Reflections on a Retail Christmas

A Conversation with Reg Carver

Throughout the Church, much lament is heard during the weeks before Christmas of a pervasive retail-driven “commercialism,” which is seen by the faithful as obscuring, even usurping, authentic celebration of Christ's birth. There is no question that the line between opportunity and opportunism can be a thin one at this time of year, and appeals to greed and pretension, rather than to generosity and gratitude, are unquestionably crass and objectionable to “…all who seek the Truth” (BCP, p. 392) in preparing for this holy season.

How, then, does the person of faith, whose chosen profession or temporary occupation involves retail sales, sustain a sense of Advent hope and Christmas joy amid the decidedly secular activities of meeting sales goals, calming last-minute shoppers, and processing returns? How is one's own spirituality affected or expressed in this context? The management, staff, and proprietors of area retail establishments are well represented in the Chapel of the Cross parish directory, and only a few of these have been at it longer than parishioner Reg Carver, who this year will mark his 38th Christmas in this field.

Remembering a short, but powerful, exchange with Reg on the morning of last Christmas Eve near the elegant store he manages at The Streets at Southpoint, I asked him recently to elaborate on his thoughts and insights as he prepares for the season.

“For one thing, I try to remember the original Christmas gift: Jesus Christ. Sure, retail people forget that all the time, like anybody else, but when I look across a counter or give advice, I have to believe that the person is in my working life just then for a reason, and that I can make a difference by the way I listen, and answer, and serve.

“Long before Thanksgiving, retailers get ready mentally for what's to come the day after, but preparing spiritually is just as important, for me. I'm not in this by accident; I chose this career, and I have to give it my all. Sometimes there's a lot of stress, but this is how I support myself, and how I give to the church and through the church to a lot of things I care about…I can't separate that from my faith. I try my best to live my faith, not by selling it, but by trying to be an example of it, there with the Christmas shoppers.”

Reg observed that in the weeks before Christmas, customers are both receptive and responsive to acts of kindness and consideration in ways that are less apparent at other times of the year. He noted that part-timers and retail retirees often want to return year after year, less for hope of the moderate financial consideration involved than for a sense of excitement in being part of the
process.

In the earlier memorable conversation last Christmas Eve morning, I asked Reg, a regular (whenever possible) at the 11:15 service on Sundays and a constant at the Christ Mass and other feasts and fasts, how he deals with retail 'burnout' after he closes the store on December 24th. His reply was instructive: “It's just the opposite. I know that I've held my head high, done my best to live out my faith in my work, and when I get to church that night, I get to start my celebration of Christmas, when some are ending theirs.” As an Episcopalian, he says, “That's when it all comes together.”

Lee A. Thomas