Dear President-Elect Trump:
Today is Christmas Adam.
Christmas Adam?
Well, it’s Christmas Adam because tomorrow is Christmas Eve.
I had never heard of Christmas Adam until I married. The tradition came from Chelom’s family. But it is a tradition that Chelom and I have continued in our family. The fact that one of our children is named Adam has always made Christmas Adam that much more fun. I imagine that few people recognize Christmas Adam. But recognize it, we do. It’s part of who we are as a family.
Tomorrow is Christmas Eve for the majority of the Christian world. Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas on January 7th, according to the Gregorian Calendar. For them, December 25th is almost just another day at the office—as January 7th is for the rest of us.
For Jews, tomorrow is also a special day. It is the first day of Hanukkah—the Jewish celebration that runs from tomorrow through January 1st.
Muslims neither celebrate Christmas nor Hanukkah. They celebrate Eid Al-Fitr and Eid Al-Adha, which occur at times other than Christmas or Hanukkah. But each of these celebrations focuses on giving and charity, which is the essence of Christmas and Jesus Christ. Hanukkah is the Jew’s celebration to welcome the Messiah and peace. Three vastly different religions, each with holidays with strikingly similar purposes.
The concept of a Sabbath is a practice that is common to all three religions. Most Christians observe Sunday as the Sabbath while others observe Saturday. Jews observe Saturday as their Sabbath while Muslims observe Fridays. Three vastly different religions, each with a day of prayer and rest with strikingly similar purposes.
Not only do our holidays and Sabbaths differ, so do our perspectives as to what year it is. For Christians, the year is 2016; For Muslims the year is 1437; Jews recognize this year as 5775. Regardless of which year we observe, the same sun rises over each of us each day.
Many focus on Muslim extremists who advocate and proliferate war and terror. We often overlook, however, that many Americans have died on our soil as the result of Christian extremists, not to mention the tens of thousands of world citizens who have died throughout history at the hands of Christian extremists. Jews, too, have extremists who advocate violence.
But the collaborative middle of each faith—Christian, Jew, Muslim—advocates for and promotes peace and love and harmony. Whatever our theological, ideological, or calendrical differences, we each share common values. Each faith promotes the belief in a higher power or authority than humans or government. Each faith seeks to improve the world. Each faith encourages charity, giving, and kindness.
Each of us has our way of viewing and celebrating the world. Our differences need not divide us. Celebrating and emphasizing our collective strengths and beliefs will make us each stronger.
So whether we worship on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday; or whether it is year 5775, 1437, or 2016–we are all brothers and sisters of a common creator. I imagine that such a creator is less concerned with the details of our theological differences than the similarities of our common humanity.
Happy Christmas Adam, Mr. Trump!
Sincerely,
David O. Leavitt
