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December 7, 1978 The Maroon Tiger Page 5 Christmas From A Black Perspective Dr. Thomas Kilgore, Jr. President, Morehouse Board of Trustees by Rev. Thomas Kilgore, Jr. Reprinted from the December Issue of Sepia Magazine. Dr. Kil gore is Chairmn of the Board of Trustees of Morehouse College and an alumnus. In addition, he is the pastor of the Second Baptist Church of Los Angeles, California. The interval between one Christ mas and the next seemed like an eternity when I was a boy. 1 spent my boyhood along with 11 broth ers and sisters on a cotton farm in South Carolina. We didn’t under stand why Papa always saved two un-ginned bales of cotton until after Christmas until, one mid- December, three brothers and I were playing in the cotton house (against Papa’s rule) and disco vered treasures of toys, new books, etc., under the cotton. This was the first time also that the myth of Santa claus was exploded for us. Our older brothers had told us that Papa and Mama were Santa Claus, but we were reluctant to believe them. Needless to say that the joy and surprise of that Christmas was somewhat watered down by the exploding myth, and by the appli cation by Papa of the leather strap to our posterior anatomies for “playing in the cotton.” Sixty years ago, most black Americans lived in the rural South. Most celebrated Christmas sim ilarly, and most children under 12 believed in Santa Claus. There was something magic about the age of 12 in those days among black peo ple. Santa was a reality until 12 and religious conversation was expected and encouraged at 12. There seemed to be a cultural and spiritual syndrome that said, “When the Santa Claus myth dies in the youth’s life, the hope for sal vation in the Lord should come alive.” Maybe these early rural and semi-rural black families had an insight into life’s reality should not be dismissed as fogey and supersti tious by our more learned and affluent black society of today. What is Christmas? Ecclesiasti cally, it is the Mass of Christ in the Christian Church. For the congre gational types of churches, it is the festival of the Nativity of Jesus Christ. It was not celebrated along with other festivals of the church in the first three or four centuries of Christianity. The first certain date of December 25 is in the calendar of Philocalus in 354 A.D. Earlier, however, Clement of- Alexandria (C.200) mentions several specula tions on the date of Christ’s birth. In early 400 A.D., Imperial Rome included Christmas and Epiphany as religious feast days when thea tres should be closed. The date December 25 was firmly fixed in the Julian Calendar by 389 A.D. Christmas customs and celebra tions through the centuries have been a mixture of season, pagan, religious, and national practices. And attached to these have been many different legends and tradi tions. The yule log, the Christmas tree, the bells, the candles, wassail ing, singing, dancing, roast goose, plum pudding, fruit cake, gift exchanges, and many other practi ces, some pagan and some modern, make up the historical accretions that have attached themselves to Christmas. In a materialistic society that is overcome by commercialism, secularism and manipulative strategies, it may be well that we begin to take a good look at our celebration of Christmas. Some serious thought should be given to the negative effects on a race or society when a basic idea, concept, or event is prostituted and used for selfish ends. There is hard evidence available that we could well profit as a racial minority by examining very closely the relationship of the fade-out of Santa Claus and the experience of new birth by 12-year- olds some 60 or more years ago in our country. This transition sug Ryan’s Resignation Rumored by Timothy Boddie I was appalled when I first heard it. Since the Morehouse grapevine is about as reliable as pre-registration, I went straight to Mr. Stanley Ryan, an English instructor here at Morehouse, and asked him myself. Unfortu nately, Ryan had no comment on the recent rumor I heard about his resignation. If he does decide to leave (and I am writing from that premise) his knowledge, ded ication and commitment, and even his humor will be sorely missed. Why is it, when a professor like Mr. Ryan shares his life toward the future insurance of Black education, some senseless, avoid able obstacles deter his efforts and dampen his enthusiasm to the point of resignation. He has refused far more lucrative job offers, on white campuses, simply because he is committed to the cause of Black education, namely, the Morehouse tradition of producing leaders. If he is so committed, one may ask, why then might he leave? Even com mitment, O skeptic, is relative to reciprocity. I don’t know where the man’s dissatisfactions lie, but we can be sure it is not because of us, the students. He puts in extra hours and sometimes holds class on Saturdays. When Ryan taught me