Just said Merry Christmas to someone...

[1320junkie]

lol@ all of the gangster well wishers....remember the reason for the season...if someone doesn't like you saying it to them..remember the reason for the season and find peace in the true reason. Alot of us fought for this country and what it stands for...so yeah we have Freedom of Speech...but people are not obligated to like what you say....Freedom of Religion...even though others may disagree with yours....angry because someone doesn't want to hear it....c'mon on now...really? Oh Yeah Merry Christmas...remember the reason for the season.

[GTAHVIT]

For some reason this thread doesn't really feel like the spirit of Christmas...



hmmm.

[ljustin293]

Merry Christmas for sure

[DkknightX]

Originally Posted by THUMPER20X

...and they got all bent lol. I sensed the offense and said "Dont like it? Tough!" I grew up with that and thats too bad. Canada and the US Christmas is the center of the holidays, always has and always will be. Be proud of it and take the season back.

That's what you get for saying "Merry Christmas" in front of a Synagogue...

Choose your locations more wisely and you'll get a better response.

[The_Blur]

Originally Posted by DkknightX

That's what you get for saying "Merry Christmas" in front of a Synagogue...

Choose your locations more wisely and you'll get a better response.

[Analogy]

I am an atheist and I wish people a Merry Christmas also. It is a holiday people need to learn tolerance

[The_Blur]

Originally Posted by Analogy

I am an atheist and I wish people a Merry Christmas also. It is a holiday people need to learn tolerance

That's the only point I've been trying to make. We have to tolerate that some people have experienced extreme hate from well-wishers to other people. I'm sure that I could show up at Fred Phelps' church and receive praises for showing up, but the same guy shows incredible hate to people different than him. Those of us wishing a merry Christmas to Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, and sometimes atheists forget that people have died for merely looking like one of them according to vague prejudiced definitions, much less believe in faiths that do not celebrate the birth of Christianity's most significant figure. Does that make sense? People are sensitive around this time of year because it reminds many of these people that society, over the ages, has caused them unimaginable harm.

All I'm saying is that those well-wishers who truly want to embody their religion should accept that not everyone agrees with their faith; that they believe in God, or don't, in a different way if at all. If they want to join your faith, assuming you* have one, you should have faith that God will send them in the right direction. You may not understand their story—their history may even be different from yours—so accept that this is bigger than someone being a dick to you for not wishing the same back. It could just be that you hit a soft spot by saying anything at all.

*you—obviously not the atheist I quoted since atheists by their very definition do not believe in God; in reference to those wishing a merry Christmas

[Sierra]

Originally Posted by MontyCarlo

You actually found someone who was offended by "merry Christmas"? I always thought that was more of a joke about how politically correct things have gotten.

If you celebrate Christmas, don't be shy about it! If you're Jewish, wish the goyim a happy Hanukkah! If you're a post-Celtic neo-pagan, wish me a prosperous winter solstice or whatever the heck it is you like to celebrate in the winter. Freedom of religion doesn't mean shamefully hiding your traditions.

Hell Freaking yeah!!!! Merry Christmas. I worked retail a long time ago and I hated not being aloud to say Merry Christmas only allowed to say Happy Holidays.. Never again.

[Captain Awesome]

Originally Posted by beekay70

How does the early form of "God be with you" relate to anything "Anti-Christmas"?

Because most of the people in the U.S. doing the protesting to remove "Christmas" from the schools and public buildings are Atheists.

Make sense?

[StealthMan]

I just heard on the news today that there is a group trying to change the name "Christmas Tree" to "Family Tree".....UNBELIEVABLE!!

oh..and Merry Christmas!!!

[Wm Holden]

Merry Christmas .....I hope you find a maggie under ALL of your trees....

[navmaxlp]

Originally Posted by The_Blur

Not everyone agrees with that either, but every American will admit that the holiday season includes everything from Halloween to New Years, even if they aren't Christian. For many of the minority religions, this time of year is a sensitive time, charged with hate crimes against their faiths. We should also take into consideration that Halloween, All Saints Day, Christmas, and New Years all originate in the Christian calendar. For instance, the Jewish calendar date today is 28 Kislev 5770 rather than 15 December 2009 and the Jewish new year, Rosh Hashanah, has already occurred. In fact, the only US holiday at this time of year not based on the Christian tradition is Thanksgiving. With that being said, it is understandable that people from other traditions would have certain sensitivities at this time of year.

Well, honestly the Christian tradition of Christmas was taken from the Pagan practices of Yule. When the Christian church was attempting to convert the Pagans, they felt that if they could adapt the current celebratory traditions, they would win over the potential converts more easily.

That being said, I think the problem here is that some people don't realize there is a difference between "freedom OF religion" and "freedom FROM religion". They believe there is no place for religion anywhere because not everyone agrees with it when, in reality, our founding fathers established the country to ensure just the opposite; a place where everyone could practice their religion openly and without fear of persecution. Unfortunately more and more of the founding fathers' intentions are falling by the wayside.

My .02

[GTAHVIT]

And on that note we're done.

Closed.