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Many Christians feel that Christmas should be exclusively recognized at this time of year to the exclusion of the celebrations by members of other religions and by secularists. Some Christians have condemned attempts towards a more inclusive holiday period as "politically correct," a war on Christmas, and an attack Christianity itself. |
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Others feel that we should recognize the existence of other celebrations including Bodhi Day by Buddhists; the Day of the Return of the Wandering Goddess, by Kemetic Orthodoxy; Hanukkah (a.k.a. Chanukah, Festival of Lights, & Festival of Rededication) by Jews; Id al-Adha (a.k.a. the Feast of Sacrifice or Day of Sacrifice) by Muslims; the Winter Solstice by some Native Americans, Aboriginals in the rest of the world, and Atheists; Saturnalia by Nova Romans (a.k.a. Romana); Yule by Wiccans and some other Pagans; Kwanzaa by African Americans; Festivus (a.k.a. the festival for the rest of us); Omisoka (a end-of-year celebration in Japan); Shabe-Yalda, an Iranian inter-faith celebration; etc. |
This conflict surfaces at this time of year in retail outlets where some employees wish people a "Merry Christmas" and thus risk alienating some non-Christians, while others wish people "Happy Holidays" or "Seasons Greetings" and risk alienating some Christians. Fortunately, most North Americans don't care.
Quotations:
| [Christmas]..."now involves lawyers and complaining liberal and conservative ministers who either demand that people not celebrate Christmas or want everyone to celebrate it as they do." Cal Thomas' "On the Right Side" column. 2 |
| "Who are we fooling? The Jews don't put up a tree for Hanukkah; the Muslims don't put up a tree for Ramadan. It doesn't take away from my celebration of my holiday for other people to celebrate their holiday." Karen Dabdoub, president of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). 3 |
| "Why not simply require stores owned by Jews to put a gold star in their ads and on their storefronts?" Rev. Jim Melnyk, apparently drawing a parallel between a Christian boycott of non-Christian stores in Raleigh, NC and anti-semitic laws of Nazi Germany. 4 |
| "There is an anti-Christian bias in this country, and it is more on display at Christmas season than any other time." – Bill O'Reilly, The O'Reilly Factor, Fox News Channel. 5 |
| "Merry Christmas" is much more discriminatory then "Happy Holidays." What about the Jewish people who celebrate Hanukah, should they be left out? Please explain to me WHY they should be left out because once again i am confused beyond belief at another one of your ridiculous ideas. Jesus was Jewish, wouldn't he have celebrated Hanukah? Thus, aren't you discriminating again JESUS? your own SAVIOR? think about it --- long and hard -- before your ridiculous scandals lead you to even more evil." Angry posting to The Curt Jester forum. 6 |
Text from a comic strip:
From "Tina's Groove" by Rina Poccolo for 2005-DEC-25. the conversation takes place in Pepper's restaurant:
| Rob: "Tina, it's politically incorrect to say 'Merry Christmas' to our customers because it has religious connotations." |
| Tina: "OK Rob, I'll say 'Happy Holidays'." |
| Rob: "Well...I wouldn't say 'happy' because that would be insensitive to people who are unhappy." |
| Tina: "Okay, how 'bout 'have an adjective-of-your-choice' holiday"? |
| Rob: "You know, maybe the word "holiday" is bad -- it may be deemed unfair to people who have to work." |
| Tina: "Geez! I won't say anything at all, then!" |
| Rob: "Oh Tina! You can't be like that on Christmas Day!" |
| Tina (to departing customers): "Extending acknowledgement of December 25th to you!" |
| Customers " Yeah, er...you too" |
Topics covered in this section are:
| A brief overview of the "Christmas wars" | ||||||||||||
| A more detailed introduction to the "wars" | ||||||||||||
| What do the public and stores feel about
the "wars?" | ||||||||||||
| Causes and possible solutions to the "wars" | ||||||||||||
| Celebrations near Christmas time:
By various religions; by individuals | ||||||||||||
| What is the original "reason for the
season"
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| Brief descriptions of some recent
events during the Christmas wars:
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| Reactions to the conflicts by various groups and individuals | ||||||||||||
| Alternatives to conflict:
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References used:
- Robert Wuthnow, "America and the Challenges of Religious Diversity," Princeton University Press, (2007). Read reviews or order this book safely from Amazon.com online book storeCal Thomas, "Let the rest of us take back Christmas," 'On the Right Side' syndicated column, 2004-DEC-15.
- John McCaslin, "Leave it alone," Inside the Beltway, 2005-DEC-09, The Washington Times, at: http://washingtontimes.com/ (No longer online)
- No longer online
- Jim Melnyk, "Why not simply require stores owned by Jews to put a gold star in their ads and on their storefronts?" Religious Lefties, 2005-DEC-17, at: http://religiouslefties.blogspot.com/
- "O'Reilly Factor Flash," 2005-NOV-15, at: http://www.billoreilly.com/
- "Just say 'Merry Christmas," The Curt Jester, 2005-DEC-08, at: http://www.splendoroftruth.com/
- Ellen Barry, "This Season, Greetings Are at Issue," Los Angeles Times, 2004-DEC-18, at: http://www.truthout.org/
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Home > Religious information > Christmas > here |
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Home > Christianity > Beliefs, practices, etc > Holy days > Christmas > here |
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Home > Religious hatred & conflicts > Specific conflicts > here |
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Home page > Religious tolerance > Cooperation > here |
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Home page > Spirituality menu > Religious tolerance > Cooperation > here |
Copyright © 2004 and 2007 by Ontario Consultants on Religious
Tolerance
Originally posted: 2004-DEC-04
Latest update: 2007-DEC-05
Author: B.A. Robinson
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