Theology of the Christmas Cracker

We went to the early Christmas Eve Mass since the children were in the nativity presented in the middle of Mass. Right after the Gospel, about 40 or 50 children went up front. The older children read the story of the Nativity while the younger children reenacted it. J and L were both donkeys. Apparently Mary and Joseph had a good year this year and could afford two donkeys. Or maybe they got a two-for-one offer at the donkey rental agency. The nativity was delightful and they both looked very cute.

As part of the homily, Father drew out a Christmas cracker. For those who don't know about this English tradition, read my post here. Father got a volunteer from the children to help him pull the cracker. He then took out the various bits inside and gave an explanation of how they related to the true meaning of Christmas.

The paper crown that we find in the cracker reminds us of the king who has entered our midst, the King of kings. He is the true royalty to which we owe our ultimate allegiance.

The joke is a reminder that God wants us to be joyous, not only at this most festive feast, but always. He wants what is best for us, what is good for us. Joy is certainly the ultimate goal of our lives--the joy of being in Heaven with God and the holy souls and angels. (By the way, the joke in his cracker was this: "Why does Santa use the chimney to get in our houses? Because it soots him!")

The present inside the Christmas cracker reminds us that this is the time of the ultimate gift. God gives His own Son to us as a redeemer. We are truly blessed and should be truly grateful.

Finally, the cardboard of the cracker reminds us of the stable and the manger, the first and humble home of Jesus in this world. No matter how poorly we are in our state of life, still God loves us and takes care of us.

It made for an interesting part of the sermon, certainly engaging for the children who were about to open Christmas crackers the next day. I wish you all the joy and grace of this Chirstmas season!

Christmas Crackers, 9th Day of UK Christmas

A Happy Christmas Reveler!

Christmas crackers are a British tradition at Christmas dinner or at yuletide parties. The cracker is a small cardboard tube wrapped in paper or foil to resemble a wrapped candy. Inside is a surprise, usually a toy or other small item. Pulling on both ends of the wrapper activates a minuscule firecracker that bangs as the cracker is pulled apart. The crackers also often contain a paper crown to wear and a piece of paper with jokes, trivia, and other interesting tidbits of information. Our crackers had suggestions for playing Charades. Here's what the contents of ours looked like.

Only one prize per cracker, though!

Here's a sampling of the jokes:

Q: What do you get if you cross a sheep with a kangaroo? A: A woolly jumper!
Q: Why did the microscope cross the road? A: To get to the other slide.
Q: Why did the chicken resign? A: He was being paid a poultry amount.

Here's a sampling of the trivia:

Q: Who won 2001's Big Brother? A: Brian Dowling
Q: What country gives London a Christmas Tree every year? A: Norway
Q: When was the Scottish battle of Bannockburn? A: 1314
Q: Why did the guy drown in a bowl of muesli? A: A strong currant pulled him in.

Wow, those are some tough questions if you didn't grow up here (if you're lucky, you get one of the occasional bonus jokes). The charades ranged from easy (Spider-man) to difficult (Wind in the Willows) to impossible (Unchained Melody?!?!?!). The children aren't old enough to play charades yet.

We enjoyed our Christmas crackers on Christmas day. Check out our enjoyment of the leftover crackers on the next day: