What impact, if any, do you feel when you hear the words "Christmas is a pagan holiday!" "Getting trees is a Pagan ritual that you stole from them" I've even heard someone say they want to vomit ....
Are you hurt? Do you say to yourself "Do they expect this to impact my faith?" Sometimes I think, so what? I don't celebrate my own kids birthday party on their exact day sometimes if it doesn't fall on a weekend and I steal ideas from their friends parties, that doesn't mean I'm not truly exploding with pride and love sharing that day with him. The trees, the ornaments the gifts are just extras that doesn't supply the meaning but a festiveness surrounding the meaning.
How do you respond, in your heart? and how would you reply to someone who said this?
If you're listening, DebraM and Suzanne, I would love to hear your responses.
2007-12-11 03:31:52 · 26 answers · asked by Hope 4 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
The Holy Spirit has dealt with me about how I celebrated Christmas--I have reassessed everything to see if I was doing it with the right spirit and for the right reasons or if it had in fact become a form of idolatry, maybe not so much because of any connection to paganism, but because of the commercialization and secularization of it all.
If it's about Santa and stockings and presents and trees and isn't bringing glory and honor to Jesus, or even if it is leaving Him in the manger as a tiny baby and not acknowledging Him as Savior and Lord and King, then it's not a celebration that God is pleased with.
I have really cut back on the frivolity and meaningless glitz and glitter--Jesus came to a lowly stable not a palace and He wants our sincere contrite hearts honoring and serving Him, not a bunch of meaningless hoop-la. He's looking at the inside, not the outside.
It's a lot like the story of the Grinch who stole Christmas---when you learn to sing and give glory to God without any tinsel and trappings and presents at all, then every day will be His birthday, and we will understand the glad tidings of "peace on earth, goodwill to men".
It's not about whether or not you have a Christmas tree or exchange gifts; it's about whether you acknowledge that Christ died on a rugged tree for our sins, and whether you have given Him your heart and life and exchanged it for His amazing grace and the promise of eternal life.
Celebrate the baby, the Virgin Birth and proclaim His coming in fulfillment of prophecy--though we don't know exactly what time of the year it happened, we do know the time and the place and most of all the reason!
2007-12-11 05:29:00 · answer #1 · answered by arklatexrat 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋
People can call it what they want to, but I call it beautiful.
I don't care if the trees are a pagan ritual, they do add something to the holiday. I'm not a pagan and I have never stole a Christmas tree from a pagan in my life, there's plenty out there, just look at the lots.
The trees and ornaments are just extras and festive, gifts are great because it teaches everyone especially kids the value of giving.
In my heart I love it and wouldn't change anything about it, especially what the true meaning of Christmas is for me, the birth of Jesus and the gift of salvation (best gift of all).
To someone who says that I would say "thank you for the information have a good day, and Merry Christmas to you and your family."
2007-12-11 03:45:54 · answer #2 · answered by cheap advice 3 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Intersting, I went to yahoo and searched the web asking if there were any Christian religions that do not celebrate Christmas and the only one that came up was Jehovah's Witnesses. Puritans who came to the US from England in the late 17th and 18th century did not celebrate Christmas and were persecuted for it, but it didn't take long for them to start practicing the Holiday as a religious organization. Some Individuals today do not celebrate some holidays, including Christmas for personal reasons or for the fact that they have done their own research and have stopped celebrating the holiday.
2016-05-23 01:37:25 · answer #3 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Life has been happening for a long time, I'm just along for the ride.
I am surrounded by age-old traditions, cultures, heritages, and lands. All of those have been stolen from somebody else at one time or another for my generation to enjoy and some future generation to steal yet again.
So my religion is spiced by the blings of older religions. I can't help that, any more than I can help that the country I am from is what's left of a different kind of people.
The human race is a barbaric one. The best I can do is appreciate what I have now and do my best not to hurt others.
2007-12-11 03:48:39 · answer #4 · answered by thezaylady 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Well, the Christmas holiday as we celebrate it today DOES have Pagan roots.
As you pointed out, the tree is a Pagan tradition.
