang fool or an idiot to jump into a seething controversy over a parade. Well, here I go.

I should preface this by saying that I’m not much of a parade fan. I never watch parades on television and will not walk far to see a local parade.

According to the Wilson Times and some brief sociable conversations, Wilson officials decided to change the name of the annual parade from the Christmas Parade to the Holiday Parade. Because the parade had to be scheduled before Thanksgiving, it seemed logical to change the name to “Holiday” in order to recognize both Christmas and Thanksgiving.

Some people might think a Christmas Parade before Thanksgiving would be premature by at least a week, which is what happened last year when Wilson’s 2018 Christmas Parade took place on Nov. 17 (Thanksgiving was Nov. 22). So it seemed logical this year to call the event a Holiday Parade. Unfortunately, emotion often trumps logic.

This little brouhaha in Wilson reflects the nationwide hulabaloo over “Merry Christmas” versus “Happy Holidays.” Some religious conservatives saw in the late-year greeting that omits “Christmas” a conspiracy against Christianity. Politicians sought to win points by jumping on the “Merry Christmas or else!” bandwagon. There were claims that President Obama or some other politician had used the alternative greeting because they were anti-Christian. “Keep Christ in Christmas” became a slogan for those seeking to commemorate the birthday of Jesus of Nazareth.

Anyone who knows much about church history knows that Dec. 25 is an artificial date for Jesus’ birthday. The Gospels and other Christian writings do not state when Jesus was born. We don’t even know what year he was born (the latest scholarly estimate is around 4 B.C.) Luke and Matthew tell of events around Jesus’ birth but do not say when it occurred. The Gospels of John and Mark do not mention Jesus’ birth. In the early years of the church, there was no birthday celebration for Jesus.

So why do we celebrate Christmas in December? The simple explanation is that early Christians were absorbing pagan Winter Solstice holidays, and even adopting some pagan traditions, such as lighting candles, exchanging gifts and eating a celebratory meal. Bart D. Ehrman’s book “The Triumph of Christianity” credits the early Christians with deftly appropriating the most popular aspects of other religions, helping Christianity to become the dominant religion of the Roman Empire and beyond. The subtitle of his book is “How a Forbidden Religion Swept the World.”

Arguing that Christmas must be maintained in its purest, untainted form ignores the fact that the Apostles would not recognize this holiday, which became part of the church calendar in the Fourth Century, first had its own liturgy in the Ninth Century and was still evolving when Charles Dickens (who has been called “the man who invented Christmas”) wrote “A Christmas Carol” in 1843.

I find it odd that the most zealous opponents of “Happy Holidays” find nothing wrong with retailers hyping Christmas sales in October and people throwing out Christmas decorations just as Christmas is beginning. In the church calendar, Christmas begins Dec. 25 and ends Jan. 6, which is “Twelfth Night” or Epiphany. Dec. 26 is not Throw Out That Tree Day, it’s the second day of Christmas.

Jumping the gun on Christmas with decorations and sales and trees on display before Thanksgiving ignores one of the most reverent periods on the church calendar — Advent, which is celebrated the four weeks before Dec. 25. Advent provides a reflective, quiet time to consider the miracle of God becoming a man and living among us. Without Advent, Christians are not truly prepared for Christmas.

A wise pastor once told me that there are some things worth fighting for in the church and some things that aren’t. What to call a parade, it seems to me, is not a theological issue.

Christmas parade from a different perspective

Walking down Nash Street in the Wilson Christmas Parade Saturday afternoon, I waved to crowds of faces I didn't know. Many of them returned my wave. "Merry Christmas," I said to many of them and heard their greetings in reply. One spectator yelled out to me, "I read your blog all the time! Wish you were still at the paper." Surprised at the greeting, I could only wave and reply, "Thanks!" Occasionally, I would detect a familiar face and try to catch her attention. All the while, I kept walking and waving. This mile-long walk was not a physical challenge. It was more of a pleasant stroll, made more enjoyable by the sight of so many happy faces.

For 23 years, I lived a block from the parade's route, and my wife and I would gather up our children and walk down to Nash Street to see the parade. Too often, we would grow tired of the parade and head home before its end.

The parade has a different look and a different feel when you're part of it instead of a patient watcher from the sidewalk. The variety the parade offers to the watcher is nothing compared to the variety of faces and expressions the participants in the parade see. And even when the parade's momentum stalls on occasion, the pace for someone walking the parade is so much more lively than the pace for someone watching it. When I watched the parade, I might catch a couple of hundred faces. Walking in the parade, I saw a few thousand faces, ranging from excited children to dutiful adults who felt obligated to attend an important civic event to curmudgeons who wouldn't smile or laugh no matter what passed by.

After 20-some parades as a spectator, this was my third parade as a participant. The latter role is much more satisfying.

With parades, marching beats watching

A parade looks different from the inside. I found that out today when I marched in the Wilson Christmas parade, held five days before Thanksgiving! I had not watched a Wilson Christmas parade (or any other variety) in several years and have never been a huge fan of parades. The last time I watched the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade or the Rose Bowl parade on TV, I was probably too young to vote. When I lived a block from the Wilson parade route, I would usually walk down the street to see what the excitement was all about. One of my children appeared in the parade one year.

This year, I took part in the parade for the first time. Walking with other American Red Cross staff and volunteers, I marched along and waved, as if I were a beauty queen or a politician. The parade went quickly. I scanned the crowd for familiar faces and saw a few, including my 2-year-old grandson sitting on his dad's shoulders.

Being in the parade, I concluded, is more exciting than watching one. I saw more people I know, waved to them and heard my name called once or twice. And walking a mile or so sure beats standing around for hours. I'll be ready to do it again next year.