Same same! Getting warm and fuzzies reading of othera' customs and values matching our family's! |
I don't read anyone as being angry (though this post sounds a little angry I suppose). People are trying to explain. I think one reason there is a disconnect here is that you are grouping everything even remotely "Christmas adjacent" into one giant pile of "hoopla" and saying it's all oppressive. And what some of us are saying, especially those of us who are not Christian but do participate in some of the secular parts of that hoopla, is that you don't have to group it all together, and that not all of it is about Christmas and definitely not about Christ or Christianity. You actually can pick and choose and when you do, you might find that there are things about the season that are enjoyable, all without getting converted to Christianity or even giving into the commercialism around it. I am not Christian. I do not believe Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior and that he was the son of god or that he died for my sins. Full stop. I don't celebrate Christmas in that way. I don't go to church. I don't put up a nativity scene or teach my kid about the birth of Jesus except to say "Some people celebrate the birth of Jesus during Christmas and he is a significant part of their beliefs." But I put up a tree and lights. I'd put a wreath on the door. I enjoy seeing lights up around town this time of year of any variety - the early lights for Diwali, Christmas lights, a menorah in a window, whatever people want to display. It's dark out and it brightens things up. I have a "winter solstice tree" in addition to a Christmas tree in my house. Candles and lights in December are a very old and very natural tradition. Seasonal affective disorder is a new-fangled name for something that's been around for centuries. My family exchanges gifts. It's nice. We try not to go overboard, but we are a frugal family generally and it is nice to have a designated time of the year when we loosen the budget a little and buy everyone some things they really want or need. It's also a great way to teach our kid how to think about others, who to be gracious in receiving gifts and also thoughtful in giving them. We also do "Santa" but somewhat halfheartedly (this is probably the one area where I do kind of bend to the culture around it, though my DH really wanted to do Santa so it's not like our family is totally unwilling). But we don't talk about "naughty or nice" and we are very careful to explain to our kid that Santa is a tradition for some families and not others, that kids who don't get gifts from Santa aren't bad, they are just form a different cultural tradition, and that Santa is just something fun, it's not to be taken super seriously. I look forward to my kid outgrowing Santa to be honest. Sorry for going on long, I'm just trying to explain. I respect your choice not to participate in "the hoopla". But if you are one of the Jewish posters, I will reiterate a point from up thread: it may be easier for you to separate yourself from all of it because you have a cultural tradition for this time of year that incorporates lights and food and family togetherness (if you choose to celebrate it, I am aware Hanukkah is not a very significant Jewish holiday). Those of us who are not Jewish but also not Christian don't have that. So we embrace some of the secular aspects of at the season and it's nice. It doesn't mean I'm suddenly Christian. It just means I don't want to spend Thanksgiving to New Year studiously refusing to decorate or celebrate or enjoy any aspect of a season that actually has some pretty great things to offer even people who are not here for the birth of Jesus. |
Christmas might be a commercial holiday to you, but it's not to everyone. It's ironic that you're complaining about Christians "forcing themselves" on people in the same comments where you're insisting that our holy day is about what you think it's about not what we do. |
To be completely honest, you must admit that the fact that Christian’s celebrate Christmas for two months, that it’s literally everywhere even in secular areas such as government and schools. That cities and towns use tax payer money to decorate their streets with lights, wreaths, and trees. That schools are off for up to two weeks in some places, that many offices close during that period too. That all this makes it open to anyone to celebrate and interpret as they see fit. If you all kept it close, celebrated just in the day of, like other religions do for their holidays in this country, then no one else would need to partake. We’d wish you a merry Christmas and move on to the next day. Like you do for people of other faiths. But it’s not that way because it not just a sacred religious event, it’s a whole all encompassing societal expectation. |
Christmas itself may be a semi-holy day. But Santa, the gifts, etc all came about later for commercial and political reasons. Not religious. |
I never denied that anyone was free to interpret it as they see fit. In fact, I explicitly said "Christmas might be a commercial holiday to you" that's fine. That's obviously true. The PP I'm responding to, however, did come in and say "Christmas represents commercialism" in response to someone saying that that Christmas represents the birth of Christ. They're the ones denying that the day can have multiple meanings, and forcing their secular meaning on Christians. |
This argument has been repeated recently in at least 3 dcum threads. It's also a 2,000-year old argument, so probably won't end here. |
Because in India, all festivals of all major religions are celebrated at least in an institutional way and we have federal holidays for it. History of various religion and belief systems are depicted in comics as well as Bollywood movies. Politicians want to woo all electorates. Also, we have a very sizeable population for all varieties of Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Parsis, Buddhists, Jains and Jews. Military, paramilitary, police and government are wholly secular. My father was in Indian Army. We always had a wonderful Christmas celebration in the officer's club. Some grown up would dress up as Santa and distribute presents to kids that our parents had wrapped up for us. Santa arrived on a horse or motercycle and once even on a helicopter!! I think it is great to celebrate all fun festivals of other religions in a secular manner. As long as there is celebrating, food, decorations, festivities involved - why not? BTW - Once upon a time, Indian work week was of 6 days. Yes, we went to school from Monday to Saturday. Imagine if we were not having federal holidays for all major festivals of major religions, how awful our lives would have been? |
You are absolutely correct. |
Yup. |
So both of you are too dumb to understand that wreaths have nothing to do with Christianity or Christmas. Great. |
The “birth of Christ” and attending mass are the religious bits. None of the wreaths, Santas, trees, holiday lights, piles of cheap toys, etc are religious. Christmas™ is commercial. |
Agreed. It’s everywhere- even in non-Christian countries like China, Japan, Korea. It’s a global phenomenon. Fun fact- I learned my neighbors are baking a cake for Christmas this year and not doing a tree or lights or gifts because…. It’s Jesus’ birthday! So some Christians are going old school Puritanical now. It is what you make it. Enjoy the fun and the less you (and all of us heathens) take it as a religious holiday, the less it becomes religious. And wouldn’t that be a fun, ironic take on the war on Christmas? |
Lol.... no. |
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I find it interesting that Jews, Hindus, Muslims, Christians think what they believe matters in the least bit.
When we die we will be dead. If there is an afterlife who knows what religion is right one, Don’t waste your time worrying, put up the wreath, put up the tree and enjoy Santa and egg nog. No one cares in this life or the afterlife you hung up a wreath or had an Xmas tree |