wfn.org | Christians urged to re-evaluate how they celebrate Christmas

[NewsDesk@UMCOM.UMC.ORG]

Oct. 11, 2000  News media contact: Thomas S.
McAnally·(615)742-5470·Nashville, Tenn.     10-21-71BP{468}

NOTE: A photograph is available for use with this story

By United Methodist News Service

Christians are being asked this holiday season to "challenge consumerism,
live justly and celebrate responsibly."

Since 1973, Alternatives for Simple Living, based in Sioux City, Iowa, has
promoted responsible living and celebrating through resources for Advent,
Lent and Easter, weddings and other celebrations.  

The centerpiece for the annual offering of Advent resources has been a
provocative piece of art that carries with it the question, "Whose birthday
is it, anyway?" This year's picture of Santa Claus kneeling at the manger
has already provoked unprecedented response, according to Gerald Iversen,
national coordinator for Alternatives.  

"Art's tricky," he said. "Each year, we try to portray visually the tension
between faith and culture to help people question the way we celebrate
Christmas. Sometimes the point is obvious.  Sometimes a caption for subtle
art helps to focus the reader's mind."

Because of the initial response this season, Alternatives is inviting
comments on what the art means to people who view it. Responses can be short
or long, possibly a caption for the picture, Iversen said. Selected
submissions that represent the diversity of responses will be published. 

The art appears in Alternatives' Fall Resource Guide, on the cover of its
Summer Resource Guide and the cover of the "Whose Birthday is it, Anyway"
booklet. It's also available on a flyer, a greeting card, a post card and
the organization's Web site.  

For a copy of the art, call (800) 821-6153 or visit www.SimpleLiving.org.
^From the home page or the site map, click on Resources: Whose Birthday.  

Alternatives provides resources appropriate for re-evaluation of Christmas
and for simpler living all year. For a free catalog, call (712) 274-8875 or
(800) 821-6153, or send an e-mail message to Alternatives@SimpleLiving.org.

The catalog and information on Alternatives services are also on the Web
site.  For hundreds of related articles, click on Information: Archives.

A free copy of the popular "Ten Tips for a Simpler, More Meaningful
Christmas" is available on paper upon request. Or, on the Web site, click on
Information: Media Releases: Christmas: Ten Tips.

The "Whose Birthday is it, Anyway?" booklet is being serialized on the Web
with a new installment each Wednesday. The entire booklet is available on
paper for $3 (postpaid). Quantity pricing goes as low as 60 cents each.  

The serial begins with an article titled, "We Chose Something Different!"
Reflections by Sr. Miriam Therese Winter run Oct. 11 through Nov. 28. The
calendar, "Sustainable Change: Hope for a New Millennium," runs Nov. 29
through Jan. 9.

Resources are also available in Spanish.  

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United Methodist News Service
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