Texas Faith: Does a white Christmas mean Santa and Jesus have to be white?

Some of the white Christians will resist the idea of Jesus to be anything but what they have come to believe, as if Jesus will cease to exist if he were black.  The black Christians may feel the image of white Jesus and Santa was imposed on them, and it is human to resist anything forced on you against your will. I am certain they had their own un-articulated image of Jesus and Santa for as long as they have been Christians. Mike Ghouse

TEXAS FAITH: Does a white Christmas mean Santa and Jesus have to be white?
By Wayne Slater - wslater@dallasnews.com
1:54 pm on December 17, 2013 | Permalink

A cable television anchor named Megyn Kelly told viewers last week that Jesus and Santa Claus are both white men. At issue was a Slate article written by a black writer titled “Santa Claus Should Not Be A White Man Anymore.” The context of the piece was the tendency of cultures to view important figures in the most familiar and comfortable light. On her Fox News program, Kelly took issue with the writer.

“Just because it makes you feel uncomfortable doesn’t mean it has to change. Jesus was a white man, too. It’s like we have, he’s a historical figure that’s a verifiable fact, as is Santa, I just want kids to know that. How do you revise it in the middle of the legacy in the story and change Santa from white to black?”

Both sides pounced. Liberal web sites and late-night comics lampooned her. Conservative web sites defended her. Saturday Night Live did a skit featuring a black Santa. The debate went viral on the Internet. Kelly subsequently suggested she was joking and cast herself as a victim of identity politics. Clearly, her facts were flawed. Jesus was a 1st Century Jew who was likely dark skinned and Santa Claus is a mythological figure whose historical antecedent was from Turkey.

People believe what they are prepared to believe. What’s interesting was the passionate reaction to the remarks. Why the fierce dustup? Why did the idea that a white Christmas means Santa’s white cause so much consternation? What did this episode say about the way we see the world and our willingness — or reluctance – to see things in different ways?

Our Faith Panel weighs in thoughtfully (and with a few fireworks) on history, ethnic identity, political correctness and the virtues of faith and the holidays:

MIKE GHOUSE, President, Foundation for Pluralism and speaker on interfaith matters, Dallas

If Jesus is our lord, and Santa Claus represents the joys of Christmas, I have to relate with them to call them “our Lord” and “our Santa”. Just as God claims to have created humans in his own image so he can relate with them, I would say, we have created God in our own image, a whopping 7 billion perceptions of God.

Even though God is stamped onto our memory with certain images, features and characteristics, some of us have developed our own embellishments to it to personalize him, her or it. While a majority of Christians, Hindus and others have a built-in image of God, the Buddhist, Jains, Zoroastrians and Native traditions do not have a set image, yet they have created their own image of God. The Jews, Muslims, Sikhs, Baha’i and others do not take God as a being or an entity, and certainly have a built-in resistance to collapsing God into an image or a shape. But deep down, they imagine and describe God as a being, however, they knock it out instantaneously. It’s human to relate God as their own.

I am blessed to have universalized God. Even those who knew me, particularly Muslims in Dallas, thought I was a Hindu, Buddhist or a Baha’i, and the Hindu community thought I was a Christian and a Buddhist until ten years ago. Three years ago, I was in a Muslim conference and an Arab Muslim came over and started praising my articles on Islam, and said he has translated and published them in Arabic. He then asked me how do I know so much about Islam, and when I said, I am a Muslim, he was taken back and said he thought I was Jewish all these years! One of my Hindu friends of 20 years, until recently, insisted that I cannot be anything but a Hindu or at least a Christian.

If someone likes you, they want to see you as their own, in their own image. Of course the white Christians saw Jesus in their own image, and the African Americans just took that image when they became Christians. But I am certain; they had their own un-articulated different image of Jesus and Santa for as long as they have been Christians.

Some of the white Christians will resist the idea of Jesus to be anything but what they have come to believe, as if Jesus will cease to exist if he were black.  The black Christians may feel the image of white Jesus and Santa was imposed on them, and it is human to resist anything forced on you against your will.

The need of the day is to upgrade Jesus, above all human imaginations and limitations and accept him in essence rather than in physical form. It is his love and sacrifice to humanity that needs to be appreciated. I hope and pray that at least from this Christmas season forward, we accept and embrace Jesus without reserve just as he set the example of embracing the humanity without reserve. Let him be meaningful to us in every which way he can be imagined.

To see the take from 12 different panelists, go to Dallas Morning News at: http://dallasmorningviewsblog.dallasnews.com/2013/12/texas-faith-does-a-white-christmas-mean-santa-and-jesus-are-white.html/

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Mike Ghouse is a speaker, thinker and a writer on pluralism, politics, peace, Islam, Israel, India, interfaith, and cohesion at work place. He is committed to building a Cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day at www.TheGhousediary.com. He believes in Standing up for others and a book with the same title is coming up. Mike has a strong presence on national and local TV, Radio and Print Media. He is a frequent guest on Sean Hannity show on Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he contributes weekly to the Texas Faith Column at Dallas Morning News; fortnightly at Huffington post; and several other periodicals across the world. His personal site www.MikeGhouse.net indexes all his work through many links.
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Aga Khan and Malala; Muslim Role Models

URL - http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2013/12/aga-khan-and-malala-muslim-role-models.html

Every child, teen and an adult has someone or the other to look up to in his or her life, and wants to-be-like that person and eventually becomes one.  Indeed, good role models are a key to the success of a civil society.

