For the record, no one can take Christ out of Christmas because Christ was never there. No matter how much this FACT is explained to the zealots, however, they just persist on blaming other religious zealots for the problem. Problem, here, should really be in quotes. What exactly is the problem??
Guest columnist, Orlando Patterson, sums up quite succinctly the issues about which the various and sundry zealots are currently arguing. It is a thoroughly interesting piece both for its content as well as the fact that the NY Times has a feature that allows you to look up words and concepts! Love it...now you really can't get that from the print version, and your fingers won't turn black.
Professor Patterson asserts that it is a "Holiday for All of Us," could have been U.S.:
It is the perfect example of America's mainstream process, a national rite that dissolves the boundaries between sacred and secular, pagan and civilized, insiders and outsiders.But, the act of appropriating celebrations as a way of proselytizing is not just an American phenomenon. It would have been more appropriate to discuss the commercialization of the entire enterprise, start to finish...first creating the great big "Christian" spending debauchery and then breaking it down to "holidays" in order to include all faiths in the buying frenzy.
It amazes me to no end that "Christians" (yes, they need to be in quotes as they really have taken Christ out of Christian) are so willing to sling mud and feel threatened by calling the period "holidays" instead of Christmas. Does it not worry any of these so-called children of Christ that Christmas is about buying things??? Um...there is one issue about which I would be happily indigent as a Christian.
With all the things in the world about which to feel threatened, beangryy or indignant, whether or not we say Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays should be the last on anyone's list, no matter how devout they may feel themselves. Get over it...you are driving me crazy.
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