By Meghan Schrader
Meghan Schrader
It's the eve of my favorite holiday, Christmas. Hence, this blog post will probably be seen after Christmas, but for some people the Christmas season extends way out into Candlemas on February 2nd and I am one of those people. And, of course, Kwanzaa will happen after Christmas Day, and we still have New Years to celebrate, so the holiday season is not over yet.
For those of us for whom Christmas has religious significance, I think we can recognize a link between the influence of Christmas on mainstream culture and the Bible passage from Luke 2:10-11: "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause joy for all people." The angel is referring to the salvific birth of Jesus, but I think it is also a powerful statement about love and justice for people of all beliefs, cultural backgrounds and abilities.
One can also find touching examples of human community in the efforts of people
who do not celebrate the Christian aspect of Christmas but find ways to make
the holiday season a time of mercy and joy. For instance, there's an online
meme containing a picture of a sign by "The Chinese Restaurant Association
of the United States" thanking the Jewish community for eating Chinese
food on Christmas. The sign reads, "The Chinese Restaurant Association of
the United States would like to extend our thanks to the Jewish people. We do
not completely understand your dietary customs. But we are proud and grateful
that your God insist you eat our food on Christmas." (Snopes
assumption is that a Chinese restaurant owner put the sign in their window as a
joke.) The bottom of the sign includes the Taoist symbol of the Yin and Yang
and the Jewish Star of David. In addition to chuckling when I see it, I see it
as a humorous expression of solidarity between people from minority groups, and
a friendly holiday message to all people that "hey, we're all making our
way through this world together."
I find myself feeling moved by the story of Muslim restaurant owners in
London who offered free Christmas meals to the elderly and homeless in 2016.
"No one eats alone," the sign advertising a three course Christmas
meal read. "We are here to sit with you." The Independent's touching
description of the story behind the effort reads as follows:
Irfant Genc, 20, told the Independent that the idea was born out of an unexpected meeting with the elderly lady who turned up at the Shish Restaurant in Sidcup one cold night. She told staff that the open windows in her home were too high for her to reach and she was too scared to get on a chair to try and close them, he said.
After she asked them for help, staff made the two minute journey to her home, receiving a hug and thank you after they closed the windows and stopped the cold air drafting in.
By way of a thank you, the following day, the lady returned to eat at the restaurant. Staff became "emotional" after she admitted she was lonely, Mr. Genc said.
'She said that she had nothing else to do other than wait for death because her husband died years ago and there was no one to care for her. She said she was going to be alone on Christmas day," he added. "The old lady's story really hit us. No matter what religion we're from or what language we speak, we're here to help each other and support each other on a special day. We don't want anyone to be left out."
Muslims do not celebrate Christmas, yet the restaurant owners had the compassion in their hearts to put religious differences aside and assist marginalized people for whom Christmas is a special day. I think that's the kind of generosity that should motivate both efforts to oppose assisted suicide and to achieve disability rights in general. Disabled people having an equal opportunity to live is only the foundation of our inclusion in a diverse human community. I think the holidays provide an opportunity to reflect on the importance of people putting our differences and disagreements aside to create a better world where everyone is cared for and loved.
More articles by Meghan Schrader (Articles Link).
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