Christian Author Diana Butler Bass Chided Fox News for Emphasizing the Wrong Things about Christmas — Her Essay about the Meaning of Advent — and Fox’s Obtuseness in Disregarding It

© 2012 Peter Free

 

12 December 2012

 

 

Spiritual hypocrisy combined with political opportunism mars too much of our culture

 

The following essay uses Fox News as one prong of an example that targets widespread American hypocrisy.

 

Though I happen to agree with Fox News that we have forgotten the meaning of Christmas, I do not agree that this change has something predominantly to do with secularists’ actions.

 

Instead, the decline has to do with Christians themselves (Fox among them), who are ignoring the historically established spiritual meaning of the season.

 

 

Fox’s fight against the War on Christmas illustrates the network’s penchant for ignoring facts, History, and the requirements of rational thinking — as well as its ignorance of widely accepted Christian theology

 

My argument here has two prongs:

 

First, Fox News’ anti-historical irrationality assumes that the Separation of Church and State is synonymous with an attack on Christianity.

 

Second, in defending Christianity from the non-existent War on Christmas, the network forgets the theological meaning of the season that it is trying to protect.

 

 

Prong One — Fox’s battle with the non-existent “War on Christmas” — and the network’s refusal to recognize the historical merit of the Separation of Church and State

 

Fox News invented a secularist “War on Christmas” in order to draw attention to itself as a staunch protector of American Christianity.

 

The fact that there is no substantial sign of anti-Christian secularism in America apparently was not enough to dissuade the network from indulging its paranoid ploy.

 

Pertinent here, Fox frequently conflates (meaning illogically “mixes”) political secularists’ efforts to enforce the Separation of Church and State with an imaginary effort to wipe Christianity itself out.  Look, for instance, at the examples posted on Fox’s War on Christmas webpage, here.

 

Given that a majority some American colony’s colonists fled Europe to escape religious persecution, the Fox network’s apparent opposition to the separation concept is revealing.  When Fox thoughtlessly argues that America was and is a Christian nation — so as to defend its idea that government entities be allowed to overtly display Christian related paraphernalia — it forgets the homicidal conflicts that various sects of Christians historically fought against each other.

 

Christians are not all cut from one identical cloth.  Therefore, sensible people fear letting individual sects or religions run government.  We need look no farther than Iraq, for example, to see what government sponsored sectarianism achieves.

 

Fox’s intentional:

 

lapse of historical memory

 

and

 

its inability to reason based on facts 

conveniently end-run the reason that the Separation of Church and State concept exists in the American Constitution.

 

Political secularists’ judicial efforts to enforce the Constitutional provision does not actually constitute a War on Christmas (or Christians) — except in the minds of people who are incapable of imagining themselves subject to a Government that is not sympathetic to their own brand of religiosity.

 

 

Prong Two — Fox’s equally false recall of Christian theology

 

After inventing the War on Christmas, Fox’s “Merry Christmas” crusade revealed its ignorance of the theology that it was allegedly defending.

 

Yesterday, Christian author, Diana Butler Bass (who holds a PhD in religious studies from Duke) took Fox to task.  I quote Dr. Bass because she goes to the heart of the spiritual hypocrisy that so fundamentally characterizes the Fox network.

 

 

Citation — to the Diana Butler Bass essay

 

Diana Butler Bass, Fox News’ War on Advent, Huffington Post (11 December 2012)

  

What Dr. Bass said — about Fox News, Christmas, and the meaning of Advent

 

She started off with the meaning of Advent, which spans the days of the year that Fox News is addressing with its fight against the War on Christmas:

 

With FOX News seeking to expose those who refuse to say "Merry Christmas" as secular collaborators to the War on Christmas, I confess that I am confused.

 

According to ancient Christian tradition, "Christmas" is not the December shopping season in advance of Christmas Day; rather, it is Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and the Twelve Days following that run until early January.

 

During most of December, Christians observe Advent, a four-week season of reflection, preparation and waiting that precedes the yearly celebration of Jesus' birth.

 

In many mainstream and liturgical (and even liberal and progressive) churches, no Christmas hymn will pass the lips of a serious churchgoer for another two weeks.

 

There are no poinsettias, no Christmas pageants, no trees or holly, and no red and green altar linens. There are no twinkling lights or over-the-top Christmas displays. Just four candles in a simple wreath, two partially burned, two yet to be lit.

 

The world waits, and it is time to prepare for the arrival of God's kingdom. It is not Christmas. It is Advent.

 

During these weeks, churches are not merry.

 

Does FOX News want us all to say "Merry Christmas" so we forget about Advent?

 

© 2012 Diana Butler Bass, Fox News’ War on Advent, Huffington Post (11 December 2012) (paragraphs split)

 

 

Bass notices that Fox hypocritically misses the most essential spiritual point of the Christmas season

 

Her key point:

 

These, after all, are the four weeks that the Christian tradition dedicates to God's vision of justice for the outcast and oppressed, not to celebrating the sound of ringing cash registers or Victorian America values.

 

Ancient Christian saints, theologians and evangelists would be horrified that those who claim to stand for tradition have forgotten the most important aspect of it. Jesus Christ was not born that human beings would spend December shopping or saying, "Merry Christmas."

 

Perhaps FOX thinks it might be best if Christians did not spend too much time contemplating a Savior who promised to overthrow the powers-that-be in favor of a kingdom where the poor are blessed and the last shall be first.

 

That's probably bad for business and does not exactly fit with their favored political philosophy.

 

And maybe, just maybe, the real war of this season is the War on Advent.

 

© 2012 Diana Butler Bass, Fox News’ War on Advent, Huffington Post (11 December 2012) (paragraphs split)

 

 

Are Bates’ arguments trivial?

 

I don’t think so.

 

Perhaps because I, too, have been increasingly offended at the consumerization of Christmas, at the expense of its once spiritual meaning.  I would say this even about the Northern Hemisphere pagan winter solstice celebration, which for some indicated gratitude for the return of the sun.

 

If Fox News were genuinely concerned about the state of Christian Christmas, it would point believers in the right spiritual direction.  Somber reflection, hopeful anticipation, gratitude and joy.

 

Instead, Fox decided to start a political fight about something that is not really happening.

 

In mislabeling the Separation of Church and State as a “War on Christmas,” Fox News ignored facts, political and religious history, and rational thinking — as well as the deepest values of the religion that the network is pretending to protect.

 

 

The moral? — Fox’s connection to genuine Christianity is marginal, and its regard for rationally objective analysis too frequently nonexistent

 

Fox News would benefit from meaningfully taken Advent time.