Should we change Christmas so it is no longer a Christian holiday?

[Corvus of the Black Night]

You mean it wasn't? Sure, that date may have initially belonged to a celebration of the Winter Solstice, but THAT WAS NOT CALLED CHRISTMAS. Christmas, including the date, was 100% the idea of Christians. It was a way for the churches to increase their power, and they seized upon the opportunity by creating a holiday that coincided with a pagan celebration. Quite an ingenious plan if you ask me.

Well naming it was their idea, I'll give them that.

:3

 

[donavannj]

Well naming it was their idea, I'll give them that.

:3

What it was about was also their idea. And, like I said, they chose that day as a way to eradicate the pagan celebration that occurred at that time of year. It wasn't the idea of the pagans to make a holiday on that coincides with a celebration they already had in order to eliminate said celebration.

 

[femtrooper]

I think it should be changed because I have never thought of it as a religious holiday. I have always thought of it as a holiday to celebrate family to give presents in exchange for what they have given you. It's more about warmth and family than religion. I find it crazy to even associate religion with it. I am also not religious at all.

 

[donavannj]

I think it should be changed because I have never thought of it as a religious holiday. I have always thought of it as a holiday to celebrate family to give presents in exchange for what they have given you. It's more about warmth and family than religion. I find it crazy to even associate religion with it. I am also not religious at all.

I am also not religious and do not think it should be changed.

 

[professor plum]

Realistically speaking, no. Such a thing would cause too much of an uproar from the Christian base who don't realize that it wasn't originally a Pagan holiday/etc.

Ergo, as Shanghai Alice said, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

I've always felt a special bond to Christmas [as it is the day of my birth and whatnot], and I don't see the point of changing it at this point. While the origins of the holiday are not exactly ideal [Pagan / Jesus's birth likely being in summer ], it was decided that December 25th would be designated as the celebration of his birth. So, for Christians, it can still be a celebration of his birth, even if it's not on his birth day. It's just something everyone agreed upon, and to change it would be utterly pointless.

Furthermore, to completely disassociate religion with it is completely and utterly absurd, and just wrong. If people want to celebrate their savior's birth along with everything else associated with the holiday, so be it. You have no right whatsoever to force your beliefs upon them.

However, I am still for saying Happy Holidays, as I believe it's the most absolute neutral way to express the passing of love of the season [as stated, there are several other holidays that are celebrated around this time, or people don't even celebrate at all].

 

[Bluerang1]

I think it should be changed because I have never thought of it as a religious holiday. I have always thought of it as a holiday to celebrate family to give presents in exchange for what they have given you. It's more about warmth and family than religion. I find it crazy to even associate religion with it. I am also not religious at all.

lolwut

I don't know what to say. Shanghi Alice, please assist me here.

Find it crazy? What's crazy about it? The name is based of a religious character. The holiday is based of religion. And you find it crazy to associate it? *deletes insult he was about to type* Meh. I find you crazy.

 

[txteclipse]

Wtf Other Chat. You used to be so awesome.

I mean seriously? Seriously?

Celebrate Christmas as a religious holiday if you're a Christian. Celebrate it as just a holiday if you're not.

End. Of. Thread.

 

[Guy]

In need of guidance, the replies to this thread are becoming more repetitive each time. Revolving around whether Christmas is a Christian holiday, or if Christians originally founded the holiday, and so on. I'm not going to close the discussion due to the possibility of further discussion, but I would suggest to widen the discussion so it isn't just the same base being said every time.

 

[Shanghai Alice]

lolwut

I don't know what to say. Shanghi Alice, please assist me here.

Find it crazy? What's crazy about it? The name is based of a religious character. The holiday is based of religion. And you find it crazy to associate it? *deletes insult he was about to type* Meh. I find you crazy.

I... Well, though you may not like to here it... If they had worded their response in a more neutral fashion, I'd actually agree with them. I don't support theocracy, I try to defend Christianity.

In need of guidance, the replies to this thread are becoming more repetitive each time. Revolving around whether Christmas is a Christian holiday, or if Christians originally founded the holiday, and so on. I'm not going to close the discussion due to the possibility of further discussion, but I would suggest to widen the discussion so it isn't just the same base being said every time.

Mainly due to the fact that everyone and their mother is looking to seem smart by pointing out that "It's not even Christian!" and "Christians are dumb!" -_-

 

[Stratos99]

Honestly I'm pretty sure you're just overreacting yourself, Shanghai Alice. Nobody is saying Christians are dumb or trying to make fun of them by pointing out what Christmas has deteriorated into. The only intelligent response that can be seen as coming from your side of the argument is;

Celebrate Christmas as a religious holiday if you're a Christian. Celebrate it as just a holiday if you're not.

Whereas every post you've made is victimizing yourself and making sarcastic retorts. Kudos to txteclipse for being level headed.

I'm gonna have to jump ship on this thread though so don't bother replying. I'm not even sure if this post won't be deleted but I felt the need to point out your shortcomings.

 

[otakulily]

lol. No. Christmas is practically already accepted as a universal "Presents Day". If I'm not Christian, does that mean I can't accept a gift for Christmas? No. Does that mean I can't give a gift? No. Just because Christmas is a typically seen as the gift-giving holiday doesn't mean that you need to be Christian to exchange gifts. There really doesn't need to be a special occasion to give gifts. Unless your religion bans gift-giving then there shouldn't be a problem, right?

 

[Shanghai Alice]

I apologize. I do tend to exaggerate a lot, which... yeah. It's my fault.

I do tend to be overly defensive about my beliefs, which I do need to tone down.

My apologies for my hotheadedness. I need to work on that.

 

[Gardenia101]

No offense, but I am completely against the idea.

First off, I am a Christian (Lutheran) and I celebrate Christmas every year, but we actually do the "religious" stuff on the holiday- because Christmas truly IS a day to celebrate the birth of Christ. And from my perspective (Please don't take offense), I'm basically seeing people tapping into a religious holiday and trying to destroy the point so they can get presents. I mean, no matter what you say, getting presents will probably be your favorite part of Christmas. It's just not right, and I think "National Presents Day" is what Christmas has become anyway. America celebrates Christmas because the first people that came here were mostly Christians, but their children started losing the point and turned Saint Nicholas into a toy gold mine. I'm with some parents on this- what happened to the old sprirt of Christmas? Besides, my birthday is so close to Christmas it really doesn't make a difference whether or not I get "presents". I'm not saying everyone is a greedy brat or whatever, but I am saying that religious holidays are meant to be kept that way, and if you want to join in with their celebrations, become religious- or just celebrate Christmas the way most Americans do it- as a gift fest. Some things just aren't meant to be changed.