Why do non-christians celebrate christmas?

[gtrsgrls]

I was just a little curious since Christmas is celebrating when Jesus was born.

 

[Solon]

Not so, it's only a notional birthday of Jesus. It was expedient for the Roman Church to appropriate an existing Festival. Many cultures have festivals at this time of year, to mark the Solstice and provide cheer at the darkest time of the Solar year.

Christianity is the interloper at Christmas

 

[CaptainXeroid]

Not so, it's only a notional birthday of Jesus....

Regardless of its origins, Christmas is the celebration of Jesus' birth, so the question in the first post is a valid one. To expand it further, do you think non-Christians celebrating the spirit of Jesus' teachings without acknowledging him as Messiah or are they just there for the party favors?

 

[Sunstone]

A holiday is a holiday is a holiday. Anytime someone is serving good food, I'm there, regardless of religious affiliation. I'm an "equal opportunity" feast hound.

 

[michel]

A holiday is a holiday is a holiday. Anytime someone is serving good food, I'm there, regardless of religious affiliation. I'm an "equal opportunity" feast hound.

Good for you; I was waiting for someone to say that. BTW, are there any good "Huh ?" holidays ?.............

 

[Sunstone]

BTW, are there any good "Huh ?" holidays ?.............

Any holiday where I'm invited to dine to my heart's content is a good "huh?" holiday. Perhaps the closest I get to having a genuinely profound religious experience is when the main course is served.

 

[michel]

oh, I am disappointed, I thought you'd come up with something more "Phil osophical" ?

 

[Scuba Pete]

You know,

Santa Claus is NOT a Christian icon, and he seems to get FAR MORE PRESS than Jesus during this time of year. So why do non-Christians celebrate Christmas??? BECAUSE IT'S STINKING FUN! Bwaahahahaha

 

[Evenstar]

I often have a HUH? holiday.

Its when someone posts well above my head, and my reply is HUH? WHAT THE HECK!​

Then its time for a holiday. So i have a Huh holiday almost daily

 

[michel]

I often have a HUH? holiday.

Its when someone posts well above my head, and my reply is HUH? WHAT THE HECK!​

Then its time for a holiday. So i have a Huh holiday almost daily

Good for you, Nothing wrong with a bit of fun.

 

[Green Gaia]

Why do UUs celebrate Christmas?

Christmas is a part of the Judeo-Christian heritage of Unitarianism, Universalism, and Unitarian Universalism. Christmas is a part of our family and/or ethnic traditions. Particular Christmas celebrations, such as St. Lucia's Day, or Posados, may be especially meaningful to some of us. Christmas is one of the many winter holidays we acknowledge, if not celebrate, along with Hanukkah and the Winter Solstice. They mark the longest night of the year and the promise of renewed life brought by the returning light. Christmas lets us tell UU stories like those of Clara Barton, a Universalist born on Christmas Day, whose belief in the value of each human life led to the founding of the American Red Cross, and of Edmund Hamilton Sears, a Unitarian minister inspired to write, "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear" by the pain of the internecine strife of the Civil War. Christmas reminds us of the power in the life of one person, like Jesus, to renew the dream of peace among humankind. Christmas calls us to experience the joys of sharing, giving, receiving, and expressing love and friendship. Christmas is the story of the birth of a miraculous baby and reminds us, as Sophia Lyon Fahs tells us, "Each night a child is born is a holy night." [Ann Jacobson, 1996]

The question Why do UUs celebrate Christmas? is the title of my church's Christmas pageant this year and was written by our RE director. I was going to post something on this in the coming weeks in the UU forum, but here will do. Christmas is about generosity, giving and love, and so is Unitarian Universalism. That is why we celebrate Christmas and Christmas is a very UU holiday.

 

[Dark_Waltz]

I was just a little curious since Christmas is celebrating when Jesus was born.

Because it was yule first

 

[Engyo]

Being from a long line of simian atheists... ...my mom explained to me when I was a very young child that we were not a Christian family because we do not believe in that "sort of thing". She said that to "people like us" Christmas is a time for giving, for getting together with good friends and family and to just be thankful we were happy and alive.

It works for me.

I have to second YmirGF here; besides, "Peace on Earth, Good Will towards Men" is a very Buddhist sentiment as well!

 

[Feathers in Hair]

There's many parts about it that have no specific religious connatation. (sp?) As Engyo noted, "Peace on Earth, Good Will towards Men" is a statement that most faiths agree with. I would go on to note that Christmas did not start out as a Christian holiday, but I think that many paths, at this time of year, celebrate their love of others, regardless of their faith (hopefully), is much more important.

 

[almifkhar]

its that dog gone commerislim. they say buy buy buy and people fall in line and do it because that is what everyone else is doing.

 

[Ormiston]

its that dog gone commerislim. they say buy buy buy and people fall in line and do it because that is what everyone else is doing.

This is half of the truth in my mind. The other half is tradition. Regardless of your religion, you're still likely to celebrate the same as your parents did when you were growing up. I mean, what kid is going to shy away from presents based on principle? :biglaugh:

 

[almifkhar]

i agree orm. i was being sarcastic with a twist of truth.

 

[NoName]

It's part of my American heritage. Christmas is seen by a lot of Christians as a pagan/money holiday, so they don't celebrate it. Christmas is seen by a lot of other Christians as a holiday that's just there to celebrate the birth of Christ. My, my, don't we all have a little too much time on our hands, if we could all be at each others' throats for the same holiday, and opposite reasons.

 

[Master Vigil]

Since I find Modern Day Christmas to be less Christian than I am, I see no reason not to celebrate a little, and allow my natural taoist self to spread love, joy, and happiness.

 

[Buttons*]

I'm so glad that more people know that Christmas was not originally about the Birth of Jesus. *sigh of relief*
I mean... the people I go to school with... put up a sign infront of the building saying, "HAPPY BIRTHDAY JESUS" .... but he wasn't born during that time anyway... *sigh*

What's even more remarkable to me at this time of year is realizing that we worship a man who lived 2k yrs. before us, and in a completely different country, and we know about him because of a King who used it to gain power, and used pagan holidays as a form of conversion....

I'm off topic and rambling again... GAH!

umm... oh yeah, we celebrate Christmas out of habit, but the sentiment is nice i suppose, people tend to be more giving and we get along for a little while...