Not from a Distance

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:14, NIV)

My wife’s store pumps Christmas music from a local radio station. It is, naturally, an eclectic mix of Jesus, and reindeer, and snow, and shepherds. Instrumentals, boy bands, country, choirs, it is all here. Songs by people who believe, those who don’t, and those who probably have no clue.

Visiting her one day recently, I was surprised to hear the Bette Midler song, “From a Distance.” Obviously, the radio programmer did not listen to the song closely, as there is not a hint of any Christmas themes in it. There is a religious veneer in that it mentions God and universal brotherhood, but that is all.

The strangest part, however, is how the theme of the song runs so counter to the meaning of Christmas. A song about Santa Claus might miss the real meaning, but it is not at odds to it. If you have never heard this song, it is a general plea for everyone to get along because the things that divide us would look so small and insignificant if looked at “from a distance.”

But then it brings God into the equation—after a fashion. The chorus repeats the assertion, “God is watching us—from a distance.” In other words, God cares about what we do and is disappointed to see war and strife among us. However, he does this “from a distance” and does not actually involve himself in our affairs. Therefore, it is up to us to bring peace and harmony to the world. As Christians, we know that this philosophy is just plain wrong.

It would not upset me for a secular radio station to play this song any other time of the year; I know that they do not share my beliefs. But playing it at Christmas, though, is pure irony. Even if one does not believe the truth of Christ’s birth, no one can deny that one of the features of its message is that, in the Incarnation, God does not remain “at a distance,” but rather made himself one of us to intervene in our lives.

Even Christians get so busy at Christmas, and wrapped up in sentimentality, that we sometimes forget the incredible impact of the Incarnation: God came down to us to save us. This is real love: personal and intimate, hardly “from a distance.”