I celebrate it as a matter of tradition and because I like giving and receiving gifts. I also like stuffing myself into a stupor and then watching some mindless special on TV. I enjoy the company of most of my relatives as well. And if there is one period where that all happens, I’m there! 
i’m a heretic
i give presents and play Handel’s Messiah
on easter i play Jesus Christ Superstar
Dal TimgarHow can you say that Christmas was first a pagan religion???
It is celebrated because of Jesus’ birth, it doesn’t matter how it is celebarated.
Same with Easter, it is celebrated because of Jesus’ resurrection, but it is mixed with a fertility goddess.
The reason for the holiday matters, not the means of celebration.
“Christmas” was not once a pagan holiday. A festival of celebration occurring aroung the mid-to end of the month we now know as December was and still is a pagan holiday.
Look at it this way, when Christians were trying to convert individuals of pagan religions to Christianity, it was much easier to just change the name of massive celebration that had been going on for many years prior than it was to start from ground zero and “create” a whole new holiday right around the same time. It was much more efficient to say, “Hey, we’ll call this winter celebration ‘Christmas’ now, instead of Mithrasmas, okay?” than it was to convince people who already had set and sacred religious beliefs to just switch them over because these people had some new stories.
Where I come from, the season is called “jul” (Yule), and that name has been passed down from the pagan Vikings, nothing christian about that. Of course, there are Christmas masses, and I often go to one - I’m not really a believer (colour me “Confused Agnostic”), but I do like the ambience and the atmosphere is good for reflecting on one’s own values and beliefs. There’s a sense of tradition and continuity about sitting in a church built by my forefathers 8-900 years ago, and I like that.
I love having some days off to stuff myself with good food, meet my family & old friends, give a bunch of presents to the kids and drink some of the traditional Danish Yule Brew.
I long for it even more now when I’m living abroad, you bet.
I really can’t see what gift exchanges and Santa Claus have to do with the birth of Christ, anymore than a bunny rabbit with a basket of eggs have to do with the resurrection.
Maybe these days meant something a long time ago, but I don’t see it now. I’m an atheist. But if I saw people celebrating the spiritual aspects of these days, I would feel better about them. But the wrapping paper and chocolate make them seem like a sham.
All these days mean to me is 8 hours of easy overtime at work.
I guess it depends on what you mean by “celebrate.” There’s clearly a large spectrum of holiday behavior here.
One extreme is total denial, for example, a cousin of mine is married froth-at-the-mouth die-hard atheist. Evidently Christmas is strictly verboten in their house; he won’t allow my cousin to so much as reply to a Christmas card.
Now, I’m an agnostic/atheist myself, but I have to laugh at such a guy; he’s a more intolerant in his beliefs than most Christian fundies are. Yech.
I, on the other hand, indulge in the holiday parties, decorations, nummies, gifts and other largess involved with Christmas. I don’t feel hypocritical, why should I? It’s a secular holiday, it always was, really. Look at how many Christian factions banned it over the ages, for one thing, and also the fact that it’s a national holiday as well as a religious one. Almost every aspect of it is based on something pagan, as explained in other posts.
As for it being the celebratory birthday of Jesus, well I have no quibble with that either. I certainly don’t deny he existed, or that he was an amazing guy; only that I don’t believe he was the son of God. I’ll celebrate his “birthday”, sure.
I’m an atheist, but I “celebrate” the holiday w/my family. The part I hate is going out to buy a tree. I keep telling my wife to pick out one SHE likes. I’m just there to provide muscle to haul the thing home and set it up, but she insists on asking my opinion. It’s one of the VERY few times I want to lose with her.