I am a bit delayed in getting my holiday theme up. I had hoped to be able to do all the designing over the Thanksgiving weekend, but I wasn’t able to get it done. So please bear with me as you continue to see my Autumn decor. It’s that time of year again when people battle over the whole Christmas vs. Holiday issue again. Can I just say it’s getting quite exhausting? Lets just be practical about it shall we?

The world has various winter holidays and all kinds of religions celebrate their holidays in the same month, December. In a country like America, we are going to see a huge melting pot of these holidays around our towns and in advertisements as companies aim to get our money and compete with each other over the almighty dollar. Forget that the value of the dollar is decreasing, they still want it. So anyway, they don’t want to offend anyone and disrupt their paychecks. And who can blame them in this economy? We all would like to have the finances to have a nice holiday with our families. So they are trying to be polite to everyone of all beliefs by simply saying, Happy Holidays. It’s no big deal!

There are plenty of companies that sell nativity scenes, window clings with crosses on them, tree ornaments with baby Jesus on them, and so much more. They are not going to abolish Christ in Christmas. No matter how much some people do not choose Jesus as the reason for their season, the Christian tradition will go on so long as the families continue to hold fast to their heritage.

I’m not going to get into the nitty gritty about the history of Christmas, there are plenty of sites out there that you can read.

But lets just stop and think about the Spirit of Christmas for a moment. If there is any time at all for Christians to be peaceful and joyous, it should be Christmas. No one is going to tell you that you can’t celebrate Christ in Christmas. Your faith is YOURS and how you celebrate is your freedom. But lets also not forget that the U.S. Constitution protects all people to have freedom in whatever religion they choose…and Jesus never commanded that you harm people or their businesses for not celebrating this holiday the same way you do. In fact, Jesus never commanded that we celebrate his birth. The historical tradition of Jesus is to celebrate his resurrection.

I think it’s incredibly courteous for companies to offer a generic holiday greeting and decor for their stores in light of how many religions are having celebrations during this time. I would much rather see that, than for them to be judgmental in excluding others while only including one.

Even the apostle Paul said not to judge people for the way they observe their holy days and also not to judge people who don’t.

I happen to have relatives and loved ones of all sorts of religious backgrounds. I have this extreme honor of being able to commune with these loved ones even though we celebrate differently. I love that we are all unique this way. I have Christian friends who don’t celebrate Christmas at all, who believe the tree in the living room is an abomination and I’m ok with that. That is their own personal conviction. I will not force them to give up their free will just to make me more confortable. I also have Christians friends who might as well have Santa’s workshop in their homes, their homes look like National Lampoon’s Christmas, and wear bells on their tennies all month long. Who am I to rip their freedom out from under them and tell them to stop celebrating Christmas the way they choose to?

Then I have some lovely Pagan friends who don’t celebrate the traditional Christmas, but rather their winter solictice in much different ways. Their ancestors were forced by threat to give up their religion and heritage. They were forced to convert against their wishes, against their freedom, and against their free will. This should never have happened!

Jesus never said to threaten people with their lives if they don’t choose him. In fact, Jesus said to depart in peace and wipe the dust from your shoes if they don’t recieve you. So anyone who tries to force Pagans, Jews, or Africans to celebrate Christ in their December celebrations are in direct violation of what Jesus tells them to do.

In addition to this, Jesus was not so tolerant of religious people using manipulation to get people to do things for their own pesonal gain and I am pretty sure Jesus would not want people to be manipulated into celebrating his birth in December if they don’t want to. So when Christians further their propaganda to manipulate stores into adding Christ Christmas music to the speakers during shopping hours, or “Merry Christmas” in their slogans, then they are, again, in violation of what Jesus teaches us to do. Manipulation is sorcery and part of the dark arts. Christians are NOT to have anything to do with the dark arts. All things in Christ are to be done with the utmost integrity, honor, and love.

It’s fabulous that people want to celebrate their faith in their winter holidays and I think it’s high time that we just live peacefully among each other and stop trying to insist on our own way. Love does not insist on its own way. If you celebrate Christmas with Christ, then do so…but please do not launch a war against others who don’t. That  is not the spirit of Christ. And when Christians insist on doing so, we create such a monstrous mess that is not going to attract people to us or the Jesus we claim to follow.

If you’re a Christian and you see our brethren and sisters launching such wars, remind them of grace. Stand up for the freedom we all have and put your feet down with abusive religious zealots who continue to make it all that much harder for us to be a light of grace and mercy in the world. If you wish to correct anyone, correct them..those who are hurting folks at Christmas time. Please ask them to stop. It’s just not the way of Christ to be so mean to people.

If you work in an environment where the managment asks you not to say “Merry Christmas” to their customers, then respect them. Please do not go against Jesus when he spoke through the writer of Hebrews and said to obey them that have the rule over you. He never said that we are to go against our ‘masters’ just to say “Merry Christmas”. Do not attempt to say that using the term, “Merry Christmas” is evangelism and push your “right” to free speech and freedom of religion over the wishes of your employer. That is not the way of Christ.

If your child goes to a public school, please do not coerce your children into pressing the school officials by ‘exercising’ the use of “Merry Christmas” in the school. Don’t you remember that Peter said that people can be won without the word, by the manner in which we live? It’s ok if the schools don’t use the term, Christmas, in their decor or holiday celebrations.

Isn’t the whole point of celebrating Christmas, as Christians, to spread joy and glad tidings? Are we not to be peaceful among one another during this time of year (and all year long)? So let your light shine among mankind in the way you love your neighbor as yourself. Do unto others as you would like them to do unto you. If you want freedom to have a nativity in your front yard, then be peaceful about a pagan having a wreath on their front door. If you want freedom in your business to say Merry Christmas, then allow the other businesses to have freedom to say Happy Holidays. We will reap what we sow and if we sow threats of not shopping at some stores over something as trivial as this, then don’t be surprised when people boycott your business too. It’s sad that so many innocent children would suffer with no holiday ham or turkey because their parents businesses suffered financial loss due to some overzealous Christians who launched an outright war against them for saying Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas!

Have we, as Christians, become so petty and selfish? Are we reverting back to the old ways of manipluating people into a false conversion under cyber bullying to hurt their financial stability? Come on my dear brothers and sisters…that is not the way of Christ.

 And before I go for today, may I remind you that there are plenty of Christmas photos at Pix-O-Sphere  that you can use in your blogging this month? And if you have other holiday images to share from various December celebrations, please feel free to upload and share. It’s free to join.

Are you afraid you’ll have trouble with communicating about your faith or holiday celebrations with friends and family on facebook? Sadly this time of year continues to have hostile words over this controversial issue. But you can customize your Facebook settings to give yourself some more privacy without having to unfriend people.

Merry Christmas, Happy Holiday, Happy Hannakuh, Have a Great Kwanzaa, and a Blessed Yule!

Luke 2:10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

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