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putting the christ back in christmas

I know that this is an old, tired, beaten to death topic. But, I can't think of anything else to write about. I do not understand why some people care so much that I celebrate the birth of Christ on Christmas as opposed to just getting in the holiday spirit by celebrating the Santa Clause part of Christmas. Why can't they just celebrate whatever they want, and let me celebrate whatever I want?

I mean, I read an essay on this by Ben Stein. In which he talked about how, even though he's Jewish, he doesn't mind people using the term "Christmas tree." Yes, he actually had nothing better to do than to write a few paragraphs about how the "Christmas wars" piss him off. *ahem*

For the life of me, I can't understand why anyone would be upset by someone calling it a "Holiday tree" as opposed to a "Christmas tree." Everyone knows that people who say "Holiday tree" and "happy holidays" are just trying to be nice, and include as many different groups of people as possible. They're trying to be inclusive. What's wrong with that?

Tags: ben, christmas, politics, religion, stein

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Comment by homo sapien on April 8, 2009 at 7:04pm: That's interesting. And did a big, fat guy give out all the sweets and gifts?

Comment by Jim DePaulo on April 8, 2009 at 3:30pm: The Saturnalia was a winter solstice celebration. One day of the celebration was set aside as the children's day when they were showered with sweets and gifts - isn't that a weird custom.

Comment by homo sapien on April 7, 2009 at 8:50pm: I did not know this, Carver. I've always heard that it was just another celebration of the winter solstice.

Comment by Jim DePaulo on April 7, 2009 at 7:56pm: December 25th was a convenent day as the day was already set up as Mithra's birthday and the Saturnalia holiday that celerbrated the return of the sun. Just switch the names and carry on as usual. One would think Jebus wouldn't have to put up with a hand me down holiday - the insensitivity of it all...

Comment by homo sapien on April 6, 2009 at 4:21pm: You know what? I totally agree with both of you. And, I try not to pay attention to the Ben Steins of the world. But, sometimes you have to.

Comment by zeeman barzell on April 6, 2009 at 3:59pm: ....and all the parts that don't make sense like 400 year old people, that whole noah's ark thing, and, of course, creation.

Comment by zeeman barzell on April 6, 2009 at 3:44pm: If xtians can pick and choose which parts of the bible they prefer, why can't I pick and choose which parts of the holidays I prefer?

I prefer the candy and presents part. I ignore the Jesus parts, just like the xtians ignore the killing and slavery parts.

Comment by Rev Hellbound Alleee on April 6, 2009 at 10:38am: ...whoops, I didn't mean "'creation" of elements. I meant the forming of them.

Comment by Rev Hellbound Alleee on April 6, 2009 at 10:37am: Nothing wrong with celebrating any way you want to. If you're into Jesus, so be it. I don't know why people are bothering you about it either. Although, one could point out that Jesus wasn't born on Christmas, and that they never celebrated Jesus' birth originally, and there weren't birthday celebrations at all for centuries later, and that they only celebrated death days, and that holiday trees were banned in the bible, and that the US didn't have christmas until around the 1830's, but it doesn't really matter. Christmas is a cultural thing, generally understood to be a celebration of the birth of Jesus.

Then again, I suppose most atheists would have a problem of the idea that Jesus was a Christ, since that implies he's a god, and that sort of negates the whole atheist thing.

I was thinking about Christmas the other day when I watched Cosmos. It seems that a Supernova, the death of a star, is where the creation of gold occurs (also lead and many other of the elements). I thought, isn't it appropriate, in a religious and mythological sense, to think that the Supernova, or Star of Bethlehem, if that had happened, coincides with the birth of a son, who receives gold from kings who followed a Supernova? Son, sun, gold, and all that? I don't know. It's artistic.

I wouldn't bother reading anything Ben Stein wrote, either.