A Thanksgiving Tradition

An Introduction to Traditions

Charlie Brown is as traditional to Thanksgiving as turkey, pumpkin pie and football.

Speaking of football, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving begins with Lucy convincing Charlie Brown that place-kicking a football on Thanksgiving is a great honor. It usually is a great honor to be part of anything that is steeped in tradition.

But of course Charlie Brown will never kick that football; at least not as long as Lucy is the holder!

This scene serves to remind us that traditions sometimes do fade away. 

One of the most long-standing traditions in the world is that of Passover. It has been a part of the Jewish faith for nearly 3500 years. But it was not something that was traditionally celebrated at first – not like it is now. In fact, the Bible makes a big deal about the first couple of times that the Children of Israel actually celebrated Passover (or the Feast of Unleavened Bread) because they did NOT traditionally celebrate every year.

Traditions are important. Every family has its own traditions.

What are some of your family Thanksgiving traditions?

Another Holiday to Worry About

Holidays – for adults at least – can be very stressful times. Not so much for kids, although Charlie Brown is an exception. He even says clearly that Thanksgiving is “another holiday to worry about.” Charlie Brown’s worries about this particular Thanksgiving are that he has three, somewhat uninvited, guests coming for the holiday dinner. While his sister Sally offers an explanation for why this has happened – because Charlie Brown is so “wishy-washy” – there is probably a better reason. The worry that accompanies many holiday traditions comes from a need to please.

Traditions – The Need to Please

Charlie Brown has a need to please other people. This is something that is, to a certain degree, in every person. We want people to like us. We want to make other people happy. And when people have company coming over, people usually have a desire to feed them well. Charlie Brown’s dilemma is that not only does he have three guests coming for Thanksgiving dinner, his culinary prowess is limited to “cold cereal and maybe toast.”

But for all of Charlie Brown’s wishy-washiness, he is not without friends who will help him in his desperate hour. Linus, Snoopy and Woodstock will all help

Snoopy learns the lesson that with every traditional holiday there are sometimes battles to be fought. Deadlines to meet, menus to fill, gifts to be bought, cleaning, setting the table, etc. Snoopy’s battles happen to be with ping-pong tables and chaise lounges.

But soon, Snoopy orchestrates a new traditional meal.

What are your traditional meals for Thanksgiving?

Charlie Brown’s New Traditional Thanksgiving Dinner is:

Two slices of buttered toast,
Some pretzel sticks,
A handful of popcorn, and
A few jelly beans.

The Real Thanksgiving – More than Meal

Of course, Peppermint Patty is not happy with this new tradition. Oh, and by the way, Peppermint Patty is a girl. There seems to be some confusion as to that recently. She’s what used to be called a “tom-boy,” a girl who tends to do things that are more traditional for boys to do: play baseball, wear comfortable clothes, stuff like that.

Patty takes out her anger on her host, breaking his heart. Patty then is reminded what Thanksgiving is really all about. It isn’t about a meal – it is about being thankful for what you have.

You and I have plenty to be thankful for – Jesus Christ being at the top of the list. His salvation given to us as a free gift is the reason we should be thankful, especially at this time of year. Because our sins are forgiven, we can get together and get along with our family and friends. Even at what can be a stressful time of year!

But Let’s Not Forget the Meal!

A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving closes with a reminder that while the real Thanksgiving is more than a meal, we should not forget the meal!

It doesn't have to be turkey, mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie. It can be salmon steaks with oyster sauce. It can be PB&J’s with cold milk.

But each meal is important, so much so that the Bible refers to heaven as a banquet, a feast to come.

So this Thanksgiving, as you gather around a meal with your family and friends, remember to give God thanks for all His gifts to you, number one of which is Jesus Christ! Don’t let the holiday stress you out, enjoy it and help others to enjoy it and give thanks.

A Charlie Brown Christmas

Christmas time is here

Happiness and cheer

Fun for all that children call

Their favorite time of the year

Snowflakes in the air

Carols everywhere

Olden times and ancient rhymes

Of love and dreams to share

Sleigh bells in the air

Beauty everywhere

Yuletide by the fireside

And joyful memories there

Christmas time is here

We'll be drawing near

Oh, that we could always see

Such spirit through the year

Oh, that we could always see

Such spirit through the year...

-          Vince Guaraldi – Lee Mendelson

This song has been a part of my Christmas my whole life – literally. I was born in 1965 and that was the same year that A Charlie Brown Christmas premiered on CBS-TV. It is hard to imagine a Christmas in the United States without watching this beloved special. 50 million people are estimated to have watched it in 1965 and it has retained such ratings through the 47 years since.

