If you celebrate Christmas, are you a Christian?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Orthodox jew here-

I think Christmas is great. I love the music, the cookies, and the general good spirit. That being said, I would never celebrate it - secular aspect or not - bc its a holiday belonging to a religion other than my own. I also do not celebrate Halloween, Valentine's Day, Easter, Ramadan, or anything else that has religious origins (even if it is currently only a "Hallmark holiday").

The Jews have enough holidays, and we have our own at just the same time of year (remember Chanukah?) that I dont need to add extra holidays to my list.

To anyone who wants to celebrate, please do so and enjoy, but to many people, jews in particular, it is impossible to seperate the secular aspects from the religious aspects of any holiday.

Are you speaking for yourself, or all Jews? I assume you would not be the type to spy on other Jews to see if they're up to "no good" by celebrating another holiday.

I only speak for myself and at no point did I say that jews are "up to no good" by celebrating Christmas. In fact, I specifically said "please do so and enjoy". I was just explaining why it is difficult for many jews to seperate the secular from the religious principles.

[Anonymous]

Do you people also light candles on a birthday cake and sing Happy Birthday when it is not your birthday? I doubt it. Christmas and all things Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. Maybe this celebration of Christmas by "non-Christians" is the spirit of Christmas at work changing hearts to know Jesus. That's what I think it is.
Merry Christmas to all!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do you people also light candles on a birthday cake and sing Happy Birthday when it is not your birthday? I doubt it. Christmas and all things Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. Maybe this celebration of Christmas by "non-Christians" is the spirit of Christmas at work changing hearts to know Jesus. That's what I think it is.
Merry Christmas to all!

No but if I chose to celebrate my birthday on the 4th of July I'd have to understand that while MY friends and family might honor my birthday, the rest of the country might enjoy BBQs and fireworks instead.

So Jesus' followers can honor his birthday and the rest of us can enjoy evergreens, mistletoe, presents, Santa.... all things that I don't think are directly connected with the birth of Christ.

Happy Kwanza right back atcha.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do you people also light candles on a birthday cake and sing Happy Birthday when it is not your birthday? I doubt it. Christmas and all things Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. Maybe this celebration of Christmas by "non-Christians" is the spirit of Christmas at work changing hearts to know Jesus. That's what I think it is.
Merry Christmas to all!

Spare me. Christmas is just the common name for the winter celebrations of pagan origin. Sort of like how we call all tissues "Kleenex", you put a "Band-aid" on a cut even though it's CVS brand, or you "Xerox" a paper on your Canon copier. In fact, it's probaby more like "marriage" - a single word used to describe both a religious and civic relationship. Some people just can't reconcile one word can be mulitple things, insisting that it can only mean one thing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do you people also light candles on a birthday cake and sing Happy Birthday when it is not your birthday? I doubt it. Christmas and all things Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. Maybe this celebration of Christmas by "non-Christians" is the spirit of Christmas at work changing hearts to know Jesus. That's what I think it is.
Merry Christmas to all!

Spare me. Christmas is just the common name for the winter celebrations of pagan origin. Sort of like how we call all tissues "Kleenex", you put a "Band-aid" on a cut even though it's CVS brand, or you "Xerox" a paper on your Canon copier. In fact, it's probaby more like "marriage" - a single word used to describe both a religious and civic relationship. Some people just can't reconcile one word can be mulitple things, insisting that it can only mean one thing.

Thank you. You are exactly right and ITA.

[Anonymous]

Ok, so let's go to that beautiful birthday party, eat the cake, sing the songs, clap,play the games, have fun, grab our favor baggie and leave without saying anything to the birthday boy, OK? In the end you don't care about him or his father anyway.

Does it make any sense to you? What's the point of celebrating one's birthday if not for the person itself? How can you celebrate Jesus' birthday just for the food/music/spirit if you don't worship him or his father?

This is just so fake! That's why so many people feel empty, overwhelmed, sad... Where's the real meaning of Christmas?!?!?

[Anonymous]

Oh, so THAT's why people feel so empty. Thank you! I know a lot of psychologists and psychiatrists that will be unemployed now since you figured out everyone's emptyness cause.
Please!


I agree with 10:14.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ok, so let's go to that beautiful birthday party, eat the cake, sing the songs, clap,play the games, have fun, grab our favor baggie and leave without saying anything to the birthday boy, OK? In the end you don't care about him or his father anyway.

Does it make any sense to you? What's the point of celebrating one's birthday if not for the person itself? How can you celebrate Jesus' birthday just for the food/music/spirit if you don't worship him or his father?

This is just so fake! That's why so many people feel empty, overwhelmed, sad... Where's the real meaning of Christmas?!?!?

It's apparently not tolerance.

[Anonymous]

PP here: and for your analogy to work, I would have to actually go to Jesus father's house (church) and celebrate with them even though I don't believe in them. If I celebrate something else while someone is celebrating their birthday at their house, that's totally fine.

[Anonymous]

10:18, have you read the previous posts? There IS NO REAL MEANING OF CHRISTMAS! There is only the meaning YOU ascribe to it. "Christmas" is a catchall term for the traditions of millenia. Just because YOUR religion's name for the holiday stuck to the whole conglomeration of celebrations doesn't mean YOU get to define it for ME.

So you go ahead and celebrate the birth of Jesus (in December, when he was born in June, with a pine tree and lights and candy canes, none of which have anything to do with Jesus) and I will celebrate warmth and light in a dark, cold season. And we'll both call it Christmas. Ok?

[Anonymous]

10:39's poster is the same as 10:35, not the post immediately before, sorry.

[Anonymous]

10:14 - thank you.

To the poster who insists that Christmas be defined solely as a religious observation of the birth of Jesus Christ: that's great, that's how you view it, but it's not how everyone views it. You don't get to define the world around you. Take what you wish to take from the holiday, and let everyone else do the same. Review the Bible: I do believe there are quite a few references in there to tolerance.

[Anonymous]

I also am not buying the "Jesus was born on Dec 25th" story. I think it was a pagan holiday Jesus-fied for the followers of that faith. I celebrate Christmas with my family without the religious trimmings. I don't feel empty. I like my celebration and I am glad that others find joy in celebrating it in church.

[Anonymous]

Why is it that certain people assume if you are not religious than you must somehow feel 'empty'?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why is it that certain people assume if you are not religious than you must somehow feel 'empty'?

Presumably because THOSE people feel an emptiness that gets filled with whatever when they exercise their faith.

(Not knocking faith - I consider myself religious, though not in a fundamentalist sort of way - but I think it's inappropriate to assume others are missing something from their lives simply because you feel it's important in YOUR life.)