Earlier this month, the Believers Sunday School Class had their annual Christmas party at our home. One of the most anticipated highlights of this class’s holiday get-together is the after-dinner game planned each year by class member Michael White. A dermatologist by day, Mike’s greatest joy seems to be coming up with these unusual games. This year’s contest was a Christmas trivia game based on the movie A Christmas Story. I don’t know if you’ve ever seen that film, but Mike thinks it’s the greatest Christmas movie ever made. And he’s not alone. Oddly enough, there are quite a few other people that feel the same way. My youth minister at my former church was one of them. He absolutely loved this film!The 1983 comedy stars veteran actor Darren McGavin in the role of the father. The setting for the story is a 1940s Indiana town. Nine-year-old Ralphie Parker wants only one thing for Christmas—“an official Red Ryder carbine-action 200-shot range model BB rifle with a compass in the stock.” He sets out to convince the world this is the perfect gift. But along the way, he runs into opposition from his parents, his teacher, and even Santa Claus, all of whom tell Ralphie, “No, you’ll shoot your eye out.” The whole movie is filled with all kinds of childhood hijinks and misadventures, including a memorable scene in which a kid, on a dare, gets his tongue frozen to a flagpole.
Every year, one of the cable television channels runs A Christmas Story non-stop for 24 hours on Christmas Day. A few years ago, during one of these exhaustive marathons, I forced myself to finally watch it, because I had heard so many people talk about it. Honestly, it’s a dumb, unfunny movie to me, but “to each, their own,” I suppose.When the Christmas party trivia match-up was over the other night, the members of the winning team—much to their surprise—were awarded Daisy “Red Ryder” BB guns through the generosity of Michael White. A special gift also was presented to the class teacher, David Sloan—a full-size replica of the ugly tabletop “leg” lamp that is prominently featured in the movie. Perhaps David will display the lovely item in the waiting area at his eye care clinic!
All of this focus on A Christmas Story got me to thinking about my own favorite Christmas movies. Here’s my personal Top Five:
1. Frank Capra’s It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) starring Jimmy Stewart. A great story with thought-provoking
spiritual overtones. What would the world be like if you had never been born? (i.e., Are you making a difference with your life?) What really makes one rich in life? Truly, it’s not money, but love, friendship, caring, and servanthood. Those are the values that will last. There are so many heartwarming scenes in this film that I can’t even begin to list them. The real tearjerker for me is when a desperate George Bailey is standing on the bridge in the falling snow, tearfully praying to God to give him his life back, “I want to live again! I want to live again! Please, God, let me live again!” That always puts a lump in my throat.2. The Bells of St. Mary’s (1945) starring Bing Crosby and
Ingrid Bergman. I love the extended sequence in which a group of kids at the Catholic school rehearse their rough-around-the-edges Christmas pageant. That’s a real classic. I also love to hear Father O’Malley singing with the nuns around the piano. The tension between Father O’Malley and Sister Mary Benedict throughout the film is a poignant reminder that sometimes in life Christians of different perspectives can experience disagreement and misunderstandings, something we all have to guard against. Their resolution of this conflict at the very end 
of the film is heartrending. One of my favorite characters is the successful but troubled businessman Mr. Bogardus played by Henry Travers. I love his “conversion experience” in the film. By the way, this same actor also appeared as the angel Clarence in It’s a Wonderful Life. Just think. Two of the greatest Christmas movies of all-time and this wonderful British character actor played an important supporting role in each of them. (By the way, he’s also great in the Academy Award-winning film Mrs. Miniver.)3. The Bishop’s Wife (1947) / The Preacher’s Wife (1996). The original starred Cary Grant, Loretta Young and David
Niven. The remake featured an all-African American cast starring Denzel Washington, Whitney Houston and Courtney B. Vance. The remake also includes a dynamite soundtrack featuring Whitney’s dynamic voice. I like both of these films, but I think I may like the newer one a little better. I love the ending of both, 
when the tired & distracted pastor (Niven/ Vance) with the help of an angel (Grant/ Washington) suddenly recovers his vision, remembering what it’s all about. This becomes quite evident when he steps into the pulpit revived & refocused.4. A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965), the classic animated television special based on Charles M. Schulz’s Peanuts comic strip.
As a kid I watched this show the night it premiered on network television. The extended monologue by little Linus in which he recites (in King James English) the entire birth narrative as recorded in Luke chapter 2 is just absolutely priceless. I also love the simplistic animation and acting, as well as the smooth jazz piano soundtrack. The look as well as the message of the film is simplicity. Less is more. I.e., when you’ve got Jesus that’s all that matters. The most delightful transformation of this film is when the pitiful little tree nobody wants suddenly emerges beautifully decorated. To me, that’s a picture of what Christ does for us.5. The Grinch Who Stole Christmas (1966), the classic animated television special
based on the popular Dr. Seuss book and featuring the voice of Boris Karloff. Yes, I saw this when it premiered also. (I didn’t care for the newer live-action, full-length, feature film version starring Jim Carrey. It just doesn’t compare.) In the original animated work, I love the evil Grinch’s powerful “conversion experience,” during which the green meanie’s miniscule heart multiplies several times in size and the old Grincheroo does a complete one-eighty from heel to hero, akin to the Apostle Paul’s turnabout on the Damascus Road. That climactic scene always puts a warm feeling in my own heart.HONORABLE MENTION # 1: Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol (1984). There are several film versions of
this classic tale, but I like this George C. Scott version best of all. It’s another “conversion” story, as the heartless and unlikable Ebeneezer Scrooge—the pre-Grinch—does a complete turnabout with the help of some ghostly visitors. Interestingly, this is my son’s very favorite Christmas film, and has been since the time it premiered (when he was but a tiny preschooler). As just a little guy, he couldn’t wait to watch this film each year, and he would be mesmerized by it, watching it by himself even without Sandy or me present. For that reason alone, I just had to include this classic on my list.HONORABLE MENTION # 2: You’ll notice that my list above does not have a “religious” film on it. Frankly, while there have been numerous films depicting the life of Jesus in total, there really had not been
a notable film focusing solely on the events surrounding His birth. That is, until last year. The Nativity Story (2006) was a pleasant surprise to me. More than any other film I’ve ever seen, I think it gave a fairly realistic portrayal of Mary and Joseph and the challenges they faced. It was reverent, but not over the top in its depiction of the couple. Mary and Joseph come across as believable. Not as stained-glass halo-wearing images, but as real flesh-and-blood people. I’ve only seen this movie one time, and that was a year ago when it was first released to theaters. Perhaps if I get to watch it some more, it will move up on my list.So there you have it. My top Christmas movies. I suppose the reason I like these in particular is that they’re all so heartwarming and uplifting. There’s an underlying theme of hope and redemption that can be traced through each one. If you—or your kids—have somehow never seen one or more of these, I encourage you get the DVDs, pop some popcorn, and settle down on the sofa for a special evening of enjoyable holiday entertainment.
Pastor Danny
