A former Santa on Xmas in a communist state
Trip Start
Jan 30, 2007
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Trip End
Dec 31, 2011
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North Pole,
Greenland
Thursday, December 20, 2007
That's right, the celebration of Christ's birth is a big festival. Or at least, so it seems from the outside. Take out Jesus from Christmas and what do you have? A Western-style Christmas - with shop-to-you-drop commercialism and false festive cheer. Here, it is mainly about appearances, and judging from the number of premises now decorated with lights, lanterns, tinsels, trees and other trappings, it seems Christmas has arrived, just like all those other Western vices: AIDS, free love, capitalism, big spending, etc.
I am not sure if the servers and hosts on Bar Street know any more about Christmas than say, your average American kid, but they are certainly getting into the mood. These days you can see local Naxi and other minority youngsters in modern versions of traditional dress, now with Santa hats on top. I guess they are good for those cooler winter nights, where they must work til 1am or later trying to draw in diners or drinkers. And those plastic Xmas trees do make it a pretty sight at night when you walk along busy Bar Street or even down side alleys where some guesthouse owners have embraced the spirit of the season.
Interstingly, the only reference to the main person of Christmas is limited to the Big Man himself: Santa. Just like those photos from the 1950s and 1960s that air-brushed out undesirable subjects in official photos, Jesus is very absent.
chinese mary and jesus
Though the country is the largest non-Christian on the earth, official estimates credit 2% of China's population with being Christian. Christianity, is one of the four state-sanctioned religions. Though if you practice it, you can't have linked out outside imperialist powers, such as the Pope in the Vatican, or an about-to-be-disgraced mid-west American Bible-bashing right-wing minister.
Interestingly, Christianity is seen as a status religion in China. A few of my friends, who could be described as educated, intelligent, and well-off, have taken on board some allegiance to Christianity, partly through associating with foreign teachers and friends, and partly I suspect to improve their connections with foreigners. The fact that many teachers in China teach not just English but Christianity probably adds a few more converts to the fold, though officially foreigners are prohibited from trying to convert.
Just like in the West, Christmas has moved from a religious festival to a frenzied shopping experience. It is not an official holiday, but it is a commerical activity to hang other offers around.
Across China, millions of Christians - as many as 28 million - might be lighting their houses with paper lantern, decorating Christmas trees with paper chains and lanterns, and awaiting for the arrival of Dun Che Lao Ren - Old Man Christmas.
Last week while out shopping, I noticed the main department store had a Christmas decoration section, complete with a full-sized moving Santa Claus.
carol singer
And several stationary shops were selling out front tinsel, lanterns, trees (called Trees of Light), etc.It's kinda weird having all the accoutrements of Christmas without anything to do with religion.
Some foreigners I know are planning a traditional Christmas, trying to track down a turkey and even talking about making a Christmas pudding. Others are heading back home for the real Christmas: too much food, too much alcohol, putting up with distant relatives, etc.
For all Chinese, the big event happening soon isn't Christmas, or even New Year on 1 January, but Chinese New Year, a moveable feast, also known as Spring Festival (kinda funny given it can happen in January, before the coldest day of the year). That's a family time of paying respects to ancestors, eating and getting new things like clothes and toys.
The distinctly Chinese Christmas is a recent phenomena, probably started by hotels and shops wanting to impress foreign visitors. It was most likely brough across from Japan, where it is a big shopping season.
And Christianity can be traced back to when missionaries first arrived in 625AD and set up shop in the ancient capital of Xi'an. Excavations in Xi'an found nativity scenes blending Western and Eastern spirituality.
As a former Santa Claus - I worked as a student during the holidays as a Santa handing out gifts of raisins and peanuts from a health food shop to our target audience - women - and had to get Santas Helper to fend off children - I have yet to see a real life Santa here in China, but perhaps in the bigger cities there will be an old man handing out sweets to kiddies.
As most Chinese don't have ovens, the Christmas cakes are steamed, making them more like Christmas puddings. And as for churches, there are some in the bigger cities, and apparently it is trendy to check out midnight Mass on Christmas eve.
So what if you want a Chinese-style Christmas in your part of the world? How about putting a bowl of oranges and tangerines by your Christmas tree - they symbolise wealth and good fortune.
Or make a donation to my new fund, to help supply English teachers to a poor minority area in a forgotten part of China.
