It was not even our radar to gather on Christmas Eve.
More than anything, we are still committed to living out what early people in our, um, faith tradition called the New Testament plan.
For those people, December 25 was merely a day on the calendar. Those people probably had an awareness that, according to the Roman Catholic church, Christmas was a Holy Day.
For those people, the fact that God became flesh was a big deal but the nativity of Jesus was merely proof of Paul's Gospel's assertion that, "Christ died for our sins ACCORDING TO THE SCRIPTURES."
Search the Scriptures as long as you like for evidence that early disciples celebrated the nativity. Don't worry. I won't be holding my breath for a report of the finding of that evidence.
So, in our community of gatherings there was no Christmas Eve show.
What there is, however, is a year long remembrance of the fact that God became flesh and that Jesus is coming again.
Honestly, I don't know what any others in our gatherings did for Christmas Eve. Some may have actually consumed a Christmas Eve show. Probably no one else in the group is actually offended by them like I am.
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As for me and my house, we traveled to Manheim to my brother's house to have what would best be described as an Xmas party, eating favorite foods and playing a silly game to see which person gets which gag gift. (You choose which definition of gag fits.)
Interestingly, several of us live intentionally as disciples but none, as far as I know, attended a show on December 24.
What makes our Expression of church fresh is that it eschews, even abhors, everything that reeks of Christendom-rooted tradition. The Christmas Eve show, is a very popular, and in its current form, recently evolved tradition in which nearly every attender merely consumes. How purely unNew Testament!
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We just got pics of the kids we bought presents for. They seem to love their new haul. It's a blessing to give them the sort of Christmas kids these days get so excited about. I think the mom and dad enjoyed it as much as the kids.
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