Another Christmas season has come and gone. A month of faith, family gatherings, goodwill, feasts, etc. Most people look forward to December and all it brings. Yet, year after year, there are a few grinches among us. There are those who seem intent on sucking the joy out of the season .
Whether one is Christian or not, Christmas is still the most celebrated holiday of the year. According to Pew, close to 90% of Americans planned on celebrating Christmas, with only one in ten saying they would not participate.
So WHY does a small percentage of the overall population, both in the United States and abroad, seem so driven to ruin the Christmas spirit for others? Is it because they are so miserable themselves that they do not want anyone else to be happy? Or is it even more nefarious – only by destroying the religious aspect of Christmas, and basically keeping Christ out of Christmas, can progressives hope to achieve their societal utopia. Religion, after all, IS a huge roadblock to socialism and Marxism.
In efforts to disassociate Jesus Christ from the Christmas season, attempts are always made to replace the word “Christmas” with the bland “Happy Holidays.” The non-believers and anti-Christmas crowd claim this is more inclusive and tolerant for all. Yet, isn’t this in itself intolerant and an exclusion of Christian values? Such is very dismissive of what the Christmas season is all about, and the values of the majority (yes, Christians STILL are a majority in the United States at 63% of the population according to Pew). Remember, too, that Christmas IS a Federal holiday. One can and should say “Merry Christmas” without feeling shamed from the perpetually offended.
The modern War on Christmas really began on December 7th, 2004, when former Fox News host Bill O’Reilly noted that major corporations were ordering their employees to refrain from saying “Merry Christmas.” O’Reilly also pointed out that New York City renamed it’s Christmas Tree a “Holiday Tree.” No symbols of Christmas were allowed anymore in public schools in the state. This was just the start. Since 2004, the public has witnessed so many instances and examples that showcase the real fight against Christmas.
A brief sampling of such is as follows:
Closer to home and quite recently, a Wauwatosa Deputy Administrator put out an email to employees initially suggesting they avoid using the Christmas colors (red and green) when decorating. It was OK to decorate with snowflakes and “snowpeople” (yes, not snowmen), as well as other non-religious symbols associated with winter. The Wauwatosa City Hall was decorated in blue and green colors. How festive! I’m also surprised that Tosa went with blue, as the color shows support for law enforcement….they may have to rethink that one!
In 2017, Great Britain child psychologist Linda Blair said that “listening to Christmas music too early in the season can trigger feelings of stress.” Christmas music, in essence, is bad for your mental health. Ms. Blair seems to be a hero to the anti-Christmas music crowd, as her works are often cited on the topic. On the flip side, Scripps Affiliated Medical Group says there are a lot of benefits in listening to Christmas music. Christmas music can be credited with improving moods, helping with memories, decreasing stress levels, and reducing pain. Take that, Ms. Blair!
From the website American Legion: In December of 2013, veterans at the Dallas VA Center were unable to receive handwritten Christmas cards from schoolchildren because they referenced the holiday by name. A VA hospital in Georgia turned away a school choir that wanted to entertain them by singing Christmas carols. Instead, administration gave the students a list of secular songs that was approved by officials. The children refused, as they did not even know the songs and had no time to rehearse. In Iowa city, legion members were unable to hand out gifts to veterans if the wrapping paper referenced Christmas!
From the Catholic League website:
The University of Tennessee Office of Diversity and Inclusion issued guidelines as to which kinds of “holiday” celebrations would be tolerated and what would not. Of course Christmas was the target.
In West Columbia, South Carolina, The American Humanist Association threatened to sue the East Point Academy charter school over its annual Christmas Toy Drive, “because the purpose and effect of the Operation Christmas Child is to induce impoverished children to convert to Christianity.”
On December 5th 2013, two shoppers were asked to leave the Opry Mills Mall because they were dressed in Christmas costumes and wishing people Merry Christmas.
From the Daily Mail in 2016: In Switzerland, a nativity scene was rearranged to show Mary performing an explicit sex act on Joseph. At least the church spoke out vehemently against this display, saying such is a “violation of people’s religious feelings.”
For a few years now, local schools in Lake Country appear to be refraining from having Christmas concerts, and instead have the children sing songs that have nothing to do with the season or refer to Christmas without mentioning religion – ala “Frosty the Snowman.” They are called Holiday Concerts. One school even went so far as to put on a “American Music Concert” on December 14th (probably more appropriate for the 4th of July). Songs the children were allowed to sing included such wintery ditties as: the Star Spangled Banner, When the Saints Go Marching In, as well as “Boil That Cabbage Down.” The ONLY semi-related Christmas song allowed that evening was “Where Are You Christmas?” How ironic that a school apparently intent on ignoring the Christmas season is asking that question in a song.
These are just a few of the many examples out there.
In conclusion, Yes, Virginia, there IS a real War on Christmas. Christians and believers alike must never lay down their arms and succumb to the anti-Christmas crowd. This is a war that can be won. And to those who say there is no War on Christmas, and it is all a figment of our imaginations, I say BAH HUMBUG.
