# Why is Xmas still a big deal? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [January 23, 2011, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-xmas-still-a-big-deal/568684 "2011-01-23T19:40:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2011, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-xmas-still-a-big-deal/568684/41 "2011-01-24T16:34:22Z")
So, what do you want to _do_ about it? Ban the holiday? Plenty of Christians are glad to celebrate the birth of Jesus on December 25, even though they know that isn’t the exact day. (I get the idea that good Christians celebrate Him every day.) And lots of Christians do “give” during the season, though they celebrate, too. Even some of us between religions find it a good time to toss a few dollars where they might do some good. Do the pagan roots actually offend you? How sad. ---
**Author:** ![AshenLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/94ad74/32.png) [@AshenLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AshenLady)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2011, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-xmas-still-a-big-deal/568684/42 "2011-01-24T16:38:56Z")
Pagans are fine with me. Pagans are fine with themselves, too. Pagans came before all of us Neanderthals, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2011, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-xmas-still-a-big-deal/568684/43 "2011-01-24T16:42:45Z")
> [@AshenLady](#): > > Well, it’s really the Feast of the Saturnalia…and all the partying that goes with a Roman Baccanalian Feast. It sure doesn’t have a genuine feel of giving to the poor, or doing “Christian” types of activities of which a majority has to do with giving to those less fortunate. > > Sure, some folks give to charities, but that isn’t the crux of the holiday; it’s the merry-making, over eating and drinking and spending money, and let us not forget the pagan Xmas tree. I sort of expected this, but I’ll try again. First of all, Christmas trees aren’t “pagan.” They may have pagan origins, but 99,999 out of every 100,000 Christmas trees aren’t put up to celebrate pagan gods, just as you aren’t celebrating Norse gods every time you say “Wednesday” or celebrating the victory of Japan over the Mongols if you use the word “Kamikaze” as a metaphor. It’s an interesting history lesson that Christmas trees have pagan origins but nobody gives a crap about pagan beliefs anymore. The Christmas tree is a purely secular, Christmas-themed decoration now. Same think with your claim that it’s “Really the feast of the Saturnalia.” For one thing, the date was NOT picked to coincide with a Roman celebration, it was picked because December 25 was, at the time anyway, the winter solstice. The connection to Roman feasts wasn’t even suggested for centuries afterwards. Most ancient belief systems attached meaning to astronomical milestones like the solstices and equinoxes; the fact that the early Christians did too is not a matter of copying Roman beliefs so much as it is that all religions did it. But even if you’re convinced they were trying to trump some minor Roman feast, the fact is that nobody celebrates the Feast of the Saturnalia anymore, whatever the hell that was. They’re celebrating Christmas, which is either a Christian celebration (if you’re into that sort of thing), a secular holiday (if you’re not) or a mix of both. We’ve moved on from Roman crap. Christmas ended up settling on various dates in December and January because that’s a time of year people can use a cheery party in the Northern Hemisphere. The connection to Roman holidays is, again, a neat history lesson, but that is all it is. It is not relevant to WHY people celebrate Christmas now. Ask 100 people who celebrate Christmas if it’s important to their pagan beliefs and in all likelihood every one of them will think you’re nuts. So it’s not a pagan holiday. Your question’s been answered, I think. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2011, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-xmas-still-a-big-deal/568684/44 "2011-01-24T16:49:44Z")
> [@AshenLady](#): > > Well, it’s really the Feast of the Saturnalia…and all the partying that goes with a Roman Baccanalian Feast. It sure doesn’t have a genuine feel of giving to the poor, or doing “Christian” types of activities of which a majority has to do with giving to those less fortunate. > > Sure, some folks give to charities, but that isn’t the crux of the holiday; it’s the merry-making, over eating and drinking and spending money, and let us not forget the pagan Xmas tree. And for this exact reason the Puritans banned the celebration of Christmas. They thought it was unseemly. And so what? Is the point that Americans are super-religious Puritans and so therefore shouldn’t be celebrating Christmas? Or is the point that Americans aren’t super-religious anymore and therefore should be celebrating Saturnalia rather than Christmas? Or that some should do one, and others should do the other? But that’s not how people operate. It’s perfectly possible for nonreligious people to celebrate “Christmas” without Christ. What do decorated trees, turkey, chestnuts, snowmen, eggnog, caroling, mistletoe, fat men in red suits who give presents, and so on have to do with Jesus? Absolutely nothing. And so what? And the Christians can celebrate Jesus IN ADDITION to all the non-Christian winter holiday stuff. They don’t have to choose between either ignoring Jesus and just getting drunk, or ignoring the celebration and just going to church. Why can’t they do both? The fact that one has no logical connection to the other is irrelevant. ---
