Churches are always packed on Christmas, with non-Christians who desire to celebrate Christmas attending. However, another group should not be ignored, namely, “Chreasters.”
The number of “Chreasters,” those "Christians" who only attend church on Christmas and Easter cannot be calculated through survey, but the phenomenon is quite common. Some pastors say, “Almost all the back rows in the church are empty in ordinary Sunday services, but they are full on Christmas Eve. Even more chairs cannot hold the extra people and aisles are crowded with many people.” A Catholic priest also confesses that many Catholics seldom go to mass, while mainly attending church on Christmas.
A sister tells me that she, no longer a churchgoer, just attends church on Christmas Eve. Rarely seen in church, a brother who has been baptized, goes to church with his mother every Christmas to please her. What is more surprising is that I encountered some of my acquaintances at a Christmas celebration. Until then, I realized that they who did not seem like Christians who believe in Jesus.
This is just a tiny amount of what happens on the surface. They share some common identities. Most of “Chreasters” are young and middle-aged who are occupied with work, and they no longer practice the Christian faith. They go to church once a year on Christmas, which is considered as “fulfilling their religious duties.”
The second thing is that they prefer joining social organizations to going to church on Sundays due to the large amount of cultural entertainment that is available. The “heavy holiness” of Christmas leads them to church on that day.
The majority come from Christian families, sharing the same religious identity with their family members with a lack of true devoutness. Out of the need for family meetings, they follow their families to Christmas celebrations.
There are some “Chreasters” who are kind and have ideas and deeds in accordance with Christian teachings, but their spiritual lives are poor on average. More or less, there are some bad addictions even non-Christians don’t have in their lives.
I came to know a soccer fan who is addicted to gambling. He said that he often placed bets with a man who worships God, but the latter disappears around Christmas because he is spending time at the church for three days and not gambling. Because of that, he eventually knew his friend’s Christian identity.
Christians should live a life worthy of the calling they have received, obey Christ’s teachings in thoughts and deeds, and walk daily with the Lord, not being Christians just on Sundays or even Christmas.
Moreover, the rise of “Chreasters” has something to do with a lack of pastoral care. A sister busy with her work became alienated from her church who never visited her. She would never have been a “Chreaster” if she would have been paid a vist at that time.
The church can organize a ministry that is responsible for pastoring and caring for new Christians. The team can train them regularly with biblical teachings. The most important thing is to frequently visit those “Chreasaters” who can receive answers for their daily and faith questions and receive actual help. Then the special group can have a stronger sense of belonging and understand more about truth after having felt the warm of their churches.
每到圣诞节时，不少平时难以坐满的教堂总是人山人海，这少不了为了感受圣诞气氛而来的非信徒。当然还有一个群体不容忽视，那就是圣诞节基督徒。
这类信徒具体有多少，因为没有调查研究暂时无法量化。但从笔者的接触看，这种现象还是较为普遍的。有些牧者说：“平时主日崇拜，教堂后排基本都空着。可到平安夜时不仅坐满了，甚至连增加椅子都不够，不少人拥挤在教堂的过道上。”而一位天主教神父也坦言：“不少教友平时都很少望弥撒，但圣诞节基本都会来教堂”。
有位姐妹对我说，她现在基本都不去教会了，一年只在平安夜去一下。有位弟兄虽然受洗，可从不追求，但为了让母亲高兴，就每年圣诞节陪着她到教会。更让我惊讶的是，有些社会上的朋友认识了很久，但有次竟在教堂圣诞庆典时遇到他们，原来他们都是基督徒，可平时却看不出其信仰，直到平安夜才知道。
这些仅是我所接触的圣诞基督徒的冰山一角，这类信徒在当前教会里还是为数不少的。当然这类信徒基本都存在一些共性。首先他们都是中青年，平常忙于各种工作，把信仰的事放在一边，直到圣诞节才来一次教堂，算是履行了宗教义务。
其次当前娱乐文化泛滥，年轻人难免沉迷其中，他们在主日的时候，往往都会选择参加社会上的各种社团，而不是来教会，但由于圣诞节在心目中的特殊地位，让他们选择了来教堂。
最后这类多数来自基督徒的家庭，他们对于信仰只是一种身份认同，而缺乏真正的虔诚。出于家庭聚会的需求，他们往往也会跟着家人来教堂参加圣诞节活动。
