In our times, the Palestinians may still be privileged to continue having a near real feel of the experience of the Holy Family when Jesus was born there. A feel of abandonment, insecurity and discomfort. By irony of history, they owe that privilege not so much to God, but to God’s chosen race, which has replaced some of the collaborators of Pilate, the governor of the Roman empire, with partners of the new empire which started from 13 colonies of Europe and has now 28 colonies in Europe.
The new empire sells the latest technology to the world in return for the oil and “democratic” allegiance, supplies plentiful goodies to the children through the mediation of Santa Claus. Unlike the baby Jesus whose parents had little hope of discovering a Santa Claus to mitigate their misery, but thank God for the warmth afforded by cattle, that provided at least some honest company to baby Jesus.
The honesty of the first company of Jesus has little or nothing comparable in our times. The readers of this column may think I am exaggerating and denying the civilizational progress that has replaced the original crib with massive architectural basilicas, and colourful displays of crib competitions that keep the children and parents dazzled with the bounty of Christmas Fathers. Where there is no snow, such as it happens in the slums of Asia and Africa, it is simulated with cotton wool for a season.
The most characteristic element of human contingency are the odours that accompany our arrival on this earth and departure from it. The civilization progress is always attempting to hide this truth with umpteen methods and products for deodorizing the “ugly” reality, denying thereby the sensorial proximity with the truth symbolized by the incarnation of God as Jesus. The temptation of Babel is forever present. It is a temptation to deny human contingency and assert freedom from it.
The technology today has invented many ways of recording and preserving images and sounds, but has not found ways of recording past smells for the posterity. Obviously, most inventions are driven by interest to make products marketable. We could conclude that smells are more shocking than sights, and as such we would rather forget the disagreeable ones, and manufacture for sale only those that can replace bad odours? Is it true that the growing preference for cremation is only driven by love for ecology and saving space required by cemeteries?
The difference between the image and the smell is substantial. The relationship between the subject and the object in an image is of representation. The impact of smell gets into us and we are at times forced to cover the nose. We also close the eyes when confronted by a shocking scene, but the eyes can remain shut, while we cannot do it for long with the nose without getting suffocated! The smells force themselves into us more easily and required greater civilizations efforts to be exorcised.
Getting back to where we started, Christmas celebration confronts us with an ongoing challenge to face humanity in its crudeness, which includes a challenge to admit and live up to the rational call to embrace nature and resist its drag into base passions of ambition and greed, supported by pride and anger, to deny to others what we want for ourselves.
Any “civilizational” attempts to create a make-believe joy of Christmas for families that live in misery is a crime against humanity, an insult to the memory of God’s incarnation that was not meant to be lived in a seasonal crib, but to accompany, identify and denounce the social, economic and political manipulations that kill millions of humans on the cross of wars and refugees, all with the pretension of safeguarding peace, human dignity and keeping the earth safe, but hiding behind propaganda and scientific studies the corporate interests that benefit a few dominant groups around the globe.
When we see the decorated cribs, hear the Christmas carrols, or run after a Christmas Father, let us not forget the deep message of Christmas and respond to its call. Do not run away from your contribution to the stench that mars human dignity by dousing yourself and the environment with civilizational scents or deodorizing perfumes.
(Teotonio R. de Souza is the founder-director, Xavier Centre of Historical Research, Goa 1979-1994 and tweets @ramkamat)