At the heart of A Charlie Brown Christmas is, ironically enough, depression. Young Charlie Brown finds himself in a deep funk at Christmas time. Even though it is a white Christmas, even though there are presents, decorations, and all that we’re taught goes into making Christmas Christmas, Charlie Brown is not happy. He feels he should be, but can’t quite figure out why he is not.

Even though Charlie Brown is 7 or 8 years old, he’s an “every man.” He embodies the feelings of so many at this time of year. It is sad that so many people are depressed at what is supposed to be a joyous time of year. It isn’t hard to imagine why, though, is it? The stress and anxiety caused by difficult economic times, or the sadness of facing a Christmas for the first time without a loved one, certainly make Christmas a less-than-joyful time of year.

If you turn on the TV, you will be bombarded with the messages that all it takes to make Christmas Christmas will be “stuff.” A new car, new clothes, a bigger and better TV, cologne, perfume, a computer tablet, or simply money, money, money will put you in the proper Christmas mood.

This commercialism is bemoaned of in A Charlie Brown Christmas and, before that, Miracle on 34^th Street, and even A Christmas Carol.

Charlie Brown’s beagle, Snoopy, is getting into the commercial mood of Christmas. Then there is Charlie Brown’s little sister, Sally. Even his five- or six-year-old sister has been indoctrinated into the commercialism of Christmas. Even though she can’t write to Santa Claus herself, she does dictate the letter to her older brother and closes with a plan to make things easy on Santa, suggesting to him that he simply bring “$10’s and $20’s” as her Christmas presents!

I don’t have a problem with commerce. Bartering, buying and selling have been around for nearly as long as there have been people. And the topic of money is an important topic in the Bible, as it is mentioned over 2000 times (according to the website http://www.biblemoneymatters.com/bible-verses-about-money-what-does-the-bible-have-to-say-about-our-financial-lives/ accessed December, 2012).

Like most things, the problem lies in the mire of over-indulging in commercialism. Sally has made Christmas all about “getting all you can get while the getting is good” (actually a quote from the sequel to A Charlie Brown Christmas called It’s Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown). Snoopy feels Christmas is another opportunity to win big prizes (by decorating).

Ironically enough, A Charlie Brown Christmas, was originally aired with several product placements by its original sponsor – Coca Cola – which made it difficult to edit for future airings (resulting in several scenes cut out entirely).

Charlie Brown seeks answers from Lucy – the neighborhood psychologist. Interestingly enough, Lucy diagnoses Charlie Brown’s problem as having to do with fear. She tries to find out what Charlie Brown is afraid of.

It seems to me that some people have trouble with Christmas because they are afraid – afraid of being alone, afraid of unrequited love, afraid of missing out of the joy they feel should be a part of the season. These are all understandable fears, to me at least. I feel that way because they are very real fears.

Lucy’s prescription for Charlie Brown is “involvement” – by which she means he should direct the Christmas Play. With this suggestion, Charlie Brown’s heart begins to melt and a genuine smile appears on his face for the first time.

Still, Charlie Brown hasn’t quite figured out what is missing. Even though it is clear that the Christmas play is the story of the Nativity of Jesus Christ (there are shepherds, animals, an innkeeper and his wife, who has naturally curly hair), something is missing. The kids seem to know their parts and the parts that go with the story, but all they are interested in is dancing (having a good time).

Charlie Brown tries to capture the proper mood to get the play going – by providing a Christmas tree. But upon presenting a real Christmas tree, his fear comes crashing in on him when all the kids ridicule him and even his own dog rejects his contribution to the play.

In a final, desperate, act of supplication Charlie Brown cries out “Isn’t there anyone that can tell me what Christmas is all about?”

Linus chimes in with the true meaning of Christmas. He recites – from memory – the immortal words of the Gospel:

And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, “Fear not; for, behold, I bring you tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you: Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,” Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill towards men.”

That's what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown.

Yes, Christmas includes parties, presents, and poems set to music. It includes family and friends getting together, special movies and TV shows, lights and decorations.

But at its heart, Christmas is about alleviating fear. The fear of being alone, the fear of being rejected, the fear of being forever in despair.

Because those fears where exactly where the human race was, and was forever heading, unless God did something about it. And so God promised He would. And so God did as He promised.

