What do we say to "Merry Christmas"

[Anonymous]

Just wanted to say MERRY CHRISTMAS!

[Anonymous]

Thanks! Happy holidays to you, too!

[Anonymous]

And a happy new year to all!

[Anonymous]

See, wasn't that easy?

[Anonymous]

Happy New Year to you and yours!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"Thank you. Happy holidays to you, too."

second that.
I am not Christian and totally do not get offended but do prefer ppl to just be more politically correct and say Happy Holidays.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP - Yes, it does stir up a lot. I grew up without Christmas (and didn't miss it), but married a man raised Catholic. So, we sorta do Christmas now. Every kid raised without Christmas in their house has to come to terms somehow with the fact that it is EVERYWHERE, and that many folks couldn't care less about the religious minorities around us.

In general, I say "Thank you, you too," or "thank you, enjoy your holiday." Most people are harmless and mean well. I don't feel the need to educate the small-minded at every turn, so I don't make a big deal of it even when the people addressing me don't mean well.

Your kids will say what they need to say to make peace with Christmas in their own way. Sometimes I instruct my son to just say "thank you, you too." because it is easier.

To the PP who said 90% of the population celebrates Christmas - clearly, your world is smaller than mine.

Wow. Sad. Do you really believe that people who say "merry christmas" are small-minded and "need to be educated?" Or who don't mean well? You seem very paranoid.

[Anonymous]

PP clearly says that she believes that most people who say "merry Christmas" mean well. You seem very obtuse. Wow. Sad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

To the PP who said 90% of the population celebrates Christmas - clearly, your world is smaller than mine.

Right. It's 93%.

http://www.gallup.com/poll/113566/US-Christmas-Not-Just-Christians.aspx

[Anonymous]

I would merely say thanks or return it with a suitable and polite greeting for the holiday you celebrate...

as for 90 percent... Im not sure the person is littl eminded or far off on that number.. I would believe 90 percent of Americans celebrate the comecialized version of Christmas (Santa, candy, food, presents, time with friends and family, general good will)

now if someone said 90 percent of Americans celebrate the Christian aspect of Christmas then Id be like errr... say what

[jsteele]

Here is how one non-Christian -- Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad -- handles Christmas:

"I congratulate one and all on the anniversary of the birth of Jesus Christ. I pray for the New Year to be a year of happiness, prosperity, peace and brotherhood for humanity. I wish you every success and happiness."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/dec/25/ahmadinejad-christmas-message

[Anonymous]

Wow. Almost makes 'im seem like a warm, fuzzy guy.

[Anonymous]

The only thing is its a pagan holiday. Jesus wasn't even born on december 25, and never even celebrated his own birthday.

[Anonymous]

I'm Jewish and I don't mind being wished a merry christmas, because I actually do plan to spend the day off from work feeling quite merry. I usually respond by saying merry christmas to you, too. If I'm the first to initiate a greeting, I'll say Have a happy holiday.

What is more difficult to respond to are the more presumptuous (albeit well-meaning) inquiries earlier in December, like "are you ready for christmas?" I never know how to respond to that. "Um, well, yeah, I guess so." Or comments presuming to commiserate about my child's birthday being close to christmas. "Oh, um, he doesn't mind."

I've never really felt like informing the well-wishers that I'm Jewish (or that I don't celebrate christmas) because it just seems to make everyone feel uncomfortable -- they feel awkward about having possibly offended me, and I feel awkward because they didn't really need to know my religion or my intention to not celebrate the holiday that "93% of the population" (as another poster informs us) does celebrate.

[Anonymous]

OP here...

First, I am not offended by any of the posts so far. I think everybody means well with their advice and opinions even though clearly many people's opinions differ.

I have read all the responses and thought about it a little more. I have decided that the most polite thing to say (for me and my family) is to say, "You too!" or "Enjoy your holiday!" This is because I think when people wish non-Christians Merry Christmas they are not doing it to 'push' their religion on non-Christians. They are also not doing it to point out to non-Christians they belong to a more populus religion than mine. I think they forget that the person they are speaking with may not celebrate Christmas. This is an understandable but erroenous assumption since most of the people in this country are Christian. So I feel there's no need to feel upset by it. They really do mean well. And in the interest of keeping good-will and good relations between people of all faiths, I should wish them well on a holiday that is dear to them. If they wished me well on my religious holiday my heart would certainly be warmed. I have realized that I do not lose my religious conviction or any degree of my faith by wishing people of other faiths well on their religious holiday. As a person of a minority faith in this country, I always worry about the impact of belonging to a minority group on my children. But I chose to live in this country and I chose to raise my children here, so it is up to me to do my best to preserve our religion in my children's hearts and hope that their religious beliefs are not influenced by the festivities and celebrations of other faiths around them. At the same time I don't want to do something that creates more divisiveness between people of different faiths. I don't want to keep pointing out to the cashiers and salespeople that I don't celebrate Christimas; what a damper that would put on what was simply a stranger's well wishes for me. I will tell our close friends and neighbors that we don't celebrate Christmas, however.
I was not born in this country. But I must say that I have a strong respect for what this country's government has done with the First Amendment's Establishment Clause and Religious Free Exercise Clause - prohibiting Congress from doing anything that shows perference for one religion over another or propogating religion generally. Private institutions may do as they please. And private people may do as they please within the confines of their private property or space. Perhaps this is why that one Jewish woman had her religious symbol up on her own desk - because it's her own private space. I was under the impression that public schools were quasi-public institutions because they get so much gov't funding and, as such, they are discouraged from putting up religious decorations or monuments. It's been a while since I last checked so I might be wrong but Virginia public education code does discourage putting up religious symbols. I don't know that red and green are 'religious' symbols, however. Maybe somone who knows can educate me on this one. Does red and green symbolize the colors that predominate our winter season, green evergreen trees and red holly berries and poinsettas? I would not be bothered by having red and green decor at my children's schools. It would be a different matter, however, if they only had a Christmas tree and no other religious symbols. Because even though we live in a predominantly Christian society here, we should be careful not to make people of minority faiths feel imposed upon and try to create an inclusive atmosphere that shows recognition and respect of all faiths.
I remember at the state college I went to, my Jewish professor would grade students papers and comment on our papers with Jewish sayings. I forget what he used to write but I think if I got an 'A' he'd put "Mazeltoff!" or something similar. We all thought it was funny that he seemed to be living in his own world or maybe he was trying to make Jewishness more socially acceptable, who really knows. My doctor who is Jewish, will also sometimes say 'oy' to me. LOL These things don't bother me at all because I believe they're just trying to share a bit of themselves and their ways with me, thats all. They are not pushing it on me.