Joy without pain

The cultural plus of Christmas

By Amaris White
From the December 2005 Print Edition

Once upon a time, you could enter a store and expect to be greeted with a jolly “Merry Christmas.” You’d return the greeting, feel a smile and be reminded of the holiday season ahead. Once upon a time, you were glad that it was finally Christmas vacation. No more school, or work, just celebration. Once upon a time, you enjoyed the giant Christmas trees and decorations in the town square. The Christmas lights were amazing, and everyone came out to see them.

Do you remember those days? They’re gone.

The past decade has seen a slow trend in which anything relating to this winter holiday has become offensive. Today, at Christmas time, we are faced with yet another politicization of something that is probably one of the least political days ever.

Regardless of your personal beliefs, this date represents more than the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. While there are those who attend church, pray, and give thanks to God and his son, many of us don’t.

Today, Christmas is no longer about remembering a birthday from 2,000 years ago — with all the trees decorated in lights, silly little dancing Santas, cookies by the fireplace, and eggnog, we’d be hard pressed to find anyone who could intelligently argue that Christmas is still a purely religious holiday in America.

No, Christmas has become a nonsectarian part of our culture. It has been celebrated all over the globe and in every city across America for so long that to deny its existence or claim that it has no role in all our lives is just posturing denial. Even if you celebrate Hanukkah, Ramadan, Kwanzaa, or absolutely nothing during the winter season, every one of us knows the story of A Christmas Carol, Santa Claus and his reindeer, and at least some of the words to a couple of Christmas songs. We all know what mistletoe is, and we know the story of the little boy born in a manger that fateful night in December. Ignorance of these things is simply cultural illiteracy — no more a source of pride than having no knowledge about Eve, Moses, Mohammed, or Zeus.

Despite all this, there are those who have made it their personal mission to deplete December of all things Christmas. For the most part, these people claim to be atheists — the same atheists that claim “under God” is offensive and any statue or memorial such as the Ten Commandments creates an uncomfortable atmosphere. As an atheist myself, I believe that describing these things as offensive is simply illogical. Claiming the inherently unpleasant nature of something one doesn’t believe in is about as silly as claiming that giving a child a dollar in exchange for the tooth under his pillow is offensive, solely because one doesn’t believe in the Tooth Fairy!

Unfortunately, this trend of taking offense has continued from the whining of posturing atheists to other vocal speakers from different religions. Again, as with many other “politically correct” movements, it is the outspoken minority that overrules the silent majority. Just this season, London has outlawed the mention of “Christmas” lights in one of its districts because Muslims are now taking offense. Anything potentially perceived to be Christmas-related will no longer be allowed near the city council.

It is regrettable that Americans are now also allowing such things to be taken seriously — this appeasement of childish complaints has resulted in things such as the Indigenous People’s Day we hold in Berkeley; no more do we have Columbus Day.

As for Christmas, what started as simply using phrases such as “happy holidays” and “winter vacation” has snowballed into something much greater. Soon, in America as well, will we be hanging “winter lights” and sitting around a “holiday tree”? Will the fun and joy of tradition that have accompanied Christmas in the United States soon be thrown away? All this simply because somebody claims to be offended by holiday cheer that publicly has little serious religious connotation? Furthermore, even if such images do have some religious sentiment, to take offense to something that one finds meaningless is de facto ridiculous.

Christmas is culture. It’s ingrained in our history and our national identity. We don’t have to believe in Jesus to enjoy the holiday. We don’t even have to respect the religion from which the day emerged. But if we are serious about respecting each other, what’s the harm in acknowledging your neighbors’ cultural and religious roots, your cultural roots, and celebrating our culture together?

Even though seemingly insignificant things like the use of “winter vacation” have little effect on our daily lives or on Christmas generally, this is the slippery slope that has left Americans today with restrictions on holiday celebration. This December, regardless of your personal beliefs, remember the meaning of Christmas as more than a celebration of the birth of Jesus; remember it also as a holiday that many Americans celebrate as a time to be with family and friends, make gingerbread houses, eat to their stomachs’ limits, and share gifts and tidings.

Now, the spirit of the day calls, and I devote myself to its true meaning; I have to go set up my little plastic dancing Santa.

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