Christmas is my very favorite holiday. I look forward to it each year and try to make it as special for my children as my parents did for me. In recent years, however, there seems to be some agitation between various religious groups surrounding the holiday.
When I was Director of Marketing for a nonprofit group serving women and children, our organization put up a Christmas tree in a local bank. The tree was decorated with ornaments made by the children and customers had the opportunity to purchase an ornament and thereby support our cause. I was devastated to learn that we had to remove the tree because one of the non-Christian bank customers had complained about it.
According to Wikipedia, in 2008, 76% of the U.S. population identified themselves as Christian. One can assume therefore that Christmas is a holiday enjoyed by a majority of U.S. citizens, and religious minorities should expect that Christmas activities will blanket the country in December. I don’t believe that Christians should be limited in their celebration.
On the other hand, I realize it is very difficult to be a non-Christian during this time of the year. It must be especially hard for children. The more recent development which makes dealing with the season even more onerous for non-Christians is the extension of the commercial timeframe. Last year local department stores began decorating with Christmas décor BEFORE Thanksgiving.
Adam Sandler sang a series of songs about Chanukah, which address the theme of Jewish children feeling left out during the Christmas season. They are humorous songs, but indicative of some of the stress and alienation that exists.
So this year I am hoping we can all make an effort to enjoy our respective religious holidays without limiting what others can do. Be sensitive to those of all religions and respect their ability to celebrate as they wish. The holiday season should be filled with love and living in harmony.
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By Ale
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