This article is a public apology to Westfield Shopping Centres regarding my criticisms of their Christmas celebrations.  Let me explain… 

A few Christmases ago in one of their shopping centres (which will remain unnamed) I was stunned by the Christmas "Centre Court" display.  There was a huge snow covered tunnel and dozens of cartoon and fairy tale characters were there, on their way to visit Santa at the end of the tunnel.  Shoppers were encouraged to walk through the giant tunnel, music, fake snow etc etc, and Santa Claus of course was the centrepiece.  It was huge; half a football field.

But I couldn't help feeling that there was someone missing.

Then by accident a little while later I stumbled across something else.  Not far from "Best & Less', in a dark corner at the back of the mall, was a small nativity scene.  It had obviously just been pulled out of a dusty cupboard somewhere, a plastic baby Jesus, a few stuffed and disinterested animals looking on.  No one noticed.  No one cared.  I must confess that I was angry about this, Jesus being in the back corner and Santa Claus in the forecourt, I even complained and whinged to a number of people about Westfield and their wrong priorities.

But now I realise that I must apologise to Westfield because what I thought was just commercialism was actually a profound social comment about Christmas.  What Westfield have done is to show us what happened at the first Christmas, and most Christmases since.  In the year zero, people were just too busy to notice what was going on.  The amazing thing about the gospel and the story of Christmas is that most people didn't notice and didn't care about the birth of Jesus.  It is not that they were really bad people, they were just busy people.  There was a census on, taxes had to be paid, people needed to travel, and accommodation had to be organised.  They were busy with work and family.  They were trying to make ends meet, keep their families together, enjoy life as best they could. 

I'm sure that was the point Westfield was making: that in the busyness of life, with presents, and Santa and snow and fun and holidays (all great things to be enjoyed), we forget what Christmas is really all about.  And the baby gets left in the manger, forgotten, as we busily chase fake snow. 

In the busyness of Christmas this year will you pause and have a think about what it all means?  Perhaps the most famous verse in the Bible explains what the real meaning of Christmas is,

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life".  John 3:16

Christmas is about God's rescue mission, when he sent his son into the world, born to be one of us, born to show us what God is really like, born to grow up and give his life in our place so that we can be forgiven for the wrong we have done.  The great Christmas gift is that whoever believes in him (trusts him) for forgiveness can be forgiven by God and can have the promise of eternal life.  I hope that this Christmas as our lives are full of good things, family, food, fun, presents etc that these good things don't crowd out the best thing about Christmas.  We need to let the baby grow up and listen to what he said about the promise of forgiveness and eternal life.

Al Stewart is the Anglican Bishop of Wollongong