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Sat 26 Nov, 2005 07:50 pm
In this age of everything being politically correct, what's your opinion of changing 'Christmas' to 'Holiday'?
I say, call it what it is. I'm not a Christian, but would agree that Christmas is a holiday started by Christians, so why take it away?
Check out the below article and the following opinions. Interesting reading.
'Inclusive' name change needles N.S. tree grower
PAGAN CELEBRATION OBJECT...how about that for a new twist?
Seriously to me it's a Christmas tree and always will be no matter what the Bostonians say. Of course since it is a Thank You Tree maybe it should henceforth be known that way... I can see it already...
"In local news the Thank You Tree was outfitted with trinkets today..."
Mine will always be a Christmas tree.
Just call it what it is: a tree, indoors, with lots of tchatchkes and doodads and nicknacks hanging from it, and some lights and bells and whistles, and some presents, and that stuff that sprays from the can. And a thing with wings on top, a white thing. Or maybe some old guy with a big beard, who dances every time the lights are plugged in and says, well I don't know what he says. But I'm sure it puts a smile on everybody's face.
If I go to somebodys house and they say " How do you like my holiday tree". I'll pour gasoline over it and torch the son of a bitch.
We call it a tanenbaum
O evergreen O evergreen
Always have
I'm not changing to calling it a Christmas tree or a holiday tree
It'll always be an evergreen/tanenbaum to me
I always wondered what a tanenbaum was, but ws too lazy to look it up.
Christmas is Christmas and a Christmas tree is a Christmas tree. If that offends some people, then they can ignore the day and the name.
So far, we have not heard that Christian based carols are to be replaced. Of course, we have our share of holiday type music, but we still have Away in a Manger, We Three Kings, A Child is Born and many others.
It is interesting to note that it is only Christian holidays that are targeted. The holidays of others are never in question.
Christmas is Christmas and for me, I will accept nothing less.
Just remember what happened when they introduced New Coke. Some things will not be put up with.
The so-called "Christmas Tree" predates "Christmas" perhaps a thousand years. The tradition of bringing a tree into the house and decorating it with lights was started to thank the pagan gods for the light on the Solstice.
You all know that the December is not the correct time to celebrate the birth of Christ, don't you?
The Biblical story of the birth of Christ involves his parents (Mary and Joseph) travelling home to particpate in the census. Historically these events happened in the summer since people in the Roman empire at the time didn't travel in December. It is not just the time of year, many of the traditions of what we now call Christmas are really just renamed parts of ancient pagan soltice celebrations.
So if you want to be pedantic, you should call it a Solstice tree. In my family we will be completing the tradition by building a pile of shoes...
Calling it a holiday tree seems reasonable in our modern multi-cultural society. Calling it a Christmas Tree is just as fake... a repackagng of the original.
Wassail! to all.
Most of us know that December is only a symbolic time and not the actual date of Christ's birth. The time of year does not seem to be the issue. The issue is the name that is used to denote the celebration of this event. Christmas would be Christmas whether is was in July or December.
Let's get an angry christmas mob together and root out these no good Holiday Tree people. There probably commies
They have a right to their opinions. Mob violence is never a good thing.
Intrepid,
That's not correct.
Chrstmas is in December because the Roman Holiday of the Solstice-- Saturnalia-- was always celebrated in December.
Around the middle of December there was a great festival marked by feasts, evergreen wreaths decorated with lights, gifts. This was also a time of goodwill toward all. People gave generously and masters even did nice deeds to slaves.
We now celebrate "Christmas" in December because the Roman world through which the Christian religion passed to us celebrated the festival of Saturn in December. When the pagans had official Christianity forced upon them, they practiced a bit of political correctness so they could continue their beloved festival.
"Oh, these aren't idols. Well, they used to be idols, but now they are a creche..."
Christmas is just a made over pagan holiday. Many of the traditions you celebrate with your family would be very familiar to Roman pagans before the birth of Christ.
Intrepid wrote:It is interesting to note that it is only Christian holidays that are targeted. The holidays of others are never in question.
