2025 Keep Christ in Christmas Contest Winners

Keep Christ in Christmas
 
Nativity and festivity are the most joyous parts of the season that commemorates Jesus’ birth. Oftentimes during the Christmas season, we branch away from God, forgetting about our religious celebrations that bring us closer to him, not just individually, but as a community. It is easy to forget about Jesus during these times, but the best way to get involved is with nativity and festivity.
 
In the nativity, we celebrate the Incarnation of Jesus Christ, when he became the Son of God. He became man, preached God’s word and died on the cross to save us from sin. In return for the sacrifices Jesus made, we can help those who are less fortunate. Food banks or local organizations are all great places to start. On Christmas Eve, my family and I attend the Christmas Vigil in my parish. It is a wonderful way to come together as a family and community.
 
When someone envisions Christmas, they think of presents, fancy dinners, colorful lights, or a cup of hot chocolate. There are other ways to find God in the festive fun. If you enjoy decorating Christmas trees, remember that the star on top represents the Northern Star that guided the three wise men through the desert. I enjoy giving gifts to friends and family as a way to show my appreciation for them. God gives us his gifts, and we should give as well.
 
We should always welcome God in everything we do, especially around the time that he came to save us. Whichever works for you this Christmas, whether you are saying a nightly prayer or putting the star on the tree for festive cheer, include God. Keeping Christ in Christmas is tremendously important for us to grow in our faith and understanding of him.

Keep Christ in Christmas
 
Christmas is often said to be the most wonderful time of the year. For many people, Christmas is always about the perfectly decorated tree, the tinsel, parties, Christmas card photos, presents, or the gingerbread cookies. It is celebrated as a time associated with winter, so people think of hot cocoa, blankets, or gathering by the fire when they hear Christmas.
 
Sometimes these are the only things people will care about during this season. The problem is they are missing the most important thing, the one whose birth started this celebration over 2,000 years ago because his birth was so special – Jesus Christ. He is truly the reason for the season and the most important aspect of Christmas for so many reasons.
 
Christ is the reason for the season of Christmas. His birth started this celebration because He came into the world to save all his people from sin. He was born to the Virgin Mary, to die, save us from sin and give us a chance of eternal life. This is the best gift of Christmas and the reason for the season. Without Jesus Christ coming into the world on this day, we would not have this very merry and joyful time of the year to celebrate his gift to us.
 
Jesus’ holy birth is the one reason why he is the most important aspect of Christmas. Jesus is the most important aspect of Christmas because it is the celebration of his birth. We honor him like this during Christmas because he is God, who came into this world humbly in a simple stable to eventually die to conquer sin. We received the gift of God himself on the first Christmas and we should celebrate that because no gift is greater.

I know we all love Christmas: the presents, the music, the lights and many more exciting things! There is one thing, though, that most people are forgetting about: Jesus! Think about it, without Jesus we would not be making Christmas lists, listening to Christmas music, or even getting Christmas presents. Also, Christmas is recognized as the birthday of Jesus Christ, so we are actually celebrating Jesus’ birthday. That is the bigger occasion here. But why don’t we celebrate it as much?
 
Well, kids today think that toys are the best thing in existence, which is crazy! We usually do not pay attention to what Jesus did for us. He was crucified so we could actually live and not be crucified like him. He performed miracles like turning water to wine, calming a storm, multiplying food to share with everyone and even resurrecting his friend.
 
I can understand that kids find it hard to celebrate Jesus when they have all these presents to play with, but we should still show admiration for Jesus during Christmastime. We should realize that Jesus is the most important person in our lives. He loves us all, so we should love him as he loves us. We should celebrate his birthday as we would celebrate our own. For these reasons, and many more, we should all Keep Christ in Christmas.