Christmas reflections, Part 4: Gifts

I often hear people complaining that buying presents at Christmas detracts from the real meaning of the celebration, although some Christians will make a tenuous link to the gifts that the Magi brought for baby Jesus (gold, frankincense and myrrh). While I agree that Christmas has been over-commercialised, I also think that gift giving is a wonderful tradition, with roots beyond Christianity, and that it can be meaningful if approached in the right spirit.

The story of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert exchanging wrapped gifts with members of the royal family certainly popularised the idea in the West, but it was by no means a new idea. The Roman festival of Saturnalia (3rd century BCE) included the giving of gifts, for example.

And then, Santa Claus dates back to the 4th century in Myra, part of modern day Turkey. St. Nicholas was a Christian bishop who was widely known for his acts of kindness and gifts for children and the poor. In one story, he gave gold coins to three sisters who could not afford dowries and therefore faced a life of insecurity as unmarried women. The legend grew and the practice of gift giving by a saintly figure spread throughout Europe.

In the Netherlands, it survived almost to this day in a similar form, with the pantomime figure of Sinterklaas, dressed as a bishop and with his now politically incorrect “Zwarte Pieten” (Black Peters) in attendance as helpers who give out gifts on St. Nicholas Eve on 5 December. It used to be that children would leave their shoes by the fireplace at night and awake to find them filled with sweets and other small presents. This is probably where Christmas stockings came from.

For me, the giving and receiving of gifts is simply a moment to express that we’ve given some thought and taken some time to appreciate those that we love or care about. The size or type of gift really doesn’t matter. And in the end, the best gift is spending time together. This is what the Iranian Yalda Night in ancient Persia was all about – a gathering during winter solstice to eat, drink and read poetry.