Happy Holidays

Here is what I do not understand. The people who have nothing better to do than complain that large corporations (who are in business to make money after all) have removed the religious element from Christmas.

How can anyone with a straight face couch this as a religious argument. It seems as the religious right thinks this is a great issue, and that consumers should boycott corporations who don’t have specific Christmas greetings in their catalogs. As a matter of fact I nearly drove off of the highway this morning as I was listening to a religion based talk show. I think it was a show from the Family Values group or some other organization, which prides it self in fighting for Christian based issues. What had me so steamed was the lack of logic behind this whole movement. Perhaps I do not understand their position.

Ok, lets start with what I understand is that these groups, lets call them the RRC (for religious right crusaders) have a concern that Christmas is being censored because many corporations choose to use the more inclusive Happy Holidays, and Holiday Greetings instead of Merry Christmas.

Putting aside that public corporations are in the business to make money for their shareholders. And that many of these RR crusaders are probably invested through their IRAs or 401(k) or pensions in the very corporations they are suggesting people don’t purchase from. Putting that all aside, why should something secular (a corporation) be held to uphold a religious standard. Unless it is a corporation that sells exclusively religious items, they are selling to anyone and everyone who has money and a desire to buy their products. So why should the bow to represent only one religions holidays? What about Jews, Muslims, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and others who do not celebrate Christmas. Should these corporations bow to only recognizing Christmas in December thus missing out on Chanukah, large food purchases for the feast after Ramadan (which can be in December), or any other holiday merriment that comes at the end of the year? As a Christian shareholder I say no!

Additionally, the same RRC who have recently adopted the fight against the censoring of Christmas, are the same ones who have long bemoaned the commercialization of the same holiday. So how is the reasonable corporation to respond?

A few years ago:

RRC: Christmas is too commercial.

Corporate Response: Fine let’s change it to Holidays, good for profit, good for not commercializing a religious holiday (leaving aside the fact that “true” biblical scholars are not sure that Jesus was born in December, thus many determine that it is celebrated in December near the Winder Solstice based in the large pagan holiday celebration- but I digress).


A few years later
RRC : you have gotten away from Christmas, you are censoring it by saying Happy Holidays.
Corporate Response: But you just told me it was too commercial!

The only point of levity from this morning’s broadcast came from one of the commentators, who proudly commented that she and her family “Only give gifts that celebrate the birth of the Christ child.” She then went on to say that she would not purchase any Christmas gifts from “Old Navy” because they say Happy Holidays, and not Merry Christmas. Now, I don’t shop in Old Navy, but I will hazard to guess that none of the products they sell have anything to do with, or reflect upon the birth, the life or the resurrection of the Christ. So why would she ever look at their catalog or go into the store?!?! Perhaps she was looking for painters pants, although Jesus was a carpenter not a painter, or perhaps she was looking for sandles? At any rate, her argument did not and does not work with me.

As a Christian I am often dismayed at peoples interpretation of what is Christian, what is religious and how one goes about spreading the word of the Gospel and honoring Jesus. The RRC’s are no where near reasonable about this, and most of their actions, from my world view are neither Christian or correct. But that is for another post.

Happy Holidays!