Explain to Me Again: When Will the War on Christmas Start?

Bill O'Reilly has been saying that there's a war on Christmas going on. This has made me very tense, as I've tried to find weapons to prepare for the coming battle.

So far, everything has been quiet here in Colorado Springs - except for, of course, the tragic shooting at New Life Church several weeks ago, which wasn't a war on Christmas at all, but was, perhaps, part of someone's war against unloving religion.

But, so far, there seem to be no signs here of a war on Christmas. Nobody has tried to remove my crèche from my home. I've been reading the Nativity Story in the Bible, and not one person has burst into my home to tear the Bible from my hands. I hear the Christmas music in the grocery store that I've been hearing every year for most of my life - the same songs of "Winter Wonderland" and "Jingle Bells" and "I'll be Home for Christmas". Nothing seems to have changed there. No, I'm not hearing "Silent Night" while I shop, but then, I find it a bit crass to try to mix commercialism and consumerism and to see how much money they can make off the baby Jesus. If I want to hear Christmas carols, there are plenty of opportunities - the CD carol albums, the religious station on the radio, and, yes, I can go to Church and sing. I intend to go to Church Christmas Eve for a special Carol-singing service, and as far as I know, no one will be stationed at the door, with their AK-47s, trying to keep me from worshipping.

My Jewish friends who visited my home never once asked me to take down my crèche, nor did I ask them to take down their Hanukah display. I have some religious decorations on our tree - but no one has yet confiscated them. If I want to see an outside crèche, there's a nice one at a church a few miles away - I can drive past it anytime I want.

When I go to shop, I decide whether to wish someone "Merry Christmas" or "Happy Holidays." If it's a religious store, or if I know the person is a Christian, (such as the printing shop with religious music coming over the radio and a cross on the wall), I wish him "Merry Christmas." If the owner is Jewish, or Muslim, or shows no sign one way or another, it seems that a "Happy Holiday" is just fine. My greeting simply shows my sensitivity to them and does not take away anything from my own celebration. If anything, it adds to me - since Christmas is supposed to be a loving and caring time of year.

I know that some people find Christmas a difficult time of year. For those who aren't religious, or not Christian, the bombardment of a particular point of view can be tiring, and jolting. For these same people, Christmas can be a time to be givers, to bring family together, to celebrate their own love for each other. For those of us who are Christian, it has another significance. But that significance is not diminished because everyone doesn't think the way we do. We can still go about our merry way, celebrating the many dimensions that are part of this season and worshipping as we so choose, without forcing anyone else to follow our same rituals.

Perhaps Bill, and Sean, and many of the people on Fox T-V, haven't figured out where to find Christmas yet. It's in our hearts. It's the compassion we show for each other. It's the love and peace and joy that we manifest. Perhaps when they stop being nasty to others, they'll find Christmas and realize there's no war going on - just their own!

Comments

[Crowhaul]

Actually, O'Reilly is right. There has been a war going on, but it's been instigated and perpetuated by the christians, who keep trying to tell us that our Solstice/Y­uletide/Sa­turnalia is about their baby jesus. It's not. It never has been.

Remember, they can't use our traditions, then turn around and say that they mean something else. Here's the bottom line: if you drag a pine tree into your house you are not celebrating the birth of a middle-east carpenter, you are celebrating the ancient northern european holiday called Yuletide. Enjoy it for what it is (it's much cleaner than all that baby jesus stuff too).

[DemandTruth]

That was so eloquent and lovely, thank you.

I feel that the only ones "waging" this "war on Christmas" ARE the ones like Bill O and Hannity et al. Frankly, THEY are the ones ruining my christmas! Why can't they just go on about their business and stop screeching at me? All this business about what to say when and to whom really brings me down.
As if when leaving a retail store you shouldn't just rejoice that anyone wished you a HAPPY anything and that you didn't have to stand in line behind an old lady trying to write a check and then another lady who pulled a tank top off the retail rack with no tag - that actually was just the inside part of another outfit so there's no way to ring it up, so let's all stand around for an hour waiting for the supervisor to show up to tell her she can't buy it anyway! And that was at 8:00 this morning! Why aren't you people in CHURCH!?!

