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PEOPLE’S reaction to Christmas and all the hype that surrounds it can be a bit like a certain yeast extract: people either love it or they hate it. That goes for those who have a faith as well as for those with none.
I have to say clearly though, that it’s not the message of Christmas that’s the problem. The notion of God with us and among us, is amazing, wonderful and jaw-droppingly humbling. The problem is all the cultural and social baggage that has grown up alongside the good news of the birth of Christ. Much of it has so entwined itself around the celebrations that it can be hard to tell what is central to the faith and what is not: what is truth and what is iction.