Jesus Christ was born in the little town of Bethlehem. He grew up to live a perfect life. Then He took all the sins of the world on Himself and died on the cross. Three days later Jesus rose victorious from the dead – thus assuring all those who believe in Him would also rise from the dead one day. And then Jesus ascended into heaven but not before promising that He would return to take all those who have faith in Him to heaven with Him.

That’s what Christmas – that’s what Christ – is all about.

Anticipating Christmas

In A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving – which premiered on CBS-TV in 1972 – Sally bemoans the fact that she couldn’t go down to the store and by a “Turkey” tree because all the store had were things for Christmas. Her older brother, Charlie Brown, exclaims, “Christmas? Already?”

It seems that every year since then, stores have been rolling out their Christmas items and sales as early as late September.

Then there are the radio stations that devote their entire music programming to Christmas music – you know the ones I mean. They start the week or two before Thanksgiving and run through Christmas day or a few days after.

When I was an announcer / DJ at KFUO in St. Louis in the late 1980’s, I was given strict orders on the playing of Christmas music. None before December 1. Then, the first week of December I could play one Christmas song per shift, the second week I could play one Christmas song per hour, the third week, two Christmas songs per hour and the week before Christmas I could play three Christmas songs per hour. Christmas Eve we could finally play ALL Christmas songs.

Things have changed these days, that’s for sure.

Of course, you know that I absolutely LOVE the Advent and Christmas seasons. Our home is decorated with Blonski traditional decorations and I have my office decorated as well. I have Christmas music on in my office and at home. I look forward to producing my Classical Christmas radio program each year – and that airs from the day after Thanksgiving through to December 26 or so.

For me, the anticipation of Christmas is an integral part of the joy of this season. Shopping for the perfect gift, preparing the Advent and Christmas messages that I’ll preach or post on my blog, decorating, hosting get-togethers and attending others – all of this is part of my anticipation of Christmas.

Anticipation and expectation often are fused into one in many people. And when an expectation isn’t met, disappointment can quickly foul a mood.

I used to anticipate/expect a white Christmas each year and when it didn’t happen – as has been the case these past couple of years, especially – I would be in a funk.

But living in Southern California for four Christmases pretty much cured me of that, because you should not expect a white Christmas in the San Gabriel valley, where we lived. The mountains, yes, but not down at 1600 feet above sea level where our house was.

You need to be careful with anticipation and expectations – they should be reasonable and realistic. The older I get – and hopefully more mature – I tend to alter my expectations. I don’t necessarily lower my expectations so much as I “shift” them.

Today, a week before Christmas, let’s look at how we anticipate Jesus Christ.

As you read the Gospels, it is clear that Jesus did NOT meet the expectations of many, many people. He certainly DID meet the expectations of the Old Testament, but there was a disconnect with the people of 1^st Century Israel.

His cousin John the Baptist even succumbed to the temptation to expect something “else” from Jesus. He was languishing in Herod’s prison, knowing that he’d probably die there very soon. He sends some of his disciples to Jesus to get some reassurance.

John’s fear was that he might have been mistaken in who he was looking for in the Messiah he was sent to prepare the way for.

I don’t know what John expected Jesus to tell him, but we do know what Jesus said, “tell John what you have seen and heard...” Jesus sends word back to John and says, basically, “Why look for another? I’m the one you expected and anticipated!”

What do we expect Jesus to be? The temptation at this time of year is to focus so much on the infant in a manger that we forget or even miss that the baby grew up, taught and preached and healed and loved for three years and then died a horrible death on a Roman cross.

The infant in a manger is, perhaps, easier for us to expect. It’s safe. In that manger, Jesus doesn’t talk, and so He can’t make demands of us and our time and things. He just sits there looking all cute and cuddly.

In other words, we are tempted to believe we can control or manage the infant Jesus. The music is beautiful, the decorations are warm and inviting, but what is expected of us is, at best, manageable and reasonable.

But with this kind of expectation we are sorely let-down, because this expectation doesn’t solve the stress, depression, anxiety or any of the other negative effects of the Christmas Holiday season.

This kind of expectation can lead to regarding worship and the fellowship of Bible study as a “take-it-or-leave-it” kind of proposition – with most opting for the “leave-it” part. This is not what God intended when the 3^rd Commandment was laid down as law, nor what His inspired writers would say about gathering together for the breaking of bread, prayer and fellowship.

Thanks be to God that the infant Jesus was not all we got. We got the “whole package” of salvation – Jesus was born, He lived, died, rose from the dead and ascended into heaven.