圣诞基督徒中虽不乏为人善良、思想言行符合基督徒规范的人，但是从我接触的群体看，生命质量普遍不行，他们身上多少都存在一些连非信徒都没有的不良嗜好。有次在一个球迷群认识了沉迷赌博的群友，他说经常跟一个“拜上帝”的人下注，但唯独圣诞节前后这个人会消失，因为他去教堂了，并在三天内戒赌。也因为这点，他才知道赌友是有宗教信仰的。
我们要明白，基督徒要与蒙召的恩相称，思想言行要遵行基督的教导，要尽力做到每日与主同行，而不是在礼拜天甚至圣诞节才知道自己是基督徒。仅仅履行宗教仪式而缺乏敬虔的实质，是不应当的。
当然圣诞基督徒的出现，也与某些教会的牧养缺失有关。有些信徒并不是天生就不追求，而是没有得到教会应有的牧养与关怀。就像有位姐妹，由于工作较忙，加上教会长期不去探访，一段时间后就与教会疏离了。而她也坦言，假如那时有人去关怀她，估计也不会沦为圣诞基督徒。
教会做好能够组织一个事工小组，负责刚受洗信徒的牧养、关怀工作，可以定期组织培训，向这些信徒宣讲教理。最重要的是，需要经常探访这些信徒，解决信仰与生活上的困惑，并对有现实困难的人提供帮助。只有这样，他们才会感受到教会的温暖，增强其归属感，更加明白真理，生命得到长进。
反思：我是“圣诞基督徒”吗？
Churches are always packed on Christmas, with non-Christians who desire to celebrate Christmas attending. However, another group should not be ignored, namely, “Chreasters.”
The number of “Chreasters,” those "Christians" who only attend church on Christmas and Easter cannot be calculated through survey, but the phenomenon is quite common. Some pastors say, “Almost all the back rows in the church are empty in ordinary Sunday services, but they are full on Christmas Eve. Even more chairs cannot hold the extra people and aisles are crowded with many people.” A Catholic priest also confesses that many Catholics seldom go to mass, while mainly attending church on Christmas.
A sister tells me that she, no longer a churchgoer, just attends church on Christmas Eve. Rarely seen in church, a brother who has been baptized, goes to church with his mother every Christmas to please her. What is more surprising is that I encountered some of my acquaintances at a Christmas celebration. Until then, I realized that they who did not seem like Christians who believe in Jesus.
This is just a tiny amount of what happens on the surface. They share some common identities. Most of “Chreasters” are young and middle-aged who are occupied with work, and they no longer practice the Christian faith. They go to church once a year on Christmas, which is considered as “fulfilling their religious duties.”
The second thing is that they prefer joining social organizations to going to church on Sundays due to the large amount of cultural entertainment that is available. The “heavy holiness” of Christmas leads them to church on that day.
The majority come from Christian families, sharing the same religious identity with their family members with a lack of true devoutness. Out of the need for family meetings, they follow their families to Christmas celebrations.
There are some “Chreasters” who are kind and have ideas and deeds in accordance with Christian teachings, but their spiritual lives are poor on average. More or less, there are some bad addictions even non-Christians don’t have in their lives.
I came to know a soccer fan who is addicted to gambling. He said that he often placed bets with a man who worships God, but the latter disappears around Christmas because he is spending time at the church for three days and not gambling. Because of that, he eventually knew his friend’s Christian identity.
Christians should live a life worthy of the calling they have received, obey Christ’s teachings in thoughts and deeds, and walk daily with the Lord, not being Christians just on Sundays or even Christmas.
Moreover, the rise of “Chreasters” has something to do with a lack of pastoral care. A sister busy with her work became alienated from her church who never visited her. She would never have been a “Chreaster” if she would have been paid a vist at that time.
The church can organize a ministry that is responsible for pastoring and caring for new Christians. The team can train them regularly with biblical teachings. The most important thing is to frequently visit those “Chreasaters” who can receive answers for their daily and faith questions and receive actual help. Then the special group can have a stronger sense of belonging and understand more about truth after having felt the warm of their churches.
As Christmas is Coming, Am I a “Chreaster”?