**Author:** ![Motorgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e36b37/32.png) [@Motorgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Motorgirl)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2011, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-xmas-still-a-big-deal/568684/45 "2011-01-24T18:58:24Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > It’s only a holiday in Suffolk County, not the whole state. It is also observed in Cambridge and Somerville, but that’s it. Damn Middlesexers horning in on the Suffolk holiday! ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2011, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-xmas-still-a-big-deal/568684/46 "2011-01-24T19:09:55Z")
Evacuation Day! Celebrating bowel evacuations since 1906. ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2011, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-xmas-still-a-big-deal/568684/47 "2011-01-24T19:45:47Z")
I celebrate the birth of our lord and savior with my aluminum tree and color wheel. ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2011, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-xmas-still-a-big-deal/568684/48 "2011-01-24T20:16:28Z")
> [@AshenLady](#): > > let us not forget the pagan Xmas tree. The Xmas tree isn’t pagan anymore. We had an intervention with it and convinced it to get baptized. It now goes to church every Sunday and teaches Bible Study on Wednesday nights. ---
**Author:** ![raindog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@raindog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raindog)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2011, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-xmas-still-a-big-deal/568684/49 "2011-01-24T21:31:21Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Does your copy of the Bible not include the gospels of Matthew or Luke? Huh? ---
**Author:** ![raindog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@raindog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raindog)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2011, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-xmas-still-a-big-deal/568684/50 "2011-01-24T21:33:28Z")
> [@AshenLady](#): > > There is no birthday party in any part of the bible. Uh, that’s not true. ---
**Author:** ![Hamlet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hamlet/32/2818_2.png) [@Hamlet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamlet)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2011, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-xmas-still-a-big-deal/568684/51 "2011-01-24T21:48:04Z")
> [@AshenLady](#): > > There is no birthday party in any part of the bible. Paul’s Epistle to Chuck E Cheese. ---
**Author:** ![Nadir](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nadir/32/7302_2.png) [@Nadir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nadir)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2011, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-xmas-still-a-big-deal/568684/52 "2011-01-24T21:52:32Z")
> [@AshenLady](#): > > Why is Xmas still a big deal? I think it is a threefold phenomenon: 1. About half the U.S. population still claims some sort of Christian identity, whether or not they’ve been to church in the past 20 years. How it got to be a Christian holiday doesn’t matter - it just is, that’s the way they like it and that’s that. They are going to keep doing it whether anyone likes it or not and nobody’s going to stop them no matter how many nativity scenes get banned. 2. There’s alot of money (profit) to be made. 3. Xmas decorations are being stocked even before Thanksgiving in most stores nowadays. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2011, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-xmas-still-a-big-deal/568684/53 "2011-01-24T22:40:30Z")
Quoth **sh1bu1** : > [@](#): > > The Majii did not come shortly after Jesus’ birth, they came much later, perhaps when he was 2 years old. The magi (interesting misspelling, by the way) came because of Jesus’ birth. Yeah, they were probably delayed a while, possibly years, but the gifts were still given for the occasion of his birth. What, you’ve never been late giving a birthday present? **raindog** , the gospels of Matthew and Luke are the two that include accounts of the birth of Jesus. The point being, it’s an event that’s described in the Bible, and there’s no illogic at all in having a holiday to commemorate that event. ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2011, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-xmas-still-a-big-deal/568684/54 "2011-01-24T22:48:36Z")
Because if we don’t find a reason to sell this plastic junk the economy will collapse. ---
**Author:** ![fumster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e9c0ed/32.png) [@fumster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fumster)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-xmas-still-a-big-deal/568684/55 "2011-01-25T00:22:48Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Quoth **sh1bu1** :The magi (interesting misspelling, by the way) came because of Jesus’ birth. Yeah, they were probably delayed a while, possibly years, but the gifts were still given for the occasion of his birth. What, you’ve never been late giving a birthday present? Post hoc, ergo hoc. And no, I’ve never received a birthday present two years late at a party on the wrong day. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-xmas-still-a-big-deal/568684/56 "2011-01-25T02:32:10Z")
> [@sh1bu1](#): > > Post hoc, ergo hoc. And no, I’ve never received a birthday present two years late at a party on the wrong day. Since we have a birthday each year, wouldn’t the problem simply be having the gift given on the wrong day? It’s not as though we only give people gifts the year they were born. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-xmas-still-a-big-deal/568684.md?page=2)