Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m a Christian and I am totally fine with sharing the pagan tradition that we co-opted for our holiday, which we moved to December to co-opt a different pagan tradition.

You completely missed the point. Most Jews, even non-practicing, do not get Christmas trees. It is a Christian holiday, not Jewish or Atheist/Agnostic.

Christmas is a national holiday in the US. Get a tree if you want.

No one can stop you. But IME, Jews who do so are either intermarried, with gentile spouses who miss their childhood, or they are not just assimilated, but shallow and dare I say it, vulgar.

And it does not matter if atheist/pagan gentiles have them, or if some fundamentalists don't have them. Nor does it matter if Hindus have them. Or if totally assimilated Soviet Jews had New Years trees. The folk wisdom of the Jewish People is that having a Christmas tree (admiring your neighbor's tree is quite different) is a marker of non Jewish identity.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do what you want OP.

If you’re asking our opinion? Reform Judaism/celebrating both religions is causing the not so slow death of the reform and even a slice of the Conservative movement.

Reform Judaism doesn’t favor celebrating non-Jewish holidays.

Not officially but if you go into a reform temple and survey the number of interfaith marriages and people putting up trees etc the numbers are staggering.

Interfaith is different than two Jewish parents.

Of all you Jewish folks getting Christmas trees, did ANY of you build and decorate sukkahs this year? You know that you can do that right? A sukkah can have pine branches, can be decorated not just with gourds but with electric lights, hanging things, even strung popcorn if you are brave.

Are you going to celebrate Tu B'shvat?

That you probably did not think of doing that, is the real problem with Christmas trees.

Anonymous wrote:Are there a lot of us?

DD really wants a Christmas tree. She is only three and I don’t see any point in denying her this big cut tree for a couple of weeks. My MIL is going to blow a gasket.

Plus I have never had one and kind of want one too!

I saw one decorated with dreidels, Star of David, scrolls, candelabra, etc for Chanukah. It was impressive, and came down immediately after, and the family called it their Chanukah tree.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Let me ask: okay, any Christians have a problem with this Jew getting a pine tree and putting lights on it?

No problem here. Enjoy yourself.

I'm religious and don't care at all.

Extremely religious Christians (like my nanny) don't have Christmas trees because they don't like how the holiday is focused on santa and trees.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do what you want OP.

If you’re asking our opinion? Reform Judaism/celebrating both religions is causing the not so slow death of the reform and even a slice of the Conservative movement.

Reform Judaism doesn’t favor celebrating non-Jewish holidays.

Not officially but if you go into a reform temple and survey the number of interfaith marriages and people putting up trees etc the numbers are staggering.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t care what anyone does on any holiday, but for Jews to argue that Christmas trees are not Cristian because the pagans had Christmas trees before the Christians are just rationalizing their decision to have a Christmas tree. It is total BS to say that Christmas is anything other than a Cristian holiday. Cut me a break already.

Again, it is a national holiday/federal holiday.

And a tree is a tree. Call it a holiday tree, Hannukah Bush, solstice tree or a Christmas tree - no one should care. They look great, smell nice and are pretty for four weeks.

Columbus Day is also a national holiday. Does that mean we all have to celebrate introducing smallpox to the natives?

The bottom line is that Jews with Christmas trees just want to get in on the Christian fun that is all around them that time of year, and who can blame them? Our nation was formed by Christians, and Christmas is a Christian holiday. Get over it. Feel free to assimilate, but don’t go suggesting that Christmas isn’t Christian! Paleeze

Anonymous wrote:Jewish Americans never got the memo that it’s no longer cool to appropriate WASP culture.

There’s a difference between appropriation and assimilation. You can’t appropriate the majority culture; if you take aspects of that culture, you’re assimilating.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m a Christian and I am totally fine with sharing the pagan tradition that we co-opted for our holiday, which we moved to December to co-opt a different pagan tradition.

You completely missed the point. Most Jews, even non-practicing, do not get Christmas trees. It is a Christian holiday, not Jewish or Atheist/Agnostic.

DP. It's not a Christian holiday. I am Bible-reading Christian and I am 100% sure of this.

Then you must be really confused on 12/25.

That's ok, they can join the Jewish tradition of movies and Chinese food.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t care what anyone does on any holiday, but for Jews to argue that Christmas trees are not Cristian because the pagans had Christmas trees before the Christians are just rationalizing their decision to have a Christmas tree. It is total BS to say that Christmas is anything other than a Cristian holiday. Cut me a break already.

Again, it is a national holiday/federal holiday.

And a tree is a tree. Call it a holiday tree, Hannukah Bush, solstice tree or a Christmas tree - no one should care. They look great, smell nice and are pretty for four weeks.

Its not a national holiday. Its a federal holiday as more workers than not would take it off.

Anonymous wrote:

Let me ask: okay, any Christians have a problem with this Jew getting a pine tree and putting lights on it?

No problem here. Enjoy yourself.

Anonymous wrote:I don’t care what anyone does on any holiday, but for Jews to argue that Christmas trees are not Cristian because the pagans had Christmas trees before the Christians are just rationalizing their decision to have a Christmas tree. It is total BS to say that Christmas is anything other than a Cristian holiday. Cut me a break already.

Again, it is a national holiday/federal holiday.

And a tree is a tree. Call it a holiday tree, Hannukah Bush, solstice tree or a Christmas tree - no one should care. They look great, smell nice and are pretty for four weeks.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m a Christian and I am totally fine with sharing the pagan tradition that we co-opted for our holiday, which we moved to December to co-opt a different pagan tradition.

You completely missed the point. Most Jews, even non-practicing, do not get Christmas trees. It is a Christian holiday, not Jewish or Atheist/Agnostic.

Christmas is a national holiday in the US. Get a tree if you want.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t care what anyone does on any holiday, but for Jews to argue that Christmas trees are not Cristian because the pagans had Christmas trees before the Christians are just rationalizing their decision to have a Christmas tree. It is total BS to say that Christmas is anything other than a Cristian holiday. Cut me a break already.

My solstice tree is completely free of Christianity. I do a ceremony where I rub it with menstrual blood and chant about gay marriage to make sure.

I do a voodoo dance around my December tree.

Anonymous wrote:I don’t care what anyone does on any holiday, but for Jews to argue that Christmas trees are not Cristian because the pagans had Christmas trees before the Christians are just rationalizing their decision to have a Christmas tree. It is total BS to say that Christmas is anything other than a Cristian holiday. Cut me a break already.

My solstice tree is completely free of Christianity. I do a ceremony where I rub it with menstrual blood and chant about gay marriage to make sure.