Christmas Is Dying. Christmas Will Never Die (part one)

Christmas is dying, and Christmas will never die: that is the thesis for this show. Shayna and Chris talk about the importance (or not?) of the story of Jesus' birth as a defining feature of Christmas. To form, Chris reveals his usual lean towards emphasizing the darker side of human nature, while Shayna argues for a more hopeful view of humanity. Consumer culture receives a predictable critique, but even more: we link consumer culture to the unhealthy denial of darkness within human lives, which makes the season of Advent a countercultural gift that the Christian church brings to the “happy clappy” North American shopping scene.

A personal note on the podcast: As we build our audience, we hope that you, our listeners, can recommend What In God’s Name to your friends and family. The bigger we grow our audience, the better we are able to make the argument that there is an appetite for searching, open-ended conversation on current events and culture from a philosophical/theological perspective.

Of course that’s not going to happen if we make a crappy (to be blunt) podcast. So give us feedback, to help us achieve excellence. Email us at whatingods@ribeye-media.com. Leave comments on our Facebook page. Suggest topics for shows. Shayna and I enjoy our conversations with each other, AND we want to be in conversation with you.

Here are timecodes to help you navigate through today’s show:
00:40 What In God’s Name—is our audience a niche audience? If so, how big is the niche?
03:00 Christmas is dying, and Christmas will never die. Discuss.
06:43 The Christmas that will never die: what Christmas is that? Is it the story of the baby Jesus that will never die, or is it the spirit of giving that will never die? Or is it something else entirely?
10:49 The misappropriation of Christmas by consumer culture: does every kiss really begin with Kay?
13:08 Chris introduces Charlie Brown and Linus into the conversation.
15:46 Saying “Merry Christmas” versus saying “Happy Holidays.”
17:24 What is Advent?: the countercultural movement towards going into the dark.