What has changed since last Christmas?
At the store where my son works, corporate headquarters decided everyone should greet customers with the phrase; “Happy Holidays!” There have been a few incidents of customers coming completely unglued, screaming at the poor clerks that they’re ruining Christmas because Jesus, something, blah-blah…
What has changed since I last wrote about this issue in a post entitled, Merry Christmas, Macy’s?
The “Christmas war” has been ramped up a little bit. In his book, The War On Christmas, author John Gibson complains that those awful secularists are trying to ruin Christmas by removing ‘any mention of Jesus’ from the public square. But several things have not changed.
That uber-Pinhead, Bill O’Reilley, is still exploiting the issue for ratings and personal aggrandizement. The ACLU is still not trying to remove Christmas from the marketplace, and they are still opposing tax-funded promotion of any one religion over another. They have still not sued any private entity, store, or person for any expression of faith. They are still being accused trying to destroy Christianity while defending the right to expression of faith.
Another thing that has not changed is that it is still extremely bad manners to take offense at a blessing or when no offense is intended. If there are legal issues to address (such as if tax dollars are involved in the promotion of a religion), then address them. But it is idiotic to harrass anyone for a friendly greeting.
I am an atheist – I don’t believe in your god. I might be annoyed if you back me into a corner and start preaching to me. But if you wish me a ‘Merry Christmas’, or a ‘Happy Holiday’, I’ll smile back and wish you the same. Christmas is both a religious and secular holiday, enjoyed by people of all faiths and no faith whatever. What could possibly be wrong with good wishes?
Merry Christmas, everyone!
The mindset of so many today is to criticise others to make themselves more important. It is as they have appointed themselves the only person worth paying attention to. That if you ignored them you were less a human being. Someone to harass into a guilty depression.
As a child we never worried about offending anyone by saying Merry Christmas. We were raised that we could attend church or not. It was our choice which denomintion to attend. People didn’t judge you on your love for God but on your actions and deeds toward your fellow man. We didn’t ‘run scared’ with every stranger we saw, every warning or possible threat the government used, or every promise of Hell and damnation because we didn’t have these things pushed in front of our face everyday.
My holiday wish is that everyone worship in their own way. That those who choose not to worship be left in peace to live their life as they see it. That suddenly our government opens it’s eyes to what is really important and stops trying to dictate how we think, educate, or live our lives. That by some miracle the media will report the truth not what will sell papers, increase ratings,
or get them in good with the leaders be they religious or polictical.
From my family a very Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and Season’s Greeting Mr. DoF to you and your family!
Exactly. Here in Vienna, I personally wish people “Schöne Feiertage” (Happy Holidays) but “Schöne Weihnachten” (Merry Christmas) is fine with me too. And the Muslims here don’t bat an eye at “Happy Holidays”, even though Ramadan is over. Why do we have to have “corporate policies” about exactly how employees talk to customers anyway? This is political correctness ad absurdum.
What could possibly be wrong with good wishes?
Nothing is wrong with the good wishes but there coud be something seriously wrong with someone who gets upset over them.