Monday, December 05, 2005

War of the Words

This year's Christmas buzz isn't in the eggnog, it's in how we're greeted by retailers. This season, there is much ado about whether "Happy Holidays" or "Merry Christmas" is said. Is it that "Happy Holidays" is politically correct? Is it the final nail in the coffin that Secular Humanism has, at last, done away with Christmas? Or could it be that acknowledging other customs during this time is also appropriate? Personally, I prefer "Happy Holidays" because it refers to the entire holiday season from Thanksgiving to New Years. The in-between may include Christmas, Hanukkah or Kwanzaa.
The present argument is that there's a movement to take Christmas away. Rev. Jerry Falwell states, "It's time we join together and protect Christmas from the secular Grinches who want to stifle its celebration in public venues throughout our nation." I find this laughable. First of all, Mr. Falwell can't even complete this sentence without using a secular term: Grinches. What he fails to recognize is that bigger celebrations equal bigger profits for retailers. And what do retailers want? It doesn't take a Rocket Scientist to figure that one out. Sure, retailers will probably cave in & say "Merry Christmas." And then they'll laugh their merry selves all the way to the bank!

Consider for a moment that on Dec.31, 1931, Gandhi said, "I have never been able to reconcile myself to the gaieties of the Christmas season. They have appeared to me to be so inconsistent with the life and teaching of Jesus." What exactly does shopping & receiving gifts have to do with the birth of Jesus? Why do people feel as though they should be receiving anything for His birthday? Isn't Jesus the gift?

If keeping Christ in Christmas is the real motive, shouldn't the puritans who are outraged, celebrate it more like the Amish do? Or not celebrate as Jehovah's Witnesses do? Afterall, where in the bible does it say to exchange gifts on Christmas? If the gifts are out of gladness for the birth of Christ, wouldn't it be more appropriate to give gifts to say, Jesus' starving children? Or helping the homeless or sick as opposed to lavishing ourselves with simply more?

If I were a Christian, which I no longer am, I would be glad that retailers are at least being honest. Their greetings never were about Jesus, some just felt better because they thought they were. The retail business has & always will be about money.
My point is there should be no correlation between the birth of the Christ & shopping sprees. If Jesus is really the reason for the season, isn't the responsibility of keeping Christmas a holy day and not a retail event a personal one?

Season's Greetings!

Technorati tags: christmas, hanukkah, kwanzaa, retailer, bible, secular humanism, Christian, jehovahs witness, amish, jerry falwell, jesus christ, gandhi, grinch, merry christmas, happy holidays

posted by jane at 9:59 PM