So it’s that time of year again. It’s the annual showdown between the
fundamentalist Christians and the Atheist billboards. When conservative TV and radio hosts scream
that we need to put the Christ back in Christmas. Tis’ the season to debate about what the
politically correct way of greeting each other in late December is.
For the vast majority of my life I was in favor of
secularizing Christmas. I had no problem
saying “Merry Christmas” even though I was an outspoken atheist. But this year I have had a change of
heart. I recently read Penn Jillette’s
new book, Everyday is an Atheist holiday
and he makes some very good arguments against atheists who celebrate
Christmas. It made an impression on me
and I feel like I should start changing my attitude towards it.
I have always had fond memories of Christmas. Some of the happiest memories of my life are
those from the Christmas holidays, spending time with family, giving &
getting presents. Only when I was very
young and our family still attended church did we mention the Jesus part of
Christmas. But for the most part,
religion and God never really had a role in the celebration of the
holiday.
But now that I am so outspoken against religion, I’m
starting to feel hypocritical to celebrate the day of the birth of Christ. So I’m trying to find a happy middle ground
where I can still enjoy the benefits of a holiday from work or school with
family without feeling like I’m cheapening the day that many of my friends
consider to be sacred. I feel that’s why I
should personally stop saying “Merry Christmas” and start saying “Happy
Holidays” more. But I have absolutely no
problem with other people saying “merry Christmas” to me.
It’s a tough call for me.
I feel like this movement in popular culture and media of saying
“Seasons greetings” or “Happy Holidays” is a euphemism for “We actually want to
say Merry Christmas but we’re afraid that we’ll offend somebody.” People should say “Merry Christmas” if they
mean it and it’s too bad for any politically correct, weak person who decides
to be offended by a word. I haven’t met
a single non-Christian who is bothered by hearing “Christmas”. This also may be hypocrital on my behalf but
personally I can’t say “Merry Christmas” anymore without being dishonest. So when I say “Happy Holidays” I actually do
mean, “Enjoy your time off work or school however you choose to enjoy it!” So out of respect to my friends who are
Christians, we really should put the Christ back in Christmas but enjoy the Holidays
with the people we love without having anyone left out no matter their
religion or lack thereof.
Please listen to this beautiful song by Tim Minchin called White wine in the sun. It sums up my feeling towards Christmas perfectly.
No comments:
Post a Comment