Flying angels. Live camels. Fog machines. LED Bethlehem. When Christmas becomes a spectacle, what gets lost isn’t reverence, it’s trust. A Virgin Monk Boy roast of megachurch pageants that look more like Six Flags than the Nativity.
If they really wanted to offer Jesus their “absolute best” they should feed the hungry, welcome the stranger, visit the sick and those in prison etc. This is what Jesus asks and expects us to do. Of course it wouldn’t draw attention to themselves or their church and they couldn’t sell tickets. I’m sure that’s a problem.
Oh my- OH my- OH MY! It is both absurdly ridiculous and tragicly sad. I watched some of the clip. I couldn't see it clearly. Did not see Jesus anywhere. But Santa must be doing extra work as he was featured front and center.
So I would posit it is their version of Hair or Jesus Christ Superstar ( the prequel).
Just when you think it can't get sillier, you find you are wrong.
Omg this is ridiculous. And so American 🇺🇸 It reminds me of an old clip from The Simpsons, where Homer asks Marge how she wants it, and she said, ”I’m American so of course I want it big. The biggest!” 😂
So sad though when you consider the poor animals tortured and all the plastic waste that ends up in landfills. The total opposite of what Jesus wants. He only wants our attention, our undivided presence. But that’s the real gift we’re either unwilling or unable to give, because swiping left is so much easier. 😏
’ve been thinking a lot lately about religious institutions and healing. The topic keeps coming up as people ask me about my own experiences. Jesus was a healer, and the early Christian movement was, at its core, a healing movement. I’ve also been reflecting on what I’ve been learning through the Polyvagal Institute, particularly Dr. Stephen Porges’ insight that a person cannot truly self-regulate until they first experience coregulation.
Coregulation happens when two nervous systems regulate together, and it can only occur in spaces of safety. Jesus clearly pushed back against the religious systems of his time and demonstrated healing outside of those rigid structures. Early metaphysical movements tell similar stories, full of healing experiences that emerged in relational, often non-institutional contexts.
We cannot heal—emotionally or physically—without first feeling safe. Performance has its place. I enjoy a good Broadway show as much as anyone. But performance spaces are not, by their nature, spaces of coregulation. It’s also incredibly difficult to coregulate within rigid social hierarchies. This is one of the tensions within the “spiritual but not religious” movement. Many people I know have walked away from collective spiritual experience altogether, yet without opportunities for coregulation, we often end up stuck inside our own individual processes.
I appreciate you naming this so clearly. You really did hit the nail on the head. At some point, we lose the nerve to trust God without props.
There are examples of religious expression that minimize hierarchy and performance. The Quakers, or the Religious Society of Friends, come to mind. They’ve demonstrated social healing in remarkable ways, and I believe much of that comes from their peer-driven structure. Twelve Step groups offer another powerful example of this kind of collective healing.
I was once firmly in the “spiritual but not religious” camp and walked away from institutions entirely. Over time, I’ve come to make some peace with the institutionalization of spirituality. One thing institutions do well is preserve information. At the same time, many institutions are also very good at hiding information.
If they really wanted to offer Jesus their “absolute best” they should feed the hungry, welcome the stranger, visit the sick and those in prison etc. This is what Jesus asks and expects us to do. Of course it wouldn’t draw attention to themselves or their church and they couldn’t sell tickets. I’m sure that’s a problem.
Well said!
Exactly…
Excellent, excoriating exegesis!
Oh my- OH my- OH MY! It is both absurdly ridiculous and tragicly sad. I watched some of the clip. I couldn't see it clearly. Did not see Jesus anywhere. But Santa must be doing extra work as he was featured front and center.
So I would posit it is their version of Hair or Jesus Christ Superstar ( the prequel).
Just when you think it can't get sillier, you find you are wrong.
Omg this is ridiculous. And so American 🇺🇸 It reminds me of an old clip from The Simpsons, where Homer asks Marge how she wants it, and she said, ”I’m American so of course I want it big. The biggest!” 😂
So sad though when you consider the poor animals tortured and all the plastic waste that ends up in landfills. The total opposite of what Jesus wants. He only wants our attention, our undivided presence. But that’s the real gift we’re either unwilling or unable to give, because swiping left is so much easier. 😏
Great post!
’ve been thinking a lot lately about religious institutions and healing. The topic keeps coming up as people ask me about my own experiences. Jesus was a healer, and the early Christian movement was, at its core, a healing movement. I’ve also been reflecting on what I’ve been learning through the Polyvagal Institute, particularly Dr. Stephen Porges’ insight that a person cannot truly self-regulate until they first experience coregulation.
Coregulation happens when two nervous systems regulate together, and it can only occur in spaces of safety. Jesus clearly pushed back against the religious systems of his time and demonstrated healing outside of those rigid structures. Early metaphysical movements tell similar stories, full of healing experiences that emerged in relational, often non-institutional contexts.
We cannot heal—emotionally or physically—without first feeling safe. Performance has its place. I enjoy a good Broadway show as much as anyone. But performance spaces are not, by their nature, spaces of coregulation. It’s also incredibly difficult to coregulate within rigid social hierarchies. This is one of the tensions within the “spiritual but not religious” movement. Many people I know have walked away from collective spiritual experience altogether, yet without opportunities for coregulation, we often end up stuck inside our own individual processes.
I appreciate you naming this so clearly. You really did hit the nail on the head. At some point, we lose the nerve to trust God without props.
There are examples of religious expression that minimize hierarchy and performance. The Quakers, or the Religious Society of Friends, come to mind. They’ve demonstrated social healing in remarkable ways, and I believe much of that comes from their peer-driven structure. Twelve Step groups offer another powerful example of this kind of collective healing.
I was once firmly in the “spiritual but not religious” camp and walked away from institutions entirely. Over time, I’ve come to make some peace with the institutionalization of spirituality. One thing institutions do well is preserve information. At the same time, many institutions are also very good at hiding information.