The Christian roots are in celebrating the birth of Jesus (most commonly symbolized by adorning the tree with a star of David), setting up Nativity scenes, and in singing traditional Christian hymns proclaiming the birth of the Savior.
It doesn't offend me at all when people point out the truth of the matter, that Christmas does have some Pagan roots.
Some Christians don't set up trees at all. Personally, I think it's up to your own convictions.
I enjoy the festiveness surrounding the season. It helps me to stop and think more about the coming of the Lord. It doesn't impact my faith at all... and if the tree offends your Christian convictions, then don't set one up, simple as that. To each his own. :)
If someone pointed this out to me, I'd have to agree with them. When Rome converted from paganism to Christianity, they brought a lot of their Pagan traditions into Christianity.
Anymore, it's commercialism, not Paganism that drives the Christmas season.
2007-12-11 03:41:26 · answer #5 · answered by sublimekindalife 4 · 4⤊ 0⤋
Christmas is, for me, a symbollic celebration of Christ. The Solstice ties match up with so many holidays because this is the time of the year when the days are shortest, the darkness presses in as closely as it can, and just as the darkness reaches its most full into the world comes the light.
We give gifts, have a tree, drink egg nog, and all that stuff. But what this is really all about is giving love. That's what matters to me.
When someone attempts to tear that down for me, my only hope is that they will find the same underlying message in the solar cycle and in humanity that I get from my religion during this time. And I hope part of loving each other will be learning to do it together and for different reasons.
2007-12-11 03:39:21 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋
I am well aware of pagan origins, but that does not change my focus on Christ. I admit, the constant carping and accusations makes it harder to enjoy the season. As for non-Christians celebrating the holiday, I've nothing against that. I can't imagine Jesus begrudging people a time to be happy and kind to each other, whether they do it in His name or not. I don't want to decrease the joy in someone else's holiday as others have done to mine.
As for stealing it, if everyone had to give back everything in life that was originally somebody else's, it would be complete chaos and that's just not even practical. All we can do is try to be respectful to different beliefs now.
2007-12-11 03:48:08 · answer #7 · answered by ? 6 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Christmas was a pagan holiday. It wasn't called Christmas it was called Yule (sound familiar). This was a winter celebration by the Germanic pagans with the arrical of the winter solstice. With the spread of Christianity by the Roman's and the adoption of the Julian calander the Yule date was put on December 25th. It has NOTHING to do with Jesus's birthday and nowhere in the Bible does it say he was born on the 25th. Many of the symbols and motifs associated with the modern holiday of Christmas are derived from traditional pagan northern European Yule celebrations. The burning of the Yule log, the decorating of Christmas trees, the eating of ham, the hanging of boughs, holly, mistletoe, etc. are all historically practices associated with Yule. When the Christianization of the Germanic peoples began, missionaries found it convenient to provide a Christian reinterpretation of popular pagan holidays such as Yule and allow the celebrations themselves to go on largely unchanged, versus trying to confront and suppress them.
Now Christmas is all about spending money and spending time with family which is what its all about.
2007-12-11 03:42:39 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
What happened to freedom of speach and religion? Why are they making such a big deal of killing christmas?! Because the christians celebrate it? Im not christian and I still celebrate it and why cant all of us just deal with it? All of us should have the rights to celebrate whatever holiday we want and nobody should get involved with it and tell us whats good or bad about it!
Even if the christmas tree is "pagan" it dont matter, none of us look at it that way, it is a tradition now for presents to be under our tree and brings joy to our familys!
2007-12-11 03:38:23 · answer #9 · answered by Sapphire 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Meh, I don't really care. It was originally a pagan holiday and it is infused with pagan traditions. I'm willing to share. I can enjoy a religious holiday while others celebrate it differently.
Personally, what I have chosen to do with my family, is have Christmas Eve be the day we celebrate Christ's birth. It is our spiritual day. Christmas day is purely secular. It's the best of both worlds and my kids understand that it's two separate things going on.
2007-12-11 03:36:07 · answer #10 · answered by gumby 7 · 2⤊ 1⤋