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Author Topic:   War on Christmas
purpledawn
Member (Idle past 3458 days)
Posts: 4453
From: Indiana
Joined: 04-25-2004


Message 196 of 245 (595530)
12-09-2010 7:51 AM


Grinch Alert!
First Baptist Church of Dallas, TX, put up this web site, Grinch Alert! to help keep Christmas everywhere.
Have you encountered a Grinch this Christmas season? Share your experiences here at GrinchAlert.com! Here, you can nominate businesses and organizations that shut-out expressions of Christmas in their interactions with the public via marketing, advertising and public relations. When companies use misplaced political correctness to halt the celebration of Christmas, they belong on the Naughty List.
We also want to know which companies are celebrating Christmas with excitement and meaning—especially those who keep Christ in Christmas where He belongs! Those companies and organizations will be placed on our Nice List. Help us preserve Christ this Christmas.
Christmas has a secular side that business can exploit if they don't wish to promote religion.
If we look at the Naughty List, I see some rather unreasonable expectations from businesses.
Since we are not a theocracy, why expect any government entity to promote any one religious holiday?
Since we are a land of freedom, why expect a secular business to provide religious merchandise?
I understand why some Christians feel there is a "war against Christmas". They've been allowed to do as they please for so long, they don't like what they view as "being restricted".
Some say the government can promote all religions, but don't want to allow the choice of doing nothing.
If one wants merchandise with religious icons, go to a religious store or make them yourself. Why chastise a secular business that chooses to be neutral or secular?
The word holiday refers to more than just religious observances.
1: holy day
2: a day on which one is exempt from work; specifically : a day marked by a general suspension of work in commemoration of an event
3: chiefly British : vacation often used in the phrase on holiday often used in plural
4: a period of exemption or relief
There is more than one religious festival in December. So the greeting of Happy Holidays is appropriate for a secular Business. Some people consider the season to run from Thanksgiving to New Year's day. In that case there are three Federal holidays.
Businesses don't want Christmas to go away, typically it's the largest annual economic stimulus for many nations; but they're going to make it serve their purpose not that of the religion.
Christians just don't have control over the government or businesses like they thought they did. I think that's what bothers them.

Replies to this message:
 Message 197 by Coragyps, posted 12-09-2010 9:08 AM purpledawn has replied

  
purpledawn
Member (Idle past 3458 days)
Posts: 4453
From: Indiana
Joined: 04-25-2004


Message 198 of 245 (595545)
12-09-2010 10:08 AM
Reply to: Message 197 by Coragyps
12-09-2010 9:08 AM


Re: Grinch Alert!
The biggest concern seems to be replacing Merry Christmas with Happy Holidays. The Merry Christmas greeting didn't come about until about 1699.
The word merry itself arouses in us the feelings of joy and happiness associated with the festival of Christmas. Though the Christmas celebrations, as history tells us commenced from the 4th century AD, it was only in the year 1699, that the phrase Merry Christmas came to be used. An English admiral plays a significant role in the History of Merry Christmas, as it is he who used the term Merry Christmas for the first time in an informal letter in 1699.
Even before Christmas became a Federal holiday, Christmas in early America wasn't celebrated the same by all. Some frowned upon the merry making and partying. They didn't consider the celebration Biblical.
Carols weren't always a part of a Christian Church celebration.
The popularity of Christmas was spurred during the 1800s. In 1834 Prince Albert the husband of Queen Victoria introduced the custom of Christmas trees and carols from Germany. The Christian churches felt the importance of Christmas celebration from then. In the early days carols were barred from the premises of the church, as it was again referred to as non-Christian. Simple folks or nativity carols were performed outside the church. It was St. Francis who actually brought carols into the formal worship of the church.
Just as early Christians adjusted the Pagan festivals to their needs, Christians today need to adjust to the secular markets use of holidays.
Only the Christians pursued the Roman Pagan Festival or Saturnalia in order to avoid persecution by the Romans.
It doesn't change what they do in their church or home.

This message is a reply to:
 Message 197 by Coragyps, posted 12-09-2010 9:08 AM Coragyps has replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 200 by Coragyps, posted 12-09-2010 10:25 AM purpledawn has replied

  
purpledawn
Member (Idle past 3458 days)
Posts: 4453
From: Indiana
Joined: 04-25-2004


Message 202 of 245 (595731)
12-10-2010 6:25 AM
Reply to: Message 200 by Coragyps
12-09-2010 10:25 AM


Re: Grinch Alert!
It is interesting that the first Christmas Tree was considered blasphemous by some.
Christmas (Christ-Mass) as we know it today, most historians agree, began in Germany, though Catholics and Lutherans still disagree about which church celebrated it first. The earliest record of an evergreen being decorated in a Christian celebration was in 1521 in the Alsace region of Germany. A prominent Lutheran minister of the day cried blasphemy: Better that they should look to the true tree of life, Christ.
Now, for some, the lack of one or not calling it a Christmas tree is considered blasphemous.
How times change and that's in under 500 years.
ABE: I haven't noticed anyone refraining from saying Merry Christmas. I also haven't noticed anyone saying Happy Holidays. Most businesses around here just say the standard thank you and have a nice day.
Would they make the naughty list for doing business as usual?
Edited by purpledawn, : ABE

This message is a reply to:
 Message 200 by Coragyps, posted 12-09-2010 10:25 AM Coragyps has not replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 206 by Apothecus, posted 12-10-2010 2:42 PM purpledawn has not replied

  
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