Christmas? Christmas!

Some years ago I (Joke) heard the song, ‘I’m dreaming of a White Christmas’ being played in one of the music stores in Tamale. It gave me a Christmas feeling but I thought to myself that a white Christmas will forever be a dream for Ghanaians. It is now 13 years since I celebrated Christmas in the Netherlands. At times, when I look back, I remember with a little nostalgia and longing the Christmas season in the Netherlands and hope that one day I will celebrate it there again; the Christmas trees and decorations, the special music, the Christmas services in Church - especially the one on Christmas Eve, gathering together with family and friends, etc. Christmas is very different here in Ghana, especially in the North where there are very few Christians. However, for me, at this time of year the weather does have some similarity with how it feels in December in the Netherlands! During the Christmas season there is a dry and hot wind (the harmattan) that blows from the direction of the Sahara carrying a lot of dust and drying up the grasses and trees and the nights are relatively cold (around 20ºC as compared to 36ºC in the day time). If I get up early in the morning, squeeze my eyes a little, and look at the hazy dusty sky, putting on my long sleeve sweater I can almost imagine that I have woken up on a frosty morning in Europe.

Just a few days ago I was talking with one of my Ghanaian colleagues about Christmas. He was born of Christian parents and therefore has celebrated Christmas since he was a child. When he thinks about Christmas, he thinks about tea! He loves tea and early in the morning when he comes to the office he makes a big flask of tea which he drinks throughout the day. But, when he was a child, it was only on Christmas Eve that he would get tea to drink. For him, that was the highlight of Christmas. As children they would gather as much tea as they could and pour it all in a big bowl. It would serve them for about three days and then they had to wait for another year! Even today, for some of the children in our churches in remote villages, Christmas is still the only day they get tea to drink or biscuits to eat. It is also a time when they might get new clothes and shoes.

Like Christians in the Netherlands, Christians in Ghana gather for church services. A number of small village churches come together and as a group make a great celebration out of it. On Christmas Eve they sing, drum and dance to the glory of God until the early hours of the next morning. After a little break and breakfast with, of course, tea(!) they continue to celebrate the birth of Christ until they are exhausted and the dust has affected their throats so much that they can no longer sing. Then they share a meal together, white rice and stew or fufu (pounded yam) with soup. It is also a time of visiting friends, just to greet them, share a drink together and wish each other a Happy New Year, because within the Dagomba culture each festival starts a new year until that same festival is celebrated again.

Dancing to the glory of God

As Abukari is a Ghanaian and I am a Dutch, the question is, how do we celebrate Christmas? I have to admit that for many years I disliked artificial Christmas trees. However, some years ago we got a small artificial tree here in Ghana and now I have to say that I love that little tree and with a bit of imagination I can even smell the fragrance of a real one! We decorate the house a little, cook nice food, invite friends over for a meal and visit others, join a church service in one of the villages and sing, dance and celebrate that the Saviour was born! ‘For God so loved the world (including the Netherlands and Ghana), that He gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.’ (John 3:16). And that then is Christmas!

Wishing you a blessed Christmas!

Praise:

• Praise God that the true meaning of Christmas is not related to climate, culture or decorations but that wherever we are and whoever we are we can share in the joy of the birth of our Saviour.

Pray:

• That as the Word is being preached in many villages, people will be touched by the ‘Good News'.

• For unity and love among the believers as they celebrate Christmas, that that may be a testimony to the communities in which they live.

• That as a family we can find a way of making Christmas meaningful and memorable despite our different backgrounds and cultures, especially for the children.