Actually I'm completely agreeing that the Christmas celebration at/around the winter solstice borrows significantly from pagan tradition. Unlike some on this thread who refuse to acknowledge that Christmas is a Christian holiday and that there is nothing wrong with setting up Christmas decorations, talking about Santa (who is, by the way, SAINT Nicholas- which is definitely Christian), and claiming that it's all secular and none of it is religious. Celebrate and enjoy the magic of the season but don't go around telling people it's not a religious holiday and that's why it's okay for you to do it. It's definitely a religious holiday, and if you're not very devout in your own religion and you want to celebrate a Christian holiday too then there is totally nothing wrong with that. |
| For me, it doesn't work. Doesn't feel right. Tried my first year of marriage. We enjoy the tree at my mother in laws. It feels right there and we all love it. At our house no tree and that's ok. |
Yes, it is disrespectful. |
No, it is not! Christmas is open to all. It is not an exclusive holiday. I do not mind my Jewish, atheists, Hindu, and Muslim friends putting up trees in their home. |
Blessed be the fruitloops! Someone forgot to take their medication today. |
Sigh... explain why please. Maybe read this first. https://www.history.com/topics/christmas/history-of-christmas-trees |
Everyone knows that Christmas trees are from winter solstice celebrations HISTORICALLY, but in MODERN TIMES (aka the past 200 years), they are a clear symbol of Christmas. Having a Christmas tree with a star or an angel on top is not disrespectful. Having a Christmas tree and insisting it has nothing to do with Christianity because it's not really a symbol of Christmas is just pedantic and yes, somewhat disrespectful to Christians. Just celebrate it wholeheartedly instead of pretending it's not, at its core, a religious holiday. |
Isn't CHOICE the key? It's like people who celebrate the freedoms that the military has afforded us, yet get pissed when people exercise that freedom in a way don't like. |
Having the choice and freedom to do something disrespectful doesn't mean people can't tell you you're being disrespectful. Choices don't come with zero consequences even if you're allowed to make them. I hate lame arguments like that. |
Disrespectful? To whom? A long lost relative from the shtetl? It isn't disrespectful just because someone makes a choice you disagree with. It is disrespectful of you to think your views should predominate over other's beliefs. |
Jews have their own traditions and holidays.. In less its a mixed marriage, its not ok to have a tree. There is nothing Jewish or secular about a tree or Christmas. |
I agree with you and don't have a tree. But that is my choice. I am not getting my hot and bothered by others who make different choices. |
You can keep saying that but it doesn't make it true. Something means what it means to the person celebrating it. And in this case, there are a few thousand years of history backing it up. You don't get to say it is one thing because that is the way YOU were raised. If you can find me the passage in the bible that talks about Christmas trees you might have something. But you don't, because it is not and has never been a religious symbol. |
| Lol, to the PP complaining about other religions “stealing your Xmas traditions,” we’re “Hindi” (well, probably more atheist than anything), and we put up a tree every year. Sometimes we exchange gifts. So do all my Hindu friends. Suck it. And feel feee to pray for my soul. |
| Also, you don’t sound very “Christian.” |