Though to some it may seem that to say that Charles Dickens has been called “perhaps the greatest of English novelists,” an exaggeration, but no one can deny his genius and tremendous contribution to literature. Dickens, in his life, championed the cause of the poor and oppressed, as well as criticised the aristocratic and Church elitism. Two hundred years ago, in the early 19th Century, the holiday of Christmas in Great Britain had almost become extinct. The London Times newspaper did not mention Christmas once between 1790 and 1835. Then in 1843, Charles Dickens wrote his book ‘A Christmas Carol.’ At that time, unemployment and famine were widespread. Dickens in order to challenge the powerful and the wealthy to act with generosity and with compassion uses the character of miserly Ebenezer Scrooge to represent the powerful. He characterised Scrooge as a miserable and that he needed to change. In the story, the mean-spirited, miserly old man, Ebenezer Scrooge, sits in his counting-house on a frigid Christmas Eve. His clerk, Bob Cratchit, who copies letters by hand in an under-heated dismal little cell shivers in the anteroom because Scrooge refuses to spend money on heating coals for a fire. Cratchit is repeatedly described as ugly and clothes himself in a tattered white comforter, since he cannot afford a coat. Cratchit is treated poorly by Scrooge and given a weekly salary of but fifteen bob (old British coin), insufficient to provide his family with a proper Christmas dinner. Scrooges nephew, Fred, pays his uncle a visit and invites him to his annual Christmas party. Two portly gentlemen also drop by and ask Scrooge for a contribution to their charity. Scrooge reacts to the holiday visitors with bitterness and venom, spitting out an angry Bah! Humbug! in response to his nephews Merry Christmas! Later that evening, after returning to his dark, cold apartment, Scrooge receives a chilling visitation from the ghost of his dead partner, Jacob Marley. Marley, looking tired and pale, relates his unfortunate story. As punishment for his greedy and self-serving life his spirit has been condemned to wander the Earth weighted down with heavy chains. Marley hopes to save Scrooge from sharing the same fate. Marley informs Scrooge that three spirits will visit him during each of the next three nights. After the ghost disappears, Scrooge collapses into a deep sleep. He wakes moments before the arrival of the Ghost of Christmas Past, a strange childlike ghost with a brightly glowing head. The spirit escorts Scrooge on a journey into the past to previous Christmases from the curmudgeons earlier years. Invisible to those he watches, Scrooge revisits his childhood school days, his apprenticeship with a jolly merchant named Fezziwig, and his engagement to Belle, a woman who leaves Scrooge because his lust for money eclipses his ability to love another. Scrooge, deeply touched, sheds tears of regret before the ghost returns him to his bed. The Ghost of Christmas Present, a majestic giant clad in a green fur robe, takes Scrooge through London to unveil Christmas as it will happen that year. Scrooge watches the large, bustling Cratchit family prepare a miniature feast in its meagre home. He discovers Bob Cratchits crippled son, Tiny Tim, a courageous boy whose kindness and humility warms Scrooges heart. The spectre then zips Scrooge to his nephews to witness the Christmas party. Scrooge finds the jovial gathering delightful and pleads with the spirit to stay until the very end of the festivities. As the day passes, the spirit ages, becoming noticeably older. Toward the end of the day, he shows Scrooge two starved children, Ignorance and Want, living under his coat. He vanishes instantly as Scrooge notices a dark, hooded figure coming toward him. The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come leads Scrooge through a sequence of mysterious scenes relating to an unnamed mans recent death. Scrooge sees businessmen discussing the dead mans riches, some vagabonds trading his personal effects for cash, and a poor couple expressing relief at the death of their unforgiving creditor. Scrooge, anxious to learn the lesson of his latest visitor, begs to know the name of the dead man. After pleading with the ghost, Scrooge finds himself in a churchyard, the spirit pointing to a grave. Scrooge looks at the headstone and is shocked to read his own name. He desperately implores the spirit to alter his fate, promising to renounce his insensitive, avaricious ways and to honour Christmas with all his heart. Whoosh! He suddenly finds himself safely tucked in his bed. Overwhelmed with joy by the chance to redeem himself and grateful that he has been returned to Christmas Day, Scrooge rushes out onto the street hoping to share his new found Christmas spirit. He is accompanied on these visits by the Ghost of Christmas Present and the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, respectively. In the former vision, Cratchit is portrayed as a loving husband and father who is forgiving enough to defend Scrooge to his wife; in short, he is everything Scrooge is not. In the latter vision, Cratchit is seen mourning his son Tiny Tim, who has recently died; Cratchit could not afford to give the sickly boy proper care on his low salary. On Christmas Day Scrooge, who has seen the error of his ways, sends a giant Christmas turkey to the Cratchits family in their small Camden Town and gives him a raise. He, then, attends Freds party, to the stifled surprise of the other guests. A redeemed man, Scrooge now treats Tiny Tim as if he were his own child, and fellow human beings with kindness, generosity, and compassion; he now embodies the spirit of Christmas. As the years go by, he holds true to his promise and honours Christmas with all his heart. What is it that transforms life? Bible says [Jn 3:16] For God so loved the World that He gave His ONLY BEGOTTEN SON that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. TRANSFORMATION IS THE ESSENCE OF OUR LIFE. It is by letting Jesus be born in our hearts that would make each one of us blessed people. Sometimes, for Jesus to be born in our hearts would require hearts cleansing. It means spiritually washing our hearts and minds with His eternal Word, the Truth. Dickens wrote another important manuscript in 1849 that would not be printed until 1934. He requested that this personal work would not be made public for 85 years. In that work, titled The Life of Our Lord, he was retelling the Gospel narratives. Dickens wrote The Life of Our Lord so that his children would become familiar with Jesus Christ, and he often read the story to them. When his children left home, he gave each a New Testament (second part of the Bible). To one, he wrote, “I put a New Testament among your books, for the very same reasons, and with the very same hopes that made me write an easy account of it for you, when you were a little child; because it is the best book that ever was or will be known in the world.… ” The Life of Our Lord most clearly expresses Dickens’s religious disposition. He respected Jesus Christ, who practised what Dickens so desperately wanted to find in humanity. Jesus loved all people, even you and me (would know if only you would try him). He rubbed shoulders with social castaways, rebuked wealthy elitists, and severely condemned hypocrisy. If ever a man could gain Dickens’s utmost respect and favour, Christ could, and did. In his last will and testament, written on May 12, 1869, Dickens wrote, “I commit my soul to the mercy of God through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, and I exhort my dear children humbly to try to guide themselves by the teaching of the New Testament in its broad spirit, and to put no faith in any man’s narrow construction of its letter here or there.” Isnt it the true Christmas? Christ being truly born in our hearts and living-in through us - in thoughts, words and deeds. Even ghosts - Past, Present and Yet to Come can help. Holy Spirit is right with you to guide and this alone will make our world a better place full of love and peace and joy. HAPPY CHRISTMAS to YOU and YOUR FAMILY!
Posted on: Wed, 24 Dec 2014 01:20:40 +0000
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