The real meaning of Christmas

Keep the Christ in Christmas. Sure, we’ve probably all heard that phrase a thousand times, but I can’t help it: It always makes me smile. “Keep the Christ in Christmas” is, of course, a good reminder about the real meaning of Christmas. But what I love most about it is that it makes me think of a Christmas Day in Park City, Utah—a day when I discovered the real meaning of the holiday in a way I never had before.

On Christmas Eve, I’d been skiing with my brother and found myself moving through variable terrain faster than I could handle. Before I knew it, I lost a ski and was forced to take a dive before I ended up in the patch of trees right in front of me. As I tumbled, my knee twisted, and I instantly knew that everything was not all right. My brother helped gather up my scattered equipment and I was able to get down the hill and back home on one leg.

Still, something was clearly wrong with my knee, and that night, I decided to excuse myself from my family’s holiday traditions so I could spend some time alone with God. From previous healings I’d had, I knew that I could turn from matter to Spirit and experience the coming of Christ—God’s power to heal—right where I was.

Reading the first few pages of the Preface of Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures was especially helpful. I loved the way Mary Baker Eddy’s introduction used the concept of light in dozens of different ways, and as I read, I began to experience that illumination. I felt the Christ-light there, shifting my thought toward Spirit. And it was with this enlightened view of creation that I began to read the Bible.

As I read, I caught a glimpse of the Christ light in the story of Peter and John healing the lame man outside the temple, Beautiful. ¹ I thought it was amazingly cool that the Apostles were able to actively practice what Christ Jesus taught them, and to say with such clear conviction, “Rise up and walk.” These words were radical, and totally shifted this man’s thought from a belief of disability and limitation to a more spiritual view of himself. He glimpsed the Christ, and what happened next is wonderful: “And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God.” ²

My faith rested on these ideas that night, and with the snow falling gently outside, I made the decision to go into work the next morning. This wouldn’t be easy: As a lift operator, I’m not only on my feet all day, but I’m also responsible for moving snow to craft the snow ramp. But with the Christ-light shining in my thought, I knew I didn’t have to worry. The next day was Christmas, after all. It was the perfect opportunity for me to experience the healing power of Love, which Jesus embodied, but which is there for each of us, for all time.

As Christmas Day progressed my enthusiasm for the significance of the holiday began to bubble over. Pretty soon, I was bellowing, “MERRY CHRISTMAS!” to everyone who was skiing by. I felt surrounded by God’s boundless good.

Sure enough, while I was taking a lift back to the other side of the mountain during my break, the most wonderful sense of eternal, unbreakable harmony came to thought. I felt palpably that everything was perfect. It was as though the Christ idea was present in my consciousness, quietly sharing this beautiful truth with me. At that moment, I knew I was healed. I was definitely “walking, and leaping, and praising God” when I ran off that chairlift!

Not only was the fear of this “season-ending injury” completely removed from my thought, but I also experienced no physical limitations after that moment. I was able to cheerfully ski for the rest of the week and enjoy the holidays with my family. As for keeping the Christ in Christmas? Well, that Christmas day on the slopes proved the light, power, and joy that we experience when we do.