Trep, if you check the letters below the article, someone voices the same opinion as you do, too.
There would be outcries if any other group were to be targeting with this type of PCness.
ebrown_p wrote:Intrepid,
That's not correct.
Chrstmas is in December because the Roman Holiday of the Solstice-- Saturnalia-- was always celebrated in December.
Around the middle of December there was a great festival marked by feasts, evergreen wreaths decorated with lights, gifts. This was also a time of goodwill toward all. People gave generously and masters even did nice deeds to slaves.
We now celebrate "Christmas" in December because the Roman world through which the Christian religion passed to us celebrated the festival of Saturn in December. When the pagans had official Christianity forced upon them, they practiced a bit of political correctness so they could continue their beloved festival.
"Oh, these aren't idols. Well, they used to be idols, but now they are a creche..."
Christmas is just a made over pagan holiday. Many of the traditions you celebrate with your family would be very familiar to Roman pagans before the birth of Christ.
That is fine and dandy. However, today we celebrate Christianity... not pagan rituals. Christmas was celebrated on January 6th prior to changing to December 25th. New Years used to start on March 25th.
Intrepid wrote:
That is fine and dandy. However, today we celebrate Christianity... not pagan rituals. Christmas was celebrated on January 6th prior to changing to December 25th. New Years used to start on March 25th.
That's the point-- Today many of
us dont celebrate Christianity.
Many of us are Jewish, or Hindu, or Muslim or even atheists. Many of us don't like the feeling of religion being forced upon us.
Just becuase you celebrate Christianity doesn't mean that you should expect the rest of us to. Why can't you accept that we live in a multicutural society?
In my house... it is a soltice tree. A good friend of mine has a Hannukah bush.
Deal with it.
ebrown_p wrote:Intrepid wrote:
That is fine and dandy. However, today we celebrate Christianity... not pagan rituals. Christmas was celebrated on January 6th prior to changing to December 25th. New Years used to start on March 25th.
That's the point-- Today many of
us dont celebrate Christianity.
Many of us are Jewish, or Hindu, or Muslim or even atheists. Many of us don't like the feeling of religion being forced upon us.
Just becuase you celebrate Christianity doesn't mean that you should expect the rest of us to. Why can't you accept that we live in a multicutural society?
In my house... it is a soltice tree. A good friend of mine has a Hannukah bush.
Deal with it.
Nobody is forcing anything onto you. The Jewish, Hindu and Muslims have their holidays and religious celebrations and nobody bothers them about it. They are very welcome to celebrate in the manner that they wish. If you do not want to celebrate a Christian holiday... then don't. That is your choice. I live in a very multicultural society and I do accept it. I just don't accept people expecting to change everything that they don't agree with.
I didn't come into this thread to get into a fight. I stated my opinion as many others have. Why are you responding only to me? But that's ok, I can take it.
It is not, as mentioned by others, historically a christian holiday any more than it is a celebration by many other groups, or non groupies, as the case may be. Yes, a christian holiday, but not only so.
In my own life it was first a catholic holiday, with a capital C.
After I pooped out on that I still liked a tree. However, when I went back to school and worked nearly full time at the same time, I had to make certain cuts. My husband and I dragged in the Opuntia ficus indica - ouch! watch out! ###@@@&&!! - and put lights around it. The next year we ran across some chili pepper lights, new to us then, and racked those around the steadfast cactus.
Now I think of the whole thing as a lot of trouble for no good reason and just look out at the trees in my yard. I added about fifteen when I moved in.
I might be coming around though - maybe next year I'll get a plantable native pine, or native cottonwood - and tuck an ornament or two into it for a few weeks. The ornament might be unusual.
Reyn, I saw that bit of news. I finally broke down and got an artificial tree for safety's sake. I notice that Jerry Falwell is all up in arms about it. He never misses a chance, does he?
I'm not even certain that I will deal with it this year. And think of this, folks. Can you imagine all the songs that wouldn't work with "holiday" as opposed to Christmas?
Oh, holiday tree,
Oh, holiday tree,
How lovely are thy branches.
Doesn't work, does it.
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