Kohls Commercial

While watching TV in my house one night this week, a commerical for Kohls was aired. In the commercial, they show a bunch of different people doing different tasks related to celebrating Christmas. While showing these people in each scene a voice over describes what is happening, saying things like "Why do you give presents?" or "Why do you cook?", as each scene represents some holiday activity. I thought the resolution and answer to these questions at the end of the commercial was going to be some trite saying about the commerical aspects of Christmas, but I was pleasantly surprised. The commercial ended with the announcer saying we celebrate Christmas beacuse "love transforms everything."

This struck me as something profound in the midst of our materialistic culture. I know that Kohls was not saying that Christ coming into the world was the ultimate expression of love and that this lone act transformed history, but that's the thought that came to my mind. I thought that love does transform everything, as the grace that is offered us testifies.

The commercial made me want to celebrate the true spirit of Christmas too by heading over to Kohls to get started on some shopping, and that's when I realized what had just happened. Kohls had used religious undertones (or overtones) to serve their own retail purposes, attempting to draw consumers into their stores by co-opting a Christian message of love.

Needless to say, it pissed me off, and made me want to withdraw from the whole Christmas celebration. But then this damned reformed education I've received kicked in, and I knew that withdrawal from culture was not an option, as appealing as it sounded. So I'm left to figure out how to celebrate Christmas in a way that doesn't worship at the throne of corporate America, but refocuses my attention on the baby in the manger and the resulting transformations I've witnessed. Happy Christmas.