Louisiana is magical at Christmas time. No, really. It’s true that most of my friends dream of snow-covered pine trees and cozy musically-inclined inns deep in Vermont as the idyllic Christmas setting. Not this southern Louisiana native. I envision moss-covered Christmas trees, my dad’s seafood gumbo, and mama’s Mississippi mud pie while Aaron Neville’s jazzy “Louisiana Christmas Day” plays on rotation in the background. Joyeux Noel de Cajun!
It turns out I have these things in common with Phil Robertson and his wife “Miss” Kay of A&E’s Duck Dynasty. That’s probably why my friend Rachel sent me a copy their new book Exploring the Joy of Christmas: A Duck Commander Family Field Guide, which she encouraged me to read during the Christmas season.
Now, if I’m honest, this isn’t the type of book I would normally pick up for myself to read. But as part of my job at the Institute on Religion and Democracy (IRD), I track trends among my fellow evangelicals in Church and culture. Undoubtedly, the uber-popular evangelical family of A&E’s Duck Dynasty, the Robertsons, have definitely influenced culture over the last few years with traditional Christian teaching. So, due to our shared native swampland, my friend Rachel’s thoughtfulness, and my sheer curiosity, I took a peek inside this quirky book to see what Louisiana’s most notable evangelical family has to say about “exploring the joy of Christmas.”
Immediately I was struck by the four chapters the Robertson couple devotes to Advent meditations. For a couple years now, I’ve been on a personal mission to encourage my non-denominational and Charismatic evangelical friends to observe Advent. So I’m delighted the Robertsons have done the same, encouraging their readers to meditate, fast and pray for four weeks in preparation in commemoration of Jesus Christ’s birth and also a forward-looking celebration of His Second Coming.
The Advent wreath is not just a festive decoration. I learned this the hard way from an Anglican friend. The wreath’s candles represent the four weeks of Advent season. Really quickly, I’ll tell you folks new to Advent that the purple candles represent hope, peace, and love. The rose colored candle represents joy. Each week, one candle is lit symbolizing the need for our spiritual preparation. Some, but not all, Advent wreaths contain a fifth white candle known as “Christ’s candle” that is placed in the center of the other four. The white candle commemorates the birth of Christ and is lit on Christmas Day.
The Robertsons likewise encourage their fans to slow down, press the pause button on busy and do some self-examination in preparation for the feast celebrating Jesus Christ’s birth. To commemorate the greatest gift God has given to mankind, as the Robertsons note, we cannot be consumed with the tinsel and wrapping paper. So they take us back through the Scriptural text of the Christmas story and provide a little personal reflection of their own along the way.
While my family probably wouldn’t appreciate receiving the “redneck gag gift” ideas the Robertsons suggest, the book does contain nuggets of truth in love for which I am thankful.
I’m also thankful for the bold Christian witness Phil and Kay Robertson share in their little “family field guide” to Christmas. We might not agree on every aspect of faith and politics, but I’ve developed an appreciation for their voice in entertainment culture, which places significant importance on the sanctity of marriage, life, and faith.
Perhaps I’m most grateful for the reality-TV family’s honesty. While celebrating Advent, the Robertson couple isn’t afraid to engage in self-examination and share their personal testimony of the Almighty’s life-changing truth and love in their lives. Divine restoration has certainly sent a ripple effect down through their generations. Praise ye the Lord.
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