A "Black Swan Event" is when the unexpected occurs, causing a huge mindshift and change in how the world works. People never imagined that Black Swans existed, until the discovery of the first Black Swan... (as per book "The Black Swan", by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, 2007, that sold over 3 million copies)

Is a perception change the next Black Swan Event? Consider that by changing perception we might change the world. Look at everyday things from different angles. Find beauty in the unexpected...
Change our thinking, change our actions, change our world!

See that all people are part of God's puzzle and have something to give. Black swans do exist. The ugly duckling was actually a swan who needed to discover himself and where he fitted and be who he was meant to be. To the last, the lost and the least, you are beautiful as you are.
May all who visit this page feel God's touch and experience His blessing...

Thursday 28 March 2013

Celebrating the Cultural Heritage of Easter and Christmas

I used to worry that the meaning of Christmas and Easter had become corrupted. After all, I thought, aren't these days part of the Christian calendar, and strictly religious days? Then in a moment of personal revelation I changed my perception about what these days mean to me, and wondered if these days were ever days that God asked us to honour, but were instead rather days steeped in cultural heritage, with a religious background, honoured for religious significance by some, but as merely cultural by others, and for many of no importance. And I thought, surely there is space to have all views, as long as one knows the truth and background about these days?

Days of Easter and Christmas are times of the year when many countries with a Christian background stop working and when society grinds to a halt, which can be quite a welcome rest from the ongoing toil of daily life. People get together with family and friends, and rituals are shared, like easter egg hunts and gift swapping on Christmas day. The events have become part of the cultural tradition of many and I look forward with anticipation to these days myself too.

Festivities commemorating these events have their background in Biblical roots, directly stemming from Jesus' birth and His death and then resurrection from crucifixion, and His life is honoured in many church services at these times. Yet when I look at the Bible I see no mention of Easter or Christmas as specific times to set aside and to be honoured as Sabbath days. I do believe in honouring the Sabbath day, which for me is Saturday, the seventh day of the week, a day to be kept holy and to rest from our works. So, should Easter and Christmas be set aside as Sabbath days? Personally, I no longer think so, as aside from their Christian origins, these days have pagan origins too. But I do believe these days should be honoured as part of cultural heritage, as culture is a driving force behind identity, and I also believe that for Christians these days will always remain an opportunity to teach the background of how these days came about and why they are seen as so important to the Christian calendar.

I find it sad when people feel offended by seeing a Christmas tree in a shopping centre, especially as a tree is in no way a religious symbol, or when people feel they cannot say "Merry Christmas" for fear of offending others. Why on earth not?! Are you going to give away all of the cultural heritage of your own country? Surely there is space for us to be ourselves and to allow others to be themselves too? If you feel these are religious days, then honour these days as religious for you, and if you enjoy the traditions associated with Christmas and Easter, then take part in these as a cultural tradition. If you don't agree with Christmas at all, then ignore the tradition, and the same goes for Easter too. There are so many parallel streams of life, there must be space for each of us to find and to be ourselves, alongside each other.

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