Clergy Corner: December 2025

As I drive around these days, even if the streets aren’t as grand or dazzling as those in big cities, the Christmas lights and colorful decorations are catching my eye. These humble yet beautiful lights, holding people’s hopes and joys, twinkle like jewels in the darkness. The tranquility of the snow-covered fields harmoniously blends with these lights, filling even this peaceful rural villages with love and anticipation.

With only a few days left until Christmas Day, people are busy choosing gifts for loved ones, preparing parties, and setting their hopeful plans for the upcoming new year. Churches host special events to share the joy of Christmas, such as concerts or warm community meals, with local residents.

In South Korea, which has a large Christian population, Christmas is designated as a national public holiday and is celebrated like a festival for several days. Splendid, large-scale decorations, embroidered with light, captivate passersby on every street and building. From late November, the jolly carols ringing out from speakers can be heard everywhere, lifting the spirits of the whole world. Like in the United States, churches commemorate this joyful season by holding a variety of religious and cultural events. Even in communist China, while it’s not a public holiday, an increasing number of young people celebrate Christmas as a festival with romantic and commercial significance.

But I wonder, are all these people truly aware of the genuine meaning of Christmas as they enjoy the holiday?

I have a doll that always makes me smile every time I see it. Through singing together with Rudolph on their way to deliver gifts, Santa Claus helps Rudolph to come to realize the true meaning of Christmas. Rudolph asks, “Is it all about gifts & presents?” Santa answers, “They’re going fast.” Rudolph asks another question. “Is it about trees and Christmas lights?” Santa answers with laughter, “They’re coming down too soon.” Then Rudolph asks again, “Is it about cookies and candies?” Santa says, “They only fill you so long.”

Through this conversation, the doll delivers this ultimate message: “It is all about joy and love. We have a lot of giving to do.”

Of course, for Christians, the meaning of Christmas is the most important and sacred truth. It is the blessed day we commemorate that Jesus Christ, the greatest gift of God, came to this world as the True Light to dispel the darkness. He came to free all humanity from the bondage of sin.

However, the meaning of Christmas is not complete only through the religious events held inside the church. Just as Jesus demonstrated the most precious gifts He brought to this world—hope, peace, joy, and love—through His own life, when we also practice this love in our own lives, the Lord’s great love shines brightly through the world. This helps those weary souls, fearful and worried, lost in the deep darkness of poverty, sickness, exclusion, and despair, to come forth into the Lord’s light.

This Christmas, while it is meaningful to enjoy joyful and peaceful rest with beloved family and friends, it would be wonderful if we could look around with loving eyes to see if there are any neighbors in need of warm comfort and service.

I sincerely hope that this Christmas, our community will be a blessed one, where everyone experiences God’s abundant grace, and their hearts are filled with warmth, love, and joy! Merry Christmas!