Many will be upset with the picture I have chosen. The typical response is, “They have taken Christ out of Christmas,” or “they need to put Christ back into Christmas” I will admit that some have indeed taken Christ out of Christmas.
Probably those that have ”taken Christ out of Christmas“ never had Christ in their lives or their Christmases. Others who do have Christ in their lives, may have simply used this as an abbreviation. “Xmas appeared in a list of common abbreviations and contractions in an American version of the Royal Standard English Dictionary when it was published in Boston in 1800.”
I although I rarely use that abbreviation anymore, quite often when I was in College and Seminary and through the years, I have used the “X” as a shorthand for Christ. What follows is a great explanation by the late Dr. R.C. Sproul about the use of “X”.
”For some the “X” in Christmas is used like the R in R.C. My given name at birth was Robert Charles, although before I was even taken home from the hospital my parents called me by my initials, R.C. First of all, you have to understand that it is not the letter “X” that is put into Christmas. We see the English letter “X” there, but what it involves is the first letter of the Greek name for Christ, Christos (Χριστός ). The first letter of the Greek word Christos, which is “Chi,” looks like an “X”. That “X” has come through church history to be a shorthand symbol for the name of Christ. There’s a long and sacred history of the use of “X” to symbolize the name of Christ, and from its origin, it has meant no disrespect.”
The church has used other similar symbols as abbreviations, especially during years of persecution. “The church has historically used the symbol of the fish because it is an acronym. Fish in Greek (ichthus) involved the use of the first letters of the Greek phrase “Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior.” (ΙΧΘΥΣ = Ι – Jesus, Χ- Christ, ΘΥ- son of God, Σ – Savior)
So, the title of the article is “ask be for you judge.” If you don’t ask, you may judge a person, like me, who knows they are using the Greek letter for Christ, or a person who grew up in a liturgical church who knows about the symbolism of Greek letters. And so, you don’t have to assume, ask. If you learn they have taken Christ out of Christmas, you will have a great opportunity to witness to them about Jesus the Christ, the Son of God our Savior who was born in Bethlehem. Here is the link to a reel that also explains the usage of “X” for Christ. He makes a great point at the end. www.facebook.com/reel/842321148641152
In Christ Alone
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