The scene depicted in today’s drawing represents a fairly typical seasonal theme – a family pickup truck bringing home the annual Christmas tree in Anywhere, America. For me, this drawing conjures up all kinds of Christmas imagery and activity, such as decorating the house, making all kinds of special foods and drinks, family gatherings, exchanging gifts, listening to Christmas music, attending mass, and so on. Throughout my adult life, I’ve celebrated Christmas all over the world, but there has always been one consistent visual symbol marking the season ever since I’ve been old enough to remember – the Christmas tree.

One thing that I particularly enjoy about Christmas trees is the stories they tell. The tree at our house, like many others, has ornaments and mementos that tell stories about our lives, stories that span multiple generations, and stories that connect us to family that maybe live far away, or perhaps who aren’t with us anymore. Our trees have a lot of meaning for us, reaching into spheres of family, history, faith, the marking of seasons and years, the making of memories, and as a way of connecting us with each other. It should come as little surprise, then, that a local museum in the midwestern United States became the focal point of a community, theological, and political argument over, you guessed it, a Christmas tree.

The seemingly unlikely focal point of the tree in question is the National Railroad Museum in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The non-profit museum hosts an annual display of 50 or so decorated trees during the Christmas season, titled the “Festival of Trees”. Each organization that puts up a tree makes a donation of around $100 that goes to the upkeep of the museum, and the event draws around 20,000 visitors to the museum per year. This seems like a good deal for everyone – advertising for businesses and organizations, and a fun seasonal draw for the museum. So it would seem. This year, there are over 60 trees on display, but one of the trees in particular ignited something of a local firestorm. Technically, it’s not a Christmas tree at all. According to the organization that put it up, it’s a “Sol Invictus” tree. Put up by the Satanic Temple of Wisconsin, the tree features red lights, pentagrams, a snake wrapped around it, and ornaments with symbology representing pop-culture symbols of Satan (link).

As one might expect, the museum has drawn fairly high-level criticism for allowing this tree to be displayed. Among those calling for the removal of the tree include the bishop of the Diocese of Green Bay, as well as U.S. congressman Mike Gallagher, among others. In addition, a local coalition has formed, initiating a letter-writing campaign and staging protests near the museum in objection to the tree, which they claim is offensive, divisive, and in opposition to the traditional understanding of Christmas. For their part, the organization that placed the tree responded by claiming that the tradition of the tree and date of Christmas both have roots in pagan rituals, and they simply wish to take part in seasonal “feelings of good will and camaraderie.” Caught in the middle of the debate, the museum simply stated that the tree would not be removed, as it was in compliance with festival guidelines, and that removing the tree would violate anti-discrimination laws.

After reading all of this, I wondered – as an American, a Catholic, and a dad, how should I respond to this? Parsing this out a little bit, it seems a three part issue right along those same lines: as an American, it seems to require a legal and constitutional response. As a Catholic, it requires a faith-informed response. As a dad, it requires me to consider what my kids are being exposed to, and how I can help them navigate these issues.

As an American , this is a legal and constitutional question. The museum is 100% correct. If we like our own rights to religious freedom, we have to extend the same rights to those with other beliefs. Now, one might say that the whole point of the satanic tree is just to tweak the Christians, and maybe it is. But, rights are rights, regardless of intent. Legally speaking, the bishop and congressman are wrong on this issue, especially considering that the museum is, in part, publicly funded.

As a Catholic, I see this as a call for wisdom rather than a knee-jerk reaction. I already know the history of the tree, and Sol Invictus, and all of that. So what? Does this silly little tree disturb or challenge my faith? Not in the least. I say let them have their tree. If anything, maybe this would be an opportunity for us as Catholics to extend some compassion and kindness to these people. This is the only way to a constructive dialogue, if that is indeed what these people want. Now, if the bishop wants to counsel the faithful to avoid the museum and the tree while it is on display, then have at it; that is wise and appropriate. But, along with that, what if the bishop were also to call the faithful to pray for those who put the tree up? What if he were to offer to meet with them, to pray with them, to have a conversation about why Christmas means so much to us as Catholics? What if? Would that not be more constructive and Christ-like than blanket condemnation?

As a dad, do I want my kids to be exposed to this sort of thing? Not really; I don’t want to be exposed to it myself. At the same time, I’m also not stupid or ignorant enough to think that this kind of stuff isn’t out there. So, how I do approach this with them? The most important thing, I think, is something we discuss with them a lot, which is being careful with their minds and hearts. We talk about this a lot with reference to what’s on the internet, in violent video games, and the like, but the message here is similar – be careful about what you put into your minds and hearts. It matters. The other part, to me, is just keeping an open dialogue with them; I will gladly talk to them about this tree, the history behind it, what the symbols mean, and what we believe and why. I would rather they hear it from us than at school or on the internet somewhere.

To me, it seems like these sorts of disputes always come down to what we really believe. Do I believe that satan is real? Yes, I do. But I believe that God is real too, and something funny happened as a result of this episode with the tree. I spent a lot of time thinking about Christ, and Christmas, and what it all means to me that I might not have otherwise. If anything, I feel refreshed in my faith, and as confident as ever in what I believe. Seems like a win for God, doesn’t it? It’s funny how that happens.

AB22