It's Christmas Time in Jakarta...

Jazz bands playing Christmas tunes, drummer boy lines marching through six flights of a mall, acapella singers humming ‘Silent Night’, children dancing ballet to Christmas-theme music, security guards wearing Santa Claus hats, and of course, Santa and Rudolph taking pictures with children…well, this must be Christmas time in Jakarta…

Indonesia breaks every stereotype that your ‘average Joe’ would think about the largest Muslim country on the planet. There are two major holiday breaks in Indonesia – one is Lebaran, which celebrates the end of the fasting month of Ramadan and the other is Christmas/New Year. Decorations and classic tunes of Frosty and Rudolph started here even before the US kicked off the holiday.

My office building in Jakarta is decked out with statues of lighted trumpeting angels, enlarged Christmas tree decorations, and of course a monster display of Santa Claus’s North Pole (see photo). As I left work today, there was a live chorus singing ‘Hark the Angels’ while head-scarfed mothers took pictures of their kids with a costumed-Santa.

Some may ask, why do Indonesians embrace the holiday? To be honest, I’m not quite sure, but it’s not because they’re Christian (although about 10% are). They just like a holiday like anyone else. Santa is cool, Christmas music is simply happy, and gift-giving is just fun. They are happy to spread the myth of Santa Claus because kids like it…Muslim Indonesians don’t see it as a ‘threat’ on their own faith, but instead embrace the non-religious parts.

There is no reason to over-think the celebration of Christmas in the largest Muslim country in the world. At the end of the day, what employee doesn’t like time off and what kid doesn’t like a fat guy in a red suit giving out gifts? It reminds me of liking holidays like Yom Kippur and Rus A Shana as a kid because it was just a reason to not go to school. It’s that simple and Indonesians are way ahead of the curve on enjoying the good of any religious holiday while not seeing it as an attack on their own faith. God Bless!