Figured we need a good Christmas thread in this forum. So...Christmas in public schools, Christmas in the government, the commercialization of Christmas...let us discuss. It falls under spirituality, doesn't it?

Not for me...I see Christmas these days as far more of a cultural holiday than a religious one. It's a huge part of our tradition, which is the main reason I object so much to having it undermined by this PC rubbish. Celebrating christmas is a part of who we are now...and hell yeah we should still celebrate it in schools and so on.

I don't celebrate Christmas. I celebrate Yule. Which is on Tuesday. To me Christmas is too commercialized. The point for a lot of people is to just buy lots of stuff. I think it is a good thing though. A tradition that very well should be celebrated as just a part of our culture. I've chosen to Celebrate Yule because it correlates with my religious views and I still do the same thing as most in Christmas. I just don't have to go shopping. Instead I cook a fantastic meal for those I care for. Then we may exchange presents that we made ourselves. Spend the day together as family and welcome winter accordingly.

My family and I celebrate Christmas in 2 ways. We exchange gifts mostly because it is as Seraphina said, it is a part of our culture. But we also celebrate it in the religious way, the birth of Jesus Christ. The gift exchange part or the "traditional Christmas" as I refer to it should be left alone in schools, work place, the government. The spiritual Christmas, birth of Christ, should be in my opinion a private matter between you and God, this is the reason my family celebrates it in our church and our home. Yes we have a Christmas tree and yes there are gifts under it but before we open any gifts we celebrate the birth of Christ first. The traditional Christmas has definatly become overly commercialized, the local Wal-Mart had Christmas decorations on display around Halloween. It has become a contest of seeing who can spend the most money not the spirit of giving it was when I was a young boy.

I have mixed feelings about the Holidays. Retail merchants across the globe can benefit from the Christmas season but, God forbid, we allow a public school to hold a Christmas Pageant.
Some one in my city has a Christmas tree spangled with lights stolen from my front yard.
In the years I spent in Restraunt management I have found that: customers treat wait-staff worse during the month of December than any other month, employees are more likely to steal money and goods and people "road-rage" easier because everyone is in such a damn hurry.
There are positive sides of Christmas for me as well. My sister comes home from Texas for a week. I get to see members of my family that I don't normally get to see and my house looks spectacular in Christmas lights and decorations.
I guess if you focus on the negative side of this time of year then that's all you'll see. I will try to stay positive and keep my chin up!


Merry Christmas, Everyone.

Christmas... mmmm... milk and cookies, presents, seeing family, pretty lights, GOOD NATURED PEOPLE... yah thats about what it means to me. I'll welcome any holiday where people treat each other well and good will towards men in the theme. Hell yeah we should still celebrate it. All this PC crap trying to get rid of it... our country was based on the judeo-christian ethic... denying that is denying our history. So all you who are opposed, you knew what you were getting into when you moved to this country... and if you were born here, your forefathers knew as well. So quitcher b****'en and pass the eggnog

we celebrate christmas because we feel it is a great time to get together with friends and family. of course it's during the new year too so it makes things interesting and fun to do. we, however, don't calibrate it as a religous thing or force people to celebrate christmas just because majority of the people seem to celebrate it.

Christmas pretty much sucks as of late.

Not only is Christmas far too commercialized and far from the point of the holiday, as said before, it is a brutal time. People rushing to buy gifts for family, yet they buy gifts for that sole purpose -- to buy a gift. The heart never seems to be a part of it, just whats on sale at your local, sinister Wal-Mart. When I was little I celebrated like every other young kid in America, thinking to myself, PRESENTS, PRESENTS PRESENTS. I grew up, to say the least.

Now we don't even decorate, I get some cash, and that is Christmas. I still do go to several get togethers, but we've never, ever celebrated Jesus and my family is definatly not even close to highly christian. Food seems to be the main thing we celebrate, tapping into the reserves of it my aunt has grown and harvested over the past year.

I suggest watching Charlie Brown Christmas, the one from 65'. It was recently on, and I was amazed by how much it puts down commercialization, and Charlie says "I'm not going to let Christmas commercialization ruin my Christmas!" I wish that was the case around the world. Sadly, the only thing that is spread worldwide is greed, politics, and brutality. Besides, up here in Maine, rich people are the last things your going to see, minus the tourists.

Raven, my friend, I couldnt have said it better myself.

*tears of sadness for the ruined time of year

I don't celebrate really. I mean my family is 3000 miles away, and my roommate's father refuses to let me join them this year for thier gathering.

I'd celebrate Yule, but there's no one to have festives with...

Why? did you do something bad to your roommates father, or something?... (just wondering...)

we celebrate Christmas culturally, and religously. i think its dumb that people are making a big deal abut not putting up Christmas trees and other dcorations because it's related to the Christian religion. People should do it anyways because its part of our culture.

Exactly.... because whats next?? are all the PC gurus out there gonna start saying that we arent allowed to publicly celebrate Easter? St. Valentines Day? St. Patricks Day? Halloween? ... all have roots in the Christain Faiths...

NOT LIKELY.

just bein myself. He's always disliked me. From the first moment we met.

Go to you local Pagan store or Witch Vox and see what festivities there are around town. My Pagan group put on a wonderful open ritual with feasting and drumming.

http://www.witchvox.com/

Christmas is my favourite time of year,
not just because of the presents.
But because were celebrating
Jesus's birthday.