Podcast #32: Tis the Season to Argue!
Rich and Ben take the gloves off and go head to head!
by Richard Clark
2 December 2008
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7 Comments 
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This week: Rich and Ben take the gloves off and go head to head! Duels commence over the following topics: how Christians should celebrate Christmas, Twilight, and Redemptive themes in film. (SPOILER: They are still friends in the end.)
Posts discussed in this show:
The “Twilight” Movie: Redefining “Natural” by Means of the Supernatural
Robert Downey Jr., Walk the Line, and the Problem of Redemptive Themes
Every week, Richard Clark and Ben Bartlett sit back and discuss the posts of the previous week on Christ and Pop Culture, acknowledge and respond to the big issues in popular culture, and give a sneak peak at the week ahead.
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I am looking forward to Christmas presents.
For me, the commercialism of the season doesn’t distract at all from the meaning of the season. Instead, all that hubbub only serves to heighten what I feel is the raison de la saison. This is, of course, because for me, the meaning of Christmas is the giving and giving of gifts and the celebration that surrounds such charity.
This is why I will always celebrate Christmas happily despite the fact that it has nothing to do with Christ or his advent. I won’t, however, allow myself to be distracted by those who who sham the holiday by making it about Christ (and sham the Christ in the process). I think too much both of the holiday and of my Lord to mingle the two into some two-fold diluted chimera.
For me, every week is a celebration of advent, but only December is regular a celebration of remarkable generosity.
The Danes last blog post..20081119.ChurchLies
I haven’t listened to the podcast yet guys, but great picture!
[...] the Season to Argue!” December 3, 2008 Listen to the latest podcast from Christ and Culture: “This week: Rich and Ben take the gloves off and go head to head! Duels commence over the [...]
I just finished this episode, guys and I really enjoyed it! I always love hearing average things being somewhat over-thought. I especially love how certain Ben is that he is only telling his son that Santa Clause is fake. Ha and the picture is great, too.
Nick Keutzers last blog post..Erratic Thought #12
Boy Ben you sure are extremely careful about how you say things: i.e. “Well, I do think Christmas has clear connections to…umm…to Christians’ desire to appreciate the fact that God incarnated himself, came to earth, as a man.”
Carefully chosen words, friend! I think Nick might be right…”somewhat Over-thought.”
You’ve got to be kidding me. I am confused. While culture is a very strong force in our world, we can’t just abandon our Christian & Christmas traditions because current culture has distorted the truth.
This is the same as what happened back in the late 50’s early 60’s when Christians decided to walk away from Hollywood and culture and let the world define everything.
We cannot just blow off the true meaning of Christmas just because the rest of the world is distorting and changing the meaning of things.
How on earth are we going to transform culture if we hide in the back of the room and ignore what’s happening? I would much rather hear people talking about how we can bring light to the old Christmas traditions, rather than dumping on the traditions because people have different perceptions of it than believers do. We should be trying to change those perceptions, rather than throwing in the towel.
@Paul:
When you say “our” Christmas traditions, you really mean “your” Christmas traditions. Why is it that I, as a Christian, should embrace your fabricated traditions for a fabricated holiday rather than hold my own fabricated traditions for a fabricated holiday?
It’s not like Christmas is inherently Christian.
Certainly, a goodly number of believers over the years have decided that Jesus is the reason for the season, but extrabiblical covenants and traditions only bind those who feel the desire to honour them. You are, of course, welcome to keep a tradition that says the Advent is the meaning for Christmas—but there’s nothing necessary to the holiday that demands or suggests that this should be the case.
Further, ignoring for a now the fact that the church is not called to transform culture, if we were to seek the transformation of culture, the only adequate means of doing so would be the transformation of those who create the culture (i.e., all the members of the society), not the filtering of that society’s cultural produce.
So get off that high horse, Buck-o. Before you get hurt.
The Danes last blog post..20081119.ChurchLies
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