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Merry Christmas from (and to) President Obama

01.01.70

While it is possible to read his language in “universalistic” terms, it seems to me pretty explicitly addressed to Christians.  The message that “can unite all of us on this holiday season” includes a reference to the first table of the Decalogue.  Christians love a God who calls them to love their neighbors as themselves and to regard one another as God’s children.  I can certainly be generous to my fellows “in the spirit of the season” (not quoting Obama here) regardless of the faith or lack of faith they profess.  I can regard us all as members of a family “regardless of our color or creed or faith.”  (There’s room for more nuance here, to be sure, and perhaps some quibbling, but, again, this is a recognizably Christian message.)  Maybe the President means that “our commitment to each other” is “merely” as fellow Americans, but somehow I don’t think so; that’s not the context.

Source: First Things (blog)