I watched a Christmas movie last night that left something out. In a discussion about Baby Jesus and His star, they avoided using His name. Yep, not once was the Child in the manger for Whom the star glowed called Jesus.
The actors talked about Him. They mentioned very specific and iconic narratives that historically lead only to Him. They discussed the idea of His birth being a miracle.
Yet, meticulously and carefully, the dialogue was written so as to avoid the use of "Jesus." "The Child" was the preferred reference.
Now, we can look at this movie two ways. First, it is a simple, secular Christmas romance that set out to gently remind non-Believers of the reason for the season. It sought to do so without hammering anyone over the head with the obvious: Jesus. There is no confusion about Whom they were speaking. A star followed the Child. He was born in a manger. Wise men tracked Him down.
Yeah, that's definitely Jesus.
The second way to look at this odd omission is to consider perhaps the movie folks thought the name would offend someone. By not using the name of Jesus, the audience could assume the babe in the manger was some other child. Maybe an Islamic boy born to a young mother and to whom angels bowed. Or maybe a Hindu baby that stars followed.
If they could just avoid those five, little letters...
I don't know if it's option 1 or option 2, but both insult my intelligence. It's like calling a Christmas tree a Holiday Tree. We all KNOW what holiday we're talking about. Just call it a Christmas tree and be done with the nonsense.
If the movie hadn't skirted the issue of Christ's birth and the astronomer heroine hadn't talked about THAT one star, I could give some grace here. It could have been just another Christmas romance movie. But they were CLEARLY avoiding saying the name Jesus.
I'm beating this drum because if we shy away from simply saying His name in a movie that makes unmistakable references to Him, we're in danger of losing the truth altogether. So, this season I will say Jesus as much as possible and wish everyone I meet, "Merry Christmas."
What are your thoughts on this? Have you seen the movie? Or some like it?
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