Forum Discussion: Atheists & Christmas Commercialism
Wednesday November 26, 2008
Atheists approach religious holidays in a variety of ways. Many atheists ignore religious holidays because they wish to divest themselves of all the trappings of religion. Others rejects the holidays of some religions (Christianity and Christmas) in favor of the holidays of other religions (Nature religions and Winter Solstice). Still others go along with traditional religious holidays but observe them in a secular manner — which is not unusual because so many religious holidays have become highly secularized today.
Holidays these days are pretty commercial but I wonder if any Atheists don't celebrate them due to their theistic origins and religious undertones.
How do you, personally, approach religious holidays and Christmas in particular? Do you ignore them because of their religious background and despite how commercial or secular they have become, or have you adopted a different strategy? Add your thoughts to the comments here or join the ongoing discussion in the forum.
Comments
Holidays. I can take them or leave them.
Usually, I celebrate them because taking a stand against them would upset others in my life who see it as a time to get together with friends or family. Since holidays don’t seem to be particularly religious anymore (especially within my circle of family and friends), and I agree with the excuse to spend time together so I don’t particularly mind “celebrating” them.
The commercialism of Xmas especially though, is another story. It makes me particularly nauseous in the face of most of the world’s populations who are having far from lavish celebrations.
A holiday is just a day off from work.
I was raised Catholic, and I’ve always done Christmas with the family. A friend of mine started throwing Solstice parties many years ago. That has almost become the focus of my holiday season. I like the naturalistic angle. I like to go out in the woods on the Solstice and admire the beauty of nature. I’d like to learn more about the pre-Christian “Yule” and other pagan holidays. I might like to adopt the one the requires me to believe the least absurd things.
i celebrate X-mas, or as i call it, gift giving day. Since it isn’t a Xian holiday anyway (it’s pagan), i don’t mind. i have no problem with turning my time into money and into gifts for the people i love. Halloween, i love. Easter(Austara) isn’t fun for adults, so it passes without notice.
Our heart just wasn’t in it this year. So, we’ve sent money to a soup kitchen and a free clinic. It isn’t a matter of seeking virtue points. It is just the endless accumulation is tiresome.
I have ignored religion-based holidays since the 1960s, especially the maudlin commercialism of xmas, even to the point of working those days. I’ve experienced difficulty as a nonconformist, especially in raising my children as atheists (they now thank me), and attracted very negative responses from believers (fired, scorned, et cetera). My amazement at the naive credulity of conformist society has grown over the years, especially since 911 has shown religion to be not merely an innocuous indulgence of fantasy but a very harmful element of society that should be ridiculed out of existence.