Like Santa’s sleigh, Christmas brings something for everyone.

Generally, the Christian, whether of the earnest or the casual kind, has little ­difficulty in embracing Christmas’ finest and deepest aspirations.

It’s the unbelieving or sceptical, however, who find themselves annually in the tension of an occasion which, simultaneously, seems to be intellectually foolish but charming in its intent.

Consequently, for them, Christmas comes with some sadness. On the one hand, ­unbelievers see the positives of the Christmas or Jesus story, but on the other they see it as something contrived –  a kind of fairy tale ­isolated from reality. 

Unbelievers are unable to give themselves fully to Christmas.

It seems regrettable, however, that an inability to believe in God should rob any ­individual of Christmas’ joys, festivities and messages. What can they do to overcome their uncertainties?

One way forward for any sceptic is to ­challenge whichever of these commonly held notions he holds to: If God doesn’t exist then Jesus didn’t exist, or, if Jesus did exist then he was just a human being.

The first statement depends upon flawed logic; its inadequacy is fairly evident.

The second statement’s use of the word “just”, however, is intriguing. “Just” suggests a humanity limited to nothing more than the humanity we already know and experience.

But, for non-believers and believers alike, it’s here that Christmas’ ideals lie. 

Christmas encourages us to expand our limited understandings of what it means to be human by directing us to greater visions of human grandeur and of humanity’s place in the universe.

bstewart@ispdr.net.au