Wednesday, December 22, 2021
Dear readers, This Christmas seems to come in a very depressing time. As I am writing this, The Netherlands is back in lockdown and many European countries are mulling additional measures to restrict social contact. This is happening at the backdrop of a threat by Russia to invade Ukraine and high tensions between the Iranian regime and its proxies and the rest of the Middle East. We are hitting a low point at the moment. Especially when we see that there are significant fissures within our societies and within the EU. We clash over the measures taken against the spread of the corona epidemic. We see a clash between EU Member States and the EU Institutions over fundamental issues that can easily torn the EU apart if we don’t find ways to de-escalate. And in the midst of this there’s Christmas. A Christmas that in many countries has been ripped off the big Christmas masses and celebrations and Christmas markets. It seems that in many places cannot have a ‘real Christmas’ this year. In a way that is true if we think about all the traditions that we rightly cherish (I do at least). But in essence it may not be true as we are almost forced to go back to the heart of Christmas. The first Christmas was not a celebration. It was Mary giving birth to Jesus in what must have been less than ideal circumstances, even for that time. It was a baby arriving in a violent world under an oppressive regime (the Roman empire). We cannot imagine how harsh that world was in which people were subject to a never-ending power struggle and were only considered ‘human’ if they were born in the right family or in a family rich enough to buy Roman citizenship. A life in which every day presented a new struggle for survival. And that is still the reality of billions on this planet. They live under totalitarian regimes and face immense hardship every single day as their humanity does not count for anything for these dictators. But there is a big difference in comparison to the first Christmas. The difference is that they and we know that this is wrong. The difference is that we are all aware of the possibility that our common human dignity ‘is respected and protected’ as Article 1 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU expresses it. The difference is that we accept that we have a common humanity sharing the same dignity. Regardless of anyone’s religion (or none at all) and regardless the many failings of Christians throughout the ages, we can agree that since the first Christmas the notion of shared human dignity has reached all corners of the globe. The coming of Christ has made a difference. The question that we face this Christmas is whether we can grasp that message that God became man to save humanity. Can we see the human dignity in our fellow humans? Can we see that we need to support those who are oppressed nearby and far away? Can we reach beyond the divide created by ideology and issues and see the humanity in those we (sometimes vehemently) disagree with? Are we willing to perhaps move beyond our own points of view and do everything in our power to restore and protect human dignity, especially of the weakest in our society? The answer we give to these questions can change the new year for the better. In that sense the light of Christmas can shine in the new year. On a deeper level we know it will regardless as God has not given up on us. For us as Sallux we hope we will be able to work together with our members and partners in the new year to spread light and be salt. We thank all those who have worked with us and all our readers for your cooperation and involvement and we wish all of you a Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year! With Christian greetings, Johannes de Jong