Reply to Non- Christians celebrating Christmas

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[quote=Anonymous]As one of the PPs said earlier, many atheists were raised in families that celebrated Christmas, so it's a family tradition. Just because we don't share the belief in the deity doesn't mean we don't enjoy sharing the tradition with the family.

It's also a cultural tradition in the US (just in case you weren't paying attention to every possible source of media since Halloween). Businesses and government are closed and everything pretty much shuts down, so it's a convenient time for spending time with family and friends, regardless of what you believe. Mid-winter feasts and celebrations were a common element of most cultures before Christianity came along.

Just because I don't believe in celebrating the birth of a deity in whom I don't believe doesn't mean I don't enjoy a good party along with all of my family and friends, regardless of what they believe.

It's fun to put up a Christmas tree and decorations. It's fun to have feasts and parties with family and friends. It's fun to give and receive presents. It's a great opportunity to see the world through a child's eyes and see magic. It's a great opportunity to focus on what we have and should be thankful for, and what we should do to help others who are less fortunate. Christians do not have a monopoly on the spirit of giving.

The spirit of this thread (and others like it), though, reminds me of those who argue that allowing gay marriage somehow diminishes their own heterosexual marriage. Just as allowing gays to marry doesn't change any heterosexual couple's marriage, knowing that non-Christians celebrate at Christmas shouldn't have any effect on how Christians celebrate. It doesn't diminish your own focus on Jesus, your Church, your family, your joy and your own religious observance, whatever it is. Basically, you want to raise the drawbridge and say, "This is ours and you can't have any unless you're willing to do it on our terms," which I'd argue is not the spirit of the season (but what do I know, I'm just an atheist  ;-) ).

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