A politically correct Christmas?

[Tenshot13]

I, being a Christian, find it funny how we (Christians) celebrate the birth of our savior on a day no where near when he was born, yet are more...eh....church-going?...on days associated with his death (Easter).  I understand why, but find it funny.

[badger6]

The way I see it Xmas is for kids more than anything, birthdays are too IMHO. The older I get the more silly these things look to me. As far as the religion part, I'll leave that alone because this thread will go off topic quickly and I will get beat to death with keyboards, ha ha.

[CF DolFan]

Trust me. I get the commercialization of Christmas over the last 50 years. I get that almost 80% of the U.S. claims to be Christain and only about 5% claim to be anything else yet less than half maybe practice any sort of religion. I get Christmas and Easter are the  time for the CEOs of the church as the "Christmas and Easter  Only" people come out in droves. I get that the Church has agreed that Jesus was born around May but why December was selected can be debated. I get that The colors of Christmas were selected for Jesus red-blood, green the evergreen of Jews "Now on the first day you shall take for yourselves the foliage of beautiful trees, palm branches and boughs of leafy trees and willows of the brook, and you shall rejoice before the LORD your God for seven days. " (Leviticus 23:40) Silver and gold for His rightousness. I get that holly represents the crown of thorns and blood. I get that most people are going through the motions.

What I don't get is why people "deny" this season is about Christmas. If it isn't then why have Christmas songs playing and singing about the Lord? If it isn't then why have all of the scenes of Christmas, whatever that may be, but act like its not? Many times whenever someone says happy holidays I say Merry Christmas back to them and its like Hallelauh or something as I many times get this yes, that's what I wanted to say experince. It's like Christians or anyone celebrating this holiday that has always been a part of this country,  has been relegated to a secret society or something. That's what I don't get.

[Spider-Dan]

What I don't get is why people "deny" this season is about Christmas. If it isn't then why have Christmas songs playing and singing about the Lord? If it isn't then why have all of the scenes of Christmas, whatever that may be, but act like its not?

Oh, I don't dispute that it's partially about Jesus.  But the Jesus part of Christmas has been overwhelmed by the Santa part of Christmas.  And that's my point.

You say that there are Christmas songs playing that are about the Lord, but again, I'd argue that the majority of famous Christmas songs today have nothing to do with Jesus at all:

- Jingle Bells
- Deck The Halls
- Santa Claus Is Coming To Town
- Winter Wonderland
- Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer
- Here Comes Santa Claus
- Frosty The Snowman
etc.

There are a couple of songs like Silent Night and The Little Drummer Boy that are pretty popular Jesus Christmas songs, but they are few and far between.  Santa Christmas songs dominate the chart.

Personally, I find it befitting that a holiday (Yule) which the Christian Church appropriated and changed to serve their religion has now spun back away from religious intertwinement.

[Dave Gray]

As far as the religious part of holidays goes, I always thought, growing up, that Easter was a bigger deal than Christmas.  The balance of dogma vs. "fun" was more evenly weighted at Easter.  Christmas was all about the yule.

[Pappy13]

There are a couple of songs like Silent Night and The Little Drummer Boy that are pretty popular Jesus Christmas songs, but they are few and far between.  Santa Christmas songs dominate the chart..

The chart or the radio waves?  And as far as the radio waves go, a lot depends on the station you're listening too.  Sure a lot of the stations that play pop, rock or country most of the year play a lot of the songs you mentioned at Christmas time, but if you go to a classical station, you'll find far more songs that are infused with more spiritual themes.  The other songs are there, you just have to be a bit more choosy in which stations to listen to and that only makes sense.  Those pop, rock and country stations have a different audience to play to than the classical station does.

[Dave Gray]

^ I don't ever seek out Christmas songs, but they're around.  I hear most of the stuff while I'm shopping in stores or on television during shows or commercials.  The vast, vast, vast majority are the generic holiday ones.

[Spider-Dan]

The chart or the radio waves?

Like Dave said, retail stores, commercials, TV shows, movies, you name it.  "Santa Christmas" songs outnumber "Jesus Christmas" songs by a mile.

[Pappy13]

Okay, I'll give you that stores and commercials are playing "Santa Claus" songs, they have a vested interest and it has nothing to do with the birth of Christ.

[StL FinFan]

This is slightly off topic, but there is a really interesting show on the History Channel called The Real Story of Christmas.  They explore the origins of current Christmas traditions.  They did a similar one for Halloween.  It re-airs tonight.

[Spider-Dan]

Okay, I'll give you that stores and commercials are playing "Santa Claus" songs, they have a vested interest and it has nothing to do with the birth of Christ.

Likewise, the vast majority of entities who are playing/singing Jesus Christmas songs are those who have a "vested interest" in promoting his birth.  But even entities with no solid vested interest either way (office elevators, hotel lobbies, etc.) go with Santa Christmas songs over Jesus Christmas songs overwhelmingly.

[Pappy13]

Likewise, the vast majority of entities who are playing/singing Jesus Christmas songs are those who have a "vested interest" in promoting his birth.  But even entities with no solid vested interest either way (office elevators, hotel lobbies, etc.) go with Santa Christmas songs over Jesus Christmas songs overwhelmingly.

If you say so, haven't really been in a lot of office elevators or hotel lobbies lately.

Guess I'm just gonna have to make a special effort to have some good ol' fashioned Christmas music playing for my kids and grandkids this Christmas.  Remind them what Christmas is all about.  I really hadn't noticed that everyone else had forgotten.

[MyGodWearsAHoodie]

If you say so, haven't really been in a lot of office elevators or hotel lobbies lately.

Guess I'm just gonna have to make a special effort to have some good ol' fashioned Christmas music playing for my kids and grandkids this Christmas.  Remind them what Christmas is all about.  I really hadn't noticed that everyone else had forgotten.

This may vary from region to region of the country.  I would suspect Topeka, Kansas more office lobbies would have Silent night than in Manhattan.   

[StL FinFan]

I doubt it.

[Philly Fin Fan]

I'd agree with Hoodie, and that has to do with population, etc. My company is based in Dalton, GA, and if you go anywhere near that town, you find the religious songs playing more than you would in NYC (where I just was last week), due to the multi-cultural, multi- ethnic population of NY.

I also get what CF is saying- and I think people here are misunderstanding him. It has nothing to do with the "Santa Christmas" vs. the "Jesus Christmas". I think (and I could be off here), he is wondering why people no longer even say the words "Merry Christmas". I think they feel they would offend people who don't celebrate Christmas (Jewish people, Muslim people, Atheists, whatever). I no longer celebrate any religious aspect of Christmas, but I still wish people Merry Christmas. That is, unless I know for a fact they are Jewish or Muslim (I have friends of both faiths, and will not say that to them, as I know they don't celebrate it in any way). I deal with some design firms where they are directed to not wish people Merry Christmas, because it may offend them.