Christmas is normally an exciting time of the year. And because a few days later we usher into a new year, celebration, parties and other forms of social engagement become the order of the day. 

However, men of the cloth believe it should be, to devotees, viewed differently. They say it should be a period of thanksgiving, as the Bible claims that the birth of Christ signifies "peace on earth and Glory in heaven”.

Pastor Lydia Masasu of Evangelical Restoration Church, Masoro, says that it should be a remembrance of the time we let Jesus take over our hearts and heal them.

"We should be glad, because it is the time Jesus was born in our hearts, and he took over. So it is the time to celebrate based on the Word of God, and celebrate in a Biblical context,” she says. 

She is concerned that the world has conceptualised it in another way, with worldly pleasures, urging believers to take it in a spiritual context which is a reflection of the healing era.

"Christmas is not primarily the time to buy new clothes, eat and drink or enjoy social engagement. Though it is not possible now due to the pandemic,” she says, citing that it is the time to reflect on the love that Christ has shown us.

For the Catholic Church, the festive season is preceded by a range of acts which prepare believers to usher in the holy season with a real spiritual context. Bosco Ntagungira, a priest at Regina Pacis, Remera, says that the misconception should be cleared by passing through the advent phase.

"We first take the advent stage, which is preparing our hearts and spirits to be healed. After those four weeks, that is the time we usher into the Christmas season, with a good sense of what it is,” he says.

Andrew Mukinisha, Christian Life Assembly’s senior pastor, explains that this is a time to help the underprivileged.

"This is a celebration of the love that we have been shown, and this is the real Christmas: To suffer with those who are suffering as Christ allowed to take upon our sufferings,” he explains.

"Then, we go on with our own pleasures after those preparation phases and helping the poor.”

Pastor Mukinisha adds that the reason for the misconception of Christmas is that people start from the last step without passing through all the stages.

For Anglican Church’s Archbishop, Laurent Mbanda, Christmas is a time to recognise the good news of the birth of the Saviour. "It is a thanksgiving day, not a day to focus on clothes and food,” he says.