I have been studying religious pluralism and civil societies for the last twenty years, and have found a sense of regret among Muslims for the dearth of role models. Invariably they compare themselves with the Jewish community more often than they care to admit.  At least twice a year, an email makes the rounds showing the innumerable Nobel laureates among the tiny Jewish community versus the negligible numbers among the big Muslim community. It almost appears that they cannot move forward without some one leading them.

Don't despair, there is hope, we have a few good men and women who are great role models.

In the last 100 years we have had legends like Syed Ahmed Khan, Allama Iqbal, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad and others who have created institutions of learning or left a legacy of critical thinking.  They were not only heroes for Muslims, but for others as well.

These individuals followed the foundational Sunnah of the prophet to be Amins, the truthful, trustworthy, Just and without barriers between them and people of other faiths and traditions. They contributed towards the common good of humanity. Indeed, Prophet Muhammad was called Amin by fellow Citizens who were Jewish, Christian and Pagans. That should be our model; to be contributors and be the Amins of the society.

In the last 50 years, we have had a few great men and women, but we did not accord them the place they deserved.  It’s time for us to recognize them for their contributions and their legacy in building better societies for humanity.

There are plenty of men and women in religion, business, arts, sports, music, entertainment and academic fields, but very few in civil societies. 

The following men and women have created enduring values to last for generations to come, it is their legacy. I am embarrassed that I could not come up with more names from around 56 Muslims nations, but I welcome them all.

1. Abdurrahman Wahid  (planted the vision of Madinah like society),  
2. Javed Ahmad Ghamidi (Critical thinking in Islam),
3. Malala Yousafzai (Role model for women),
4. Aga Khan (Role Model for Universal human development) ,  
5. Benazir Bhutto (a symbol of Democracy), 
6. Muhammad Yunus (an economic model of uplifting the down trodden)
7. Aamir Khan (Cultural Pluralism and his Satyameva Jayate Series), 
8. Abdus Salam (Physicist and Nobel Laureate),
9. Abdus Sattar Edhi (Charity),
10. Al-Waleed bin Talal (Research in Education)
11. Abusaleh Shariff (Solutions for up-liftment of minorities )

Abusaleh Shariff is relatively less known than the others, but his pioneering research work about Indian Muslims has become the foundation for economic, educational, social and statistical models for planning societies, and finding pluralistic solutions for the majoritarian-minoritarian conflict mitigation in a given society.

Gamal Abdel Nasser could have been one of the heroes, had he succeeded in creating a value for Arab Unification, he could not make it.  Mahathir Muhammad could have been an economic hero, but his work was time-bound and not timeless, and he did not leave anything impactful other than the rhetoric. What did Yasser Arafat leave behind?  I am not sure about the legacy of Muhammad Ali Jinnah- is anyone following his vision other than hanging his pictures on event walls?  General Pervaz Musharraf had all the potential to re-establish Jinnah's vision, a secular pluralistic Islamic model nation – but he blew it. 


Even though Kings Abdullah of Jordan and Saudi Arabia, Muhammad Ali, Dilip Kumar or Shahrukh Khan are big names, they have not contributed to the common good of humanity, once they are gone, they are gone. Would they be legends in Muslim history? Are they Amins of the society at large? We need to discuss.


I am glad at least Malala and Aga Khan have been recognized worldwide, and their work is not restricted to just one community, but most people around the globe will look up to them for what they represent. 

It is our duty to honor and cherish individuals who have dedicated their lives in building bridges between communities. Their pioneering spirit in facilitating communities to know and to respect each other must be appreciated.

I urge fellow Muslims to work on writing about these men and women, and how their work can last for centuries to come. Can we include them in our school text books, Islamic social education at Mosques and private schools? They are our role models, aren't they?   

To be a Muslim is to be a peacemaker, one who mitigates conflicts and nurtures goodwill for peaceful co-existence of humanity. God wants us to live in peace and harmony with his creation; life and matter.# # #

Remarks by His Highness the Aga Khan at the Presentation of the Gold Medal by the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, Ottawa
URL

1. http://www.countercurrents.org/ghouse061213.htm
2. http://www.newageislam.com/islamic-society/muslim-heroes-and-role-models/d/34729
3. http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2013/12/hh-aga-khans-speech-at-royal.html

Mike Ghouse is a Muslim speaker, thinker and a writer on pluralism, Islam, interfaith and other topics. He is committed to nurturing pluralistic values embedded in Islam and building cohesive Societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day, all his writings are at www.TheGhouseDiary.com