As a non believer, I’ve spent my life pretty much tolerating - sometimes even taking part in- Christmas celebrations. I was raised Jewish but that’s never influenced my outlook or participation. I’ve felt that it’s mostly secular at this point and have never been particularly offended by its ubiquity. Heck, I like a lot of Christmas music and lights everywhere are always a good thing, imho. However, now that the country is seemingly about to be overtaken by Christian Nationalists, I’m not feeling so tolerant.
How, if at all, do you think things will change socially or even policywise? Will you be attending Christmas get togethers? If declining an invitation based on your principles, how will you phrase it?
My (also technically Jewish) brother always celebrates on account of his (nominally) Christian wife. They’re not religious but they always have a Christmas dinner. How the heck do I get out of that this year? It’s not like I can make an excuse; we live two miles apart and he knows I don’t really know anyone else near us. Am I making too much out of it? Nothing has changed (yet) but I really don’t feel like participating in anything Christian related, Except our SD secret santa exchange. Don’t ask me why that’s different; it just is and I’m looking forward to it
As an atheist married to a person who is at least strongly atheistic, we’re going to happily celebrate it with both our atheist and Christian family on various days, as usual. No one has expected me to participate in any religious performances in decades, and they’d have to be out of their minds to expect me to start now. So, considering that, what’s not to like about giving a bunch of presents and eating a bunch of overly rich food? As long as my brother in law doesn’t try to get me to eat a bunch of sweets that I don’t care for, I’ll be fine. I’ll just eat all of the sausages, cheese and crackers I can lay may hands on.
Heheh, my company basically forces us to take seven days of vacation for Xmas and New Years. Since we seem to be a bunch of workaholics who never really take vacation, they’re basically doing us a favor.
I haven’t meaningfully celebrated Christmas in almost a decade. It was always about having a family get-together and gift giving for me, and what with my family being either very far away, out of touch or dead there just hasn’t been anyone to celebrate it with.
As it’s summer here, and I live alone in a different country to my family, and generally don’t pay much attention to Christmas anyway, it will be the same as usual. I will buy myself some dumb expensive thing, and eat some marginally different food to usual, and then watch a lot of crappy TV.
I am a Christian but outside of Church I do not see Christmas as a Christian celebration. At best it is a multiday national holiday to allow families to spend time together at worst it is a celebration of materialism, greed, gluttany and excess alcohol.
I am in the UK so the US might be different but I am far more likely to hear Wham’s “Last Christmas” or “I wish it could be Christmas every day” by Wizzard playing when I go shopping that a Carol.
I am also not convinced the US is about ot be taken over by “Christian Nationalists”. While there are some Republican values such as the sanctity of life in the unborn child that I agree and Trump has promised to maintain, there are many others that the incoming regime have promised to obliterate. The second great commandment is “Love thy neighbour as thyself” and the parable of the good samaritan makes it clear that “neighbour” does not just mean those of my ethnic origin or those that I am close to. Tht is totally at odds with so many of Trumps policies from Healthcare to immigration to gun control.
I was raised Jewish, my wife was raised Catholic, but neither of us are very religious. She loves to set up for Christmas, tree and stockings and Santas all over the house. I help her set up but it’s not for me. I participate, but just to make her happy. If I wasn’t married to her, I would do nothing to mark the holiday. I light my menorah each night of Hanukkah.
The current political climate, while alarming, hasn’t changed my celebration habits at all.
As was mentioned, Christmas is a purely secular holiday, at least here in the US. I don’t know any Christians, not one, who goes to church on Christmas, which seems odd to me. They celebrate the birth of their savior by staying home, eating a lot of food, and giving and receiving lots of expensive presents from their friends and relatives. I’m single, and a born-again non-believer, however my daughter is Christian, so I give her and my grandson presents, but that’s it.
I don’t really expect much to change in the near term except there will be more pressure to support and accept anything Christian, especially in public schools, at least in red states. It will be much more in your face than it’s ever been, but I’m hoping I can still ignore it for the most part. I do feel sorry for all the religious non-Christians out there. They obviously picked the wrong religion for this country. When they start forcing people like me to go to Christian re-education camps that’s when I’ll know it’s time look for greener pastures.
We’ll do the usual: put up our (now fake) tree, make cookies, etc. Neither of us gives a toss about the religious aspect, but my wife goes through the motions of celebrating both Chanukah and Christmas. She’s not Jewish, but she thinks she might be because of a DNA test that came up less than 1% Jewish. I like all the color in the neighborhood from the lights. Haven’t decided on Christmas dinner. We will likely be alone, but in the past I’ve made a seafood paella.
Decorating a tree, scarfing down holiday treats*, exchanging gifts and painting our naked bodies blue then racing around the neighborhood are Xmas traditions we’re not about to give up, no matter what culture warriors happen to be in temporary ascendancy.
Try to take our joy away? Yule be sorry.
*A recent addition to the lineup.
**Mrs. J. has a wonderful black and white photo of her Norwegian ancestors in a long canoe on what appears to be a fjord, stiffly facing the camera with suitably grim Scandinavian expressions.
I like all the color in the neighborhood from the lights. Haven’t decided on Christmas dinner. We will likely be alone, but in the past I’ve made a seafood paella.