Let's put 'Christ'-mas in its place
So instead of engaging in a battle to reclaim Christmas, I propose an alternative. Let’s take Christ out of Christmas.
I know what you’re thinking: What about “the reason for the season”? But that’s precisely my point. Do Christians really want to think of the son of God as the reason for reduced-price waffle-makers and winter wonderland scenes at the local mall? That sounds like Ricky Bobby’s baby Jesus from the movie Talladega Nights, not the babe whose arrival is heralded in the Gospel of Luke. The battle for the soul of Christmas ended a long time ago, and cultural forces won. That’s clear when Christmas trees fill homes and apartments in Japan, a country where 2% of the population is Christian.
I had heard long ago that the festivities currently called ‘Christmas’ was an originally pagan celebration that the Christians tried to hijack.
