What do YOU think?
December 1st!! It’s officially the day I like to refer to as the first day of the “appropriate” holiday obssesion time period. Anyone who put up Christmas lights before today: You got what you wanted! You win, okay? You were the first one, congrats! Now please get a life. Sheesh.
So. Do I celebrate Christmas? Yes. Why? Because it’s fun to be with my family and get presents and stuff my face with holiday food. Duh.
Did I even know Christmas was a religious holiday until I was like, in the 5th grade? No.
I forget exactly how the topic came up, but someone told me they go to church every Christmas and it suddenly clicked. When I finally realized, I was like “OHMIGOSH. Christmas. Christ mas. Christ. Mas. Oookay. I got it now. We want mas Christ. Got it.” (mas means more in spanish by the way).
I felt guilty for some time after that. Ehh. Am I allowed to celebrate Christmas if I’m not religious? Should Skeptics give in to the holiday spirit, even though we don’t celebrate for the same reason?
What do you think?
PS – I got over it. I just love presents too much to give up good ol’ Christmas. Plus, stuck in my head all day long today was:
♫ I saw mommy kissing Saaaaanta Claaauuuuusee, underneath the mistletoe last niiiiiiiiight.♫
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11 Comments
Sure. Just celebrate it for all the original reasons before the Christians annexed it 🙂
Yep, it’s totally okay to celebrate Xmas without being religious! It’s a secular holiday that some people have added religious themes to. It hurts no one to promote peace and love and presents every December, without mentioning anything about unsubstantiated magical births 2000 years ago. 🙂
Also, Kayla, I have to say that I find your writing style completely fantastic. Your enthusiasm makes me smile before I even process the point of the post.
Of course. Everyone knows that celebrations and parties are heathen, so it’s practically our duty!
I’ve sometimes felt a bit guilty, like I was ‘only doing it for the food and free stuff,’ but then I figured that once you add family and fun to the list, you really don’t need any more reasons to celebrate. 🙂
And I’m totally with you on December being the “appropriate” period for obsessiveness.
Such situations call for the infamous Ralph Waldo Emerson quote:
“A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds”
Clichéd but apropos.
Christmas is cool because you get to eat, be with family, and get gifts!
@Rebecca – Why, thank you kind miss!
@Jenny – Some lights in my area were up weeks before Thanksgiving…that’s what I call “desperation”.
I don’t know if you know this, but you are awesome. I’m just puttin’ that out there.
I’m lucky enough to be born in a country where we still use the old pagan name for the holiday (Norwegian Jul – English Yule) and where centuries old remnants of ancestor worship (putting out porridge for the barn gnome, ‘fjøsnissen’) was merged with the bastardisation of the gift giving bishop into the “Yule gnome” (Julenissen).
I never felt Christians had a superior claim to the holiday.
Personally I think “The Little Drummer Boy” is the song that most succinctly describes this holiday. Yes, it can be religious in nature, but it’s about giving, not necessarily materialistically, but sharing what we have. You know, peace and goodwill toward man… and stampeding to death a store worker in order to get ten dollars off an iPod.
I put up my Festivus pole yesterday, so I guess I’m officially getting into the holiday spirit 🙂
Xtians own Xmas the way white people own America. Anyone can live here, and anyone can celebrate Xmas. I celebrate with my family every year, even though none of us even think about zombie Jesus.