Time of the Season

I was raised a W.A.S.P. - White, Anglo-Saxon, Protestant. By choice I am agnostic, meaning at its basic I do not believe in organized religion. I have different ideas and notions about faith, spirituality, etc. Does that mean I do not believe in a god? To be frank, I have never been enraptured by the spirit, felt a calling toward faith, etc. But that does not preclude me from believing that there just very well could be a "god," in whatever form they may chose to take. Think how gullible and stupid people are today, and go back a few millennia when that can be coupled with superstition and mysticism. How do we know this "god" was/is not just some superior race or whatever that came to Earth, for good or bad?

That said, at Christmas time I seemingly get caught up in a duality of conscience, as I like to call it. How do I celebrate a holiday based on religious principles, particularly Christianity, and the birth of Jesus Christ? If I do not believe in organized religion, how can I celebrate one of its venerated traditions like Christmas? The question is, do I believe there was a man who lived over 2,000 years ago named Jesus Christ? Yes. Do I believe he had good intentions and ideas? Yes. Do I believe his words and teachings have been manipulated and distorted by organized religion? Yes.

So, in the end, I can celebrate the man while ignoring the minutiae of organized religion. Why? Because, for one thing, I am tired of being cynical of the world. Believing in something - in this case, a man with principles and convictions that transcends all times - just might erode that feeling. One can only hope.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year.

©2007 Steve Sagarra