During the Middle Ages, there was a thought experiment popular among theologians; the thought experiment is often and mistakenly called “proofs of God’s existence.” The classical instance of this thought experiment is found in the philosophy of Tommaso d’Aquino. In the Summa contra gentiles, d’Aquino describes five “ways,” or paths, by which one can come to rational knowledge of God’s existence.  

It is important to note that the “five ways” were not presented as proofs of God’s existence, but rather as ways that one can arrive at rational knowledge of what one already knows through faith, namely, that there is a God. The “five ways” are often misunderstood as proofs because the “five ways” are often misused by churchgoers to coerce non-churchgoers into adopting a misleading values system. 

Friar d’Aquino was not interested in proving that God exists; rather, he was interested in proving that God’s existence can be apprehended by means of reason. Today, this distinction seems quite esoteric. In the Middle Ages, however, it was a hotly contested question among theologians, Church leaders, churchgoers, and those who disputed the value of Church membership. The existence of God was not the hotly contested question; rather, the possibility of rational knowledge of the existence of God was the disputed issue.  

Catholicism says that truth is unitive, but that there are two distinct ways the human mind apprehends truth. The human mind apprehends science, history, mathematics, and the like through the faculty of reason, but it apprehends love and trust through the faculty of will. During the Middle Ages, some people said that the truth apprehended by the will, specifically, the existence of God, could not possibly be apprehended by the intellect. Again, this probably seems quite esoteric to people today, but the theological issue remains a serious one. If intellect has no part in knowing God, then religion is purely subjective; as such, it degenerates into nothing more than sentiment. 

I’m sure, at this point, those of you who are still awake have distracted yourselves with daydreams. I ask you to bear with me, however, because these ancient, esoteric issues have a direct bearing on our celebration of Christmas. 

Everyone is well aware of Christmas’ many failings. Christmas is advertised as a season of peace and goodwill when, in fact, it is a season of frantic activity, unmet expectations, and frustration. Churches proclaim Christmas to be the celebration of the birth of a Savior, but retailers and consumers have coopted Christmas as a celebration of consumption, excess, and elusory satisfaction. If someone counted the people at this Liturgy who rushed to get here, forgot something in the process, and became annoyed by the whole affair, most of us would be embarrassed to admit we’re among that number. Christmas, however, has a remedy for its own defects. 

There was an editorial in the news recently that described the personal and social benefits of gift-giving. The editorialist disagreed with the notion that gift-giving is the result of the classical notion of the “social contract.” According to the editorialist, gift-giving is not done in order to assure reception of gifts for oneself; rather, holiday gift-giving is an instance of the basic human response to provide care to those who need it. In the editorialist’s opinion, “we don’t care for people because we love them; we love them because we care for them.”*  

Why, then, do we continue to stress and exhaust ourselves in order to provide appropriate Christmas gifts? It is because, in doing so, we encounter the core of our humanity by showing care to others. I agree with Dr. Gopnik that holiday gift-giving is both more than a transaction and more than sentiment. Holiday gift-giving is an objective instance of human nature’s need to be in healthy relationships with other humans. This awareness that our holiday gift-giving has a universal value can redeem Christmas from its many imperfections. I would add a further observation, as well. 

Proving God’s existence, or proving the necessity of church attendance, is very popular today, not as a thought experiment regarding the complimentary natures of intellect and will, but as a worried response to the lack of church attendance among the baptized and the lack of religious belief in secular society. I am compelled by this phenomenon to ask what role churchgoers have played in discouraging church attendance among others. It seems to me that, perhaps, there is so little belief in God today because there is so little experience of human caregiving. 

I’d like to suggest that Christmas is a call to repentance directed to those who celebrate this feast. It is a call to repentance because the very events that can be so distressing and annoying, that is, gift-giving, forgiving guests’ faults, and tolerating different values systems, are also the very events by which we can show care to others and, by doing so, experience the depths of goodness in humanity. It is a call to repentance directed to those who celebrate the feast because we are commanded to love other people, not despite their failings but because of their failings. Showing care to others is the way we fulfill this commandment. 

Medieval philosophers argued about the relationship between intellect and will because they understood the fundamental truth that human life is more than the sum of its parts. A complete human life is more than mere sentiment, or the value of one’s possessions, or the significance of one’s social standing. In fact, these aspects of human life are given value by one’s self-sacrifice for others in caregiving and, even, in gift-giving. 

To all appearances, Christmas needs to be rescued from the inadequate holiday practices that have created a test of endurance and patience from what describes itself as a celebration of peace and goodwill. Christmas can be redeemed, and its redemption can be our redemption, as well.  

This Christmas, make gift-giving, bearing up under pressure, and bearing with difficult people a means rather than an end. Rather than a task to accomplish, or a burden to endure, make Christmas an opportunity to fulfill Jesus’ command of universal love by showing care to everyone you meet. Showing care to those in need, especially to those in need of patience, forgiveness, and understanding, might convince non-believers that there is a good and loving God. It will certainly convince you that, as the prophet said, God is with us. (Mt 1:23) 

*Alison Gopnik, “Gift-Giving Reminds Us of How to Care for Others,” Wall Street Journal (December 16, 2023).