during my first semester here, I could not believe his energy and his absolute strength of charac ter. When Morehouse boasts of her good teacher/student rap port, Ryan is indeed at the top of the list. He was always available for grade misunderstandings, consultations, even counsel. His ear is finely tuned to his students, and we all know that is a rare luxury, . . , . . Sure, he is a work-aholic, a rigorous instructor, and a driving educator, but is that so bad? My future is at stake, and if there’s one thing I do not need, it is a lazy, non chalant teacher, whose methods Mr. Stanley Ryan gests a new awakening, a growing maturity, and a move from super stition and folly to reality. If Christmas is truly the Mass of Christ, and if the Christian religion has any real meaning for our lives, how then shall we celebrate it? I venture three suggestions: 1. Black people in America should lead the way to de- commercialize Christmas. This movement should start in the black churches. Black preachers should stop encouraging and accepting special gifts from church members at Christmas time. They should interpret to their flocks the fact that Christmas is the Lord’s birth day, and gifts should be given to Him. And He says in the Bible, “In as much as you have done it unto the least of these, you have done in unto Me.” There are too many poor, hungry, ill-housed, and unemployed people in our communities; and too many col leges, hospitals, and other institu tions that are suffering for support, for black religious leaders to over look the opportunity at Christmas time to lead parishioners to give generously to help those in need. Black middle-class persons, many of whom are, and many of whom are not church-affiliated, should not spend millions of dollars at Christmas time excnanging gilts with family and friends — gifts that are seldom needed, and many never used; and giving bottles or cases of whiskey that are always used. There are so many more appropriate times to give gifts to family and friends —» birthday anniversaries, wedding anniversar ies, going-away gifts, etc. Blacks earn between 90-95 billion dollars, annually in the U.S.A. If we really celebrated Christmas properly — i.e., giving where it is needed and not expecting monetary returns — about a billion dollars could be channeled into establishing work opportunities, helping colleges and schools, and reducing the crime rate of young blacks. 2. With all of its commercial ism, secularism, and paganism, Christmas is still a powerful and spiritual force in America. In some strange way, the humanism of our land surfaces, and our latent spirit ual proclivities are sharpened, and we treat people more kindly. The “Scrooges” seem to be converted for a period. Black Americans, and black organizations - churches, N.A.A.C.P., S.C.L.C., Urban League, P.U.S.H., Black Congres sional Caucus, National Council of Negro Women, Association for Life and Study of Afro-American History, fraternal orders of all kinds, and all other black groups with any kind of power — should plan conferences, workshops and other kinds of interfaces with the American power structures and seats in religion, politics, econom ics, and education. 3. Black Americans must lead America in keeping Christmas Christian. By Christian I do not mean a partisan, bigoted, and separate celebration of Christmas. I do mean that we must take advantage of this religious holiday to stress the need for regular reli gious worship, and to emphasize that any society that expects to have a permanent place in history, must “do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with God.” We call ourselves a free society — “a land of the free and the home of the brave.” In the Bill of Rights, we say that “All men are created equal...” These high-toned profes sions become but empty and good- sounding shibboleths as long as we prostitute and adulterate sacred days and occasions. The so-called inert gases were discovered by Scottish chemist Sir William Ramsay. Volunteer, are so mechanical that one need s to be wound up before class each day. Gentlemen, this is a bitter truth we must all confront. Perhaps per suasion would be futile, but we cannot continue to allow our futures personified to walk out on us without a valid excuse. We are the victims, not the administration, nor the faculty. We are the direct inheritants of this destitute bequest. We cannot and will not settle for anything less than a qual ity education! Mr Ryan, on behalf of the Maroon Tiger staff, many of whom had the pleasure of studying under your very qualified author ity, think again. On behalf of the Morehouse student body, who in your few months with us, you have managed to inspire us either directly or vicariously, think again. Mr. Ryan, in the name of More house and her century-plus years of building men, think again. Wha tever you decide and for whatever reasons, May God bless you as he has us with your time, understand ing and wisdom.