By Steven L. Shields
Last year during the year-end holiday season, downtown Seoul was adorned with bright, colorful lights and holiday-spirited decor. Department stores, shopping areas, and City Hall Plaza all joined the celebrations ― wishing all people in Korea happy holidays.
Like Buddha's "birthday," Christmas is acknowledged as a national holiday in Korea. Regardless of faith, everyone enjoys the year-end spirit and the joy all such celebrations represent.
Taking an evening trek to downtown Seoul, I wandered through the streets of Namdaemun Market, Myeongdong, and Cheonggyecheon, ending my journey at City Hall Plaza. I was stunned to see a cross placed atop the annual City Hall Christmas tree. Last year was the first time I've seen a cross on the City Hall tree in recent memory.
The symbol of Jesus's death somehow replaced the star of Bethlehem, proclaiming the birth of Jesus. While it may be true that the cross is a widely recognized symbol for all Christians, both Catholic and Protestant, the cross is not a Christmas-time symbol.
Not all citizens resonate with such parochial actions. One might argue whether placing religious symbols on government property is appropriate. As I argued in this column some years back, the holiday in December might best be renamed as "Santa Claus Day."
An increasingly secular society (and many Christians) have adopted Santa Claus as the primary figure of what is called "Christmas Day." I'd rather see a jolly Santa at City Hall Plaza than a so-called Christmas tree adorned with the symbol of Jesus's death.
We might also consider the argument about the origin of the Christmas tree itself. We know that Vikings and Saxons worshiped trees and that evergreen trees were an important symbol. During Saturnalia (a holiday celebrated on or about what we now call December 25), the ancient Romans decorated their homes and public places with wreaths of evergreen plants.
The precursors of the modern Christmas tree emerged in Europe during the 16th century. It is said that Martin Luther placed candles on an evergreen tree. A stone carving in an old house in Alsace (formerly in Germany and now in France), dated 1576, depicts a Christmas tree.
By the late 19th century, most Europeans, and North Americans, particularly the wealthy who had large houses, adopted the Christmas tree as a holiday decoration, with many different customs emerging. In the United States, the Christmas tree industry became a force for the holiday season by the 1930s.
City Hall plazas or significant parks, and most if not all churches put up Christmas trees each year to celebrate the birth of Jesus and mark one of the most important public holidays in Western civilization.
In the United States, at least, Christmas trees are a huge industry. Of course, artificial trees are used by the millions. In my family, we've used artificial trees for decades, partly due to the increasing cost of cut live trees but also because of allergies.
Modern artificial trees are so well-crafted it's hard to tell them from live trees. There are many other benefits, including the sometimes costly disposal of a live cut tree after the holidays and the fire hazards of cut live trees that dry out over the few weeks of the holiday.
Live or artificial, big or small; one consistent Christmas tree tradition is the top-most piece. Some people place an angel, and others place a star. When we read the stories of Jesus's birth in either the gospel of Matthew or the gospel of Luke, two consistent symbols stand out. Angels proclaimed the birth of Jesus to humble shepherds keeping watch over their sheep in the fields.
A star guided the wise men of the East to Jerusalem, where they sought the newborn "king of the Jews" who had been prophesied centuries earlier by Jewish prophets. Growing up, we often alternated in my family. Some years we placed an angel at the top, other years, a star.
The symbolism is critically essential. Never would we consider placing the symbol of Jesus's death on the Christmas tree. Such an act does great injustice to the commemoration of all that is Christmas.
I appeal to the planners of holiday decorations at City Hall Plaza that if they choose to include a Christmas tree, they do not repeat the gross insensitivity of 2020 and return the star to the top of the tree where it belongs. Please!
Steven L. Shields (slshields@gmail.com) has lived in Korea for many years, beginning in the 1970s. He served as copy editor of The Korea Times in 1977. He is a retired clergyman and president of the Royal Asiatic Society Korea.
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Like Buddha's "birthday," Christmas is acknowledged as a national holiday in Korea. Regardless of faith, everyone enjoys the year-end spirit and the joy all such celebrations represent.
Taking an evening trek to downtown Seoul, I wandered through the streets of Namdaemun Market, Myeongdong, and Cheonggyecheon, ending my journey at City Hall Plaza. I was stunned to see a cross placed atop the annual City Hall Christmas tree. Last year was the first time I've seen a cross on the City Hall tree in recent memory.
The symbol of Jesus's death somehow replaced the star of Bethlehem, proclaiming the birth of Jesus. While it may be true that the cross is a widely recognized symbol for all Christians, both Catholic and Protestant, the cross is not a Christmas-time symbol.
Not all citizens resonate with such parochial actions. One might argue whether placing religious symbols on government property is appropriate. As I argued in this column some years back, the holiday in December might best be renamed as "Santa Claus Day."
An increasingly secular society (and many Christians) have adopted Santa Claus as the primary figure of what is called "Christmas Day." I'd rather see a jolly Santa at City Hall Plaza than a so-called Christmas tree adorned with the symbol of Jesus's death.
We might also consider the argument about the origin of the Christmas tree itself. We know that Vikings and Saxons worshiped trees and that evergreen trees were an important symbol. During Saturnalia (a holiday celebrated on or about what we now call December 25), the ancient Romans decorated their homes and public places with wreaths of evergreen plants.
The precursors of the modern Christmas tree emerged in Europe during the 16th century. It is said that Martin Luther placed candles on an evergreen tree. A stone carving in an old house in Alsace (formerly in Germany and now in France), dated 1576, depicts a Christmas tree.
By the late 19th century, most Europeans, and North Americans, particularly the wealthy who had large houses, adopted the Christmas tree as a holiday decoration, with many different customs emerging. In the United States, the Christmas tree industry became a force for the holiday season by the 1930s.
City Hall plazas or significant parks, and most if not all churches put up Christmas trees each year to celebrate the birth of Jesus and mark one of the most important public holidays in Western civilization.
In the United States, at least, Christmas trees are a huge industry. Of course, artificial trees are used by the millions. In my family, we've used artificial trees for decades, partly due to the increasing cost of cut live trees but also because of allergies.
Modern artificial trees are so well-crafted it's hard to tell them from live trees. There are many other benefits, including the sometimes costly disposal of a live cut tree after the holidays and the fire hazards of cut live trees that dry out over the few weeks of the holiday.
Live or artificial, big or small; one consistent Christmas tree tradition is the top-most piece. Some people place an angel, and others place a star. When we read the stories of Jesus's birth in either the gospel of Matthew or the gospel of Luke, two consistent symbols stand out. Angels proclaimed the birth of Jesus to humble shepherds keeping watch over their sheep in the fields.
A star guided the wise men of the East to Jerusalem, where they sought the newborn "king of the Jews" who had been prophesied centuries earlier by Jewish prophets. Growing up, we often alternated in my family. Some years we placed an angel at the top, other years, a star.
The symbolism is critically essential. Never would we consider placing the symbol of Jesus's death on the Christmas tree. Such an act does great injustice to the commemoration of all that is Christmas.
I appeal to the planners of holiday decorations at City Hall Plaza that if they choose to include a Christmas tree, they do not repeat the gross insensitivity of 2020 and return the star to the top of the tree where it belongs. Please!
Steven L. Shields (slshields@gmail.com) has lived in Korea for many years, beginning in the 1970s. He served as copy editor of The Korea Times in 1977. He is a retired clergyman and president of the Royal Asiatic Society Korea.
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