YouTube comedian Adrian Bliss has a compelling – and hilarious – sketch (rb.gy/kvv5qz) that tells you how coopting and appropriating is deftly done. In the sketch, Jesus Christ is shown as stealing the winter solstice by first crashing the party of pagan, pre-Christian revellers, and then chucking them out. ‘This is my party now,’ he proclaims with maternal support from Mary standing behind him. As is with his YouTube videos, Bliss plays all the parts – winter solstice celebrators, Christ, Mary and the others in the Jesus posse. When the original hosts remind Christ that his birthday ‘was months ago’ – his date of birth between 6 BC and 4 BC on December 25 was officially chosen by Pope Julius I only in 350 AD to retrofit the day with the winter solstice that takes place around that time to imbue ‘Christ’s Mass’ with mystical charm – Christ says, ‘Well, I changed it.’
So, according to the Gospel of Adrian, it’s not so much the Grinch who stole Christmas but Christ who stole the winter solstice. But the tale of December 25 appropriation doesn’t stop here. Christ coopting a party that had been taking place for ‘thousands of years’ – everyone of the winter solsticers leaves, except a decorated, coniferous tree, who is told by Christ to stay back (who automatically becomes the ‘Christmas tree’) – is itself coopted by another gang: of Santa’s.
