Liberty Bell

The first known mention of December 25th as the birthday of Jesus didn’t occur until A.D. 336 in an early Roman calendar. Twisted from “birth of the sun,” to “birth of the son,” the holiday became a celebration for God sending his son to earth. For others, it was merely a holiday, and who cared as long as it benefited them? And it did, because the celebration aspects from the Roman holidays became incorporated in the celebration of Christmas.

By 1100, Christmas was the most important religious festival in Europe. Saint Nicholas had also become a symbol of gift giving in many European countries. During the 1400’s and 1500’s, many artists painted scenes of the Nativity, the birth of Jesus. The word “Christmas” came from a that time, meaning “Mass of Christ.” Cristes Maesse.

The popularity of Christmas grew until the Reformation, in the 1500’s. This movement gave birth to Protestantism. During the Reformation, many Christians began to consider Christmas a pagan celebration because it included nonreligious customs. During the 1600’s, because of these feelings, Christmas was outlawed in England and in parts of the English colonies in America. The old customs of feasting and decorating, however, soon reappeared and blended with the more Christian aspects of the celebration.

Christmas is no deader than I am right now. (A fact which could be debated as to how dead or how alive that actually is…) And now that Christmas has grown again – the most celebrated holiday in the world – new discussion has come up. People have decided that Christmas is too Christian and needs to be replaced. Not gotten rid of, replaced. Instead of hymns, the world now sings of reindeer with red noses, receiving gifts, Mommy getting kissed by Santa, with few relating to the joy of giving, to the “peace on earth.” Few traditional carols are left in their original form for people to appreciate the words as well as the music.

Replacing the songs, replacing the joy and peace… People have worked for years to chisel out all the religious aspects of Christmas. And now the debate is getting stronger. They want to replace Christmas with a secular “Happy Holiday”. For the very politically correct term, we don’t even get a “Happy Holiday.” Too many people could get offended. So in four days, we will be celebrating an Eurocentrically imposed, midwinter festival. But to general eyes, the holiday is still Christmas… or wait, that’s the Happy Holiday… They still want the holiday. But they want it their way.

Merry Christmas is considered too religious. It could offend someone. The land which was raised by men of God, who put “In God We Trust” on our coins – the new generation decided that it was too religious. So the debate arose. Is it is right to greet people with Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays?

Although most Americans agree that it doesn’t matter or at least it isn’t as big as a deal as politicans make it, Christians have problems choosing and defending their view. If they agree with Happy Holidays, they will loose what they believe is the true meaning of Christmas. But by fighting, for something they believe is right, they loose more of the peace. And produce more fodder for attacks against Christianity.