[LeoMarvin]

"My Jewish friends who visited my home never once asked me to take down my crèche[...]."

Somebody had a little too much to drink, and forgot to check his BlackBerry. So, on behalf of your Jewish friends (who will be spoken to) and all the rest of us: TAKE DOWN THE CRECHE.

Sorry for the confusion, and happy holidays.

[lisakaz]

Lovely article. I'm sure the ministers of hate won't get it.

[NormDoering]

Linda Seger wrote:
"But, so far, there seem to be no signs here of a war on Christmas."

No signs? The candy-cane forest is in ruins, rotting elf corpses are scattered across the snow.

http://normdoering.blogspot.com/2007/12/who-exactly-is-fighting-war-against.html

[Konnie]

billo is aiming his ammunition in the wrong
direction. he should be targeting the manufacturers of those damm christmas lights in china. they alone are responsible for the grumpiness, frustration, and rage we experience
every year when we try to untangle the damm things to decorate our trees,and deck our halls. I have lites from the 50's that belonged
to my mother, good old made in japan lites, and
they don't tangle....­..........

[Wilburrr]

I'm still waiting for "shock and awe"

[RobertaInCT]

The only war on Christmas is in O'Reilly's head. Growing up there were two holiday expressions, "Merry Christmas" and "Seasons Greeting". Happy Holidays is another expression which is nothing more than another
way of saying Seasons Greeting...


Merry Christmas
Seasons Greetings
and
Happy Holidays

[grendl]

As soon as I affix the antlers to my dogs head, the war on Christmas will begin.

[realpolitic]

The above post is a nicely written memoir to the true spirit of Christmas. It is too bad O'Reilly must use Christmas the way he uses everything else- to divide people and fight his sacred culture wars.

[realpolitic]

The war on Christmas is going on as we speak in shopping malls and town halls all over the country. The anti-Christmas forces are defending their turf. O'Reilly has launched many successful counter-attacks with few casualties- only his sanity for one.

By the way, O'Reilly won the Cold War as well. It would be fun for O'Reilly to start doing his show in full military regalia.

[mommadona]

For an organized religious event that stole all the goodies from the pagans, Christmas ain't so bad.

I just wish you would acknowledge that the Christmas tree, greenery, pretty bright lights and such were taken right out of the Winter Solstice celebrations that were going on WAY before that child was supposedly virginally birthed in that manger.

(PS: that 'Easter' egg and bunny are ours too.)

Happy Solstice! (a day late...)

[THORGODOFTHUNDER]

Bring the FSM back in Chrifsmas http://www.venganza.org/ Ha, ha, ha...

Thanks for the great article, Linda. I concur.

[oldpotsmuggler]

If you take away all of the falsities and fantasies from wingnut radio the air waves would go mighty silent. There is no war against Christmas. There are no surrender monkeys. There is no driveby media that invests huge time and money in a concerted effort to destroy this country by dishonestly and shamelessly promoting liberalism. "They" have failed to report all of the good things about daily life in Iraq not as a conspircy but because if things had really been going that well all of this time no surge would have been required at all, and peace and prosperity would have broken spontaneously long before now. Single payer health care is not going to damn all of our immortal souls to hell. If the federal government ceased to exist, and we were all allowed to keep 100% or our paychecks the planet would not be magically transformed into a christian paradise. And, my personal favorite, if "free markets" always performed perfectly, benificently, and with greater wisdom than any concerted human effort will ever possibly be able to accomplish why is it that utility companies are not standing in line to give back their franchises? (We had to force the breakup of the phone company and I don't know anyone who would argue that we didn't trade one evil for another.)