Holiday celebrations for non-believers

Post by **_krose** » Sun Dec 23, 2007 11:55 pm

Here's a question for those here who are not Christians, or even theists.

Do you still observe Christmas, or do you make a point of celebrating in other ways? As for me and my house, we have been celebrating the Winter Solstice for several years now. As a result, our holiday is over already. We had a family turkey dinner and gift exchange on the evening of Dec 21, then toasted the return of light at the moment the earth reached its maximum tilt. It's an entirely religion-free event (neither Christian nor Pagan). We do talk about the original meanings of the holiday traditions before they were adopted by the Christians (the true "reason for the season").

The kids have never complained about getting their gifts a few days before their friends and cousins, and we still have a tree with white lights, but all the decorations are winter themes. No Santa or anything like that (although I do joke with my daughter about the "Solstice Gnome" bringing gifts -- she insists that it should be a fairy instead). And the 25th is just another day when the stores are all closed.

Incidentally, we do a similar thing with Easter -- as a celebration of Spring, with its fertility symbols of bunnies and eggs.

So, does anyone celebrate in a similar way? Perhaps you do Festivus (the holiday "for the rest of us"), with a Festivus Pole (Google that for some fun if you're not familiar with it)? Just curious.

Post by **_beastie** » Mon Dec 24, 2007 12:54 am

Oh, I love Xmas. For me, it's a secular holiday. When my kids were younger, I still read the Xmas story to them, but discussed it as a myth. My atheism doesn't detract from the holiday at all for me.

Post by **_BishopRic** » Mon Dec 24, 2007 1:46 am

beastie wrote:Oh, I love Xmas. For me, it's a secular holiday. When my kids were younger, I still read the Xmas story to them, but discussed it as a myth. My atheism doesn't detract from the holiday at all for me.

My approach is similar. The first few years after I left the LDS church, Christmas felt weird and confusing, because I had always attached Christmas to Jesus' birth. After quite a bit of reading, I was able to see the holiday as a borrowed Pagan holiday (it appears that most of Jesus' traits, teachings, and alleged events come from previous Godmen anyway), and simply a combination of many myths and traditions that include gift giving and family gatherings -- which I love!

I've come to approach all holidays as good excuses to get a few days off to party and have fun times with family and friends. Sad, but it seems we need excuses to do that sometimes!

Post by **_Gadianton** » Mon Dec 24, 2007 2:05 am

I just got our tree standing in some water and put the light decorations up outside. It will be just like it was when I was a member, except no nativity scene or rushed 5 minute scripture reading before tearing into the presents.

Post by **_krose** » Mon Dec 24, 2007 3:38 am

I've come to approach all holidays as good excuses to get a few days off to party and have fun times with family and friends.

I can't decide. Am I supposed to be depressed, hopeless and bitter because I have no deity, and therefore no purpose; or am I supposed to constantly "eat, drink and be merry?"

Post by **_krose** » Mon Dec 24, 2007 3:44 am

beastie wrote:Oh, I love Xmas. For me, it's a secular holiday. When my kids were younger, I still read the Xmas story to them, but discussed it as a myth. My atheism doesn't detract from the holiday at all for me.

We used to do the secular holiday thing, concentrating on the giving and togetherness, but I found that by switching to the solstice it's easier to give the holiday a real meaning, instead of feeling as if we were piggybacking on the religious holiday.

Post by **_dartagnan** » Mon Dec 24, 2007 4:29 am

On a similar note, I used to think that when TV shows removed the "Jesus" expressions, and the God word from the phrase "God dammit," that this was an attempt to appease theists who were offended when God was being used in cursing. But I think I now realize it has nothing to do with that at all. It is probably just an attempt by the secular progressives to remove God and Jesus whenever and however they can.

I was watching Rush Hour II tonight on cable and noticed that in one scene, which originally said, "His name is Lee God dammit," it had the God word bleeped out, but not dammit. It didn't sound quite as