We live this salvation each time we worship – all the elements of it are in our worship services along with the Word of God and – every other week – the Sacrament of Holy Communion (where we digest the Word of God for the forgiveness of sins, life and salvation).

The music, the sights, the sounds, and the warmth of this holiday season can be a wonderful part of the expectation – Godly expectation – of our salvation. We need to keep the package together, though.

That’s what we get with Jesus – a complete package that needs to be received and used.

Here’s what I’d like you to do. Make plans now to participate in worship. Not just attend, but be an active participant in worship. And then make plans to participate in a Bible study – we have several here at the church but you can also do one at home with your family. Finally, make plans to have a personal or family devotion time – use the Portals of Prayer or the Lutheran Hour devotions we have here on the church office counter, or use one of your own.

Now, I can’t make any promises or guarantees about what will happen if you do all this – but God can and does: “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, ¹¹ so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.”

And God’s Word also promises, “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. ¹² Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. ¹³ You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.”

Hold God to these promises as we anticipate Christmas and consider our expectations of this time of year. In Jesus’ name, amen.

A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving

Charlie Brown is as traditional to Thanksgiving as turkey, pumpkin pie and football.

Speaking of football, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving begins with Lucy convincing Charlie Brown that place-kicking a football on Thanksgiving is a great honor. It usually is a great honor to be part of anything that is steeped in tradition.

But of course Charlie Brown will never kick that football; at least not as long as Lucy is the holder!

This scene serves to remind us that traditions sometimes do fade away. One of the most long-standing traditions in the world is that of Passover. It has been a part of the Jewish faith for nearly 3500 years. But it was not something that was traditionally celebrated at first – not like it is now. In fact, the Bible makes a big deal about the first couple of times that the Children of Israel actually celebrated Passover (or the Feast of Unleavened Bread) because they did NOT traditionally celebrate every year.

Traditions are important. Every family has its own traditions.

Holidays – for adults at least – can be very stressful times. Not so much for kids, although Charlie Brown is an exception. He even says clearly that Thanksgiving is “another holiday to worry about.” Charlie Brown’s worries about this particular Thanksgiving are that he has three, somewhat uninvited, guests coming for the holiday dinner. While his sister Sally offers an explanation for why this has happened – because Charlie Brown is so “wishy-washy” – there is probably a better reason. The worry that accompanies many holiday traditions comes from a need to please.

Charlie Brown has a need to please other people. This is something that is, to a certain degree, in every person. We want people to like us. We want to make other people happy. And when people have company coming over, people usually have a desire to feed them well. Charlie Brown’s dilemma is that not only does he have three guests coming for Thanksgiving dinner, his culinary prowess is limited to “cold cereal and maybe toast.”

But for all of Charlie Brown’s wishy-washiness, he is not without friends who will help him in his desperate hour. Linus, Snoopy and Woodstock will all help

Snoopy learns the lesson that with every traditional holiday there are sometimes battles to be fought. Deadlines to meet, menus to fill, gifts to be bought, cleaning, setting the table, etc. Snoopy’s battles happen to be with ping-pong tables and chaise lounges.

But soon, Snoopy orchestrates a new traditional meal.

Charlie Brown’s New Traditional Thanksgiving Dinner is:

Two slices of buttered toast,

Some pretzel sticks,

A handful of popcorn, and

A few jelly beans.

  

Of course, Peppermint Patty is not happy with this new tradition. Oh, and by the way, Peppermint Patty is a girl. There seems to be some confusion as to that recently. She’s what used to be called a “tom-boy,” a girl who tends to do things that are more traditional for boys to do: play baseball, wear comfortable clothes, stuff like that.

Patty takes out her anger on her host, breaking his heart. Patty then is reminded what Thanksgiving is really all about. It isn’t about a meal – it is about being thankful for what you have.

You and I have plenty to be thankful for – Jesus Christ being at the top of the list. His salvation given to us as a free gift is the reason we should be thankful, especially at this time of year. Because our sins are forgiven, we can get together and get along with our family and friends. Even at what can be a stressful time of year!

A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving closes with a reminder that while the real Thanksgiving is more than a meal, we should not forget the meal!

It doesn’t have to be turkey, mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie. It can be salmon steaks with oyster sauce. It can be PP&J’s with cold milk.

But each meal is important, so much so that the Bible refers to heaven as a banquet, a feast to come.

So this Thanksgiving, as you gather around a meal with your family and friends, remember to give God thanks for all His gifts to you, number one of which is Jesus Christ! Don’t let the holiday stress you out, enjoy it and help others to enjoy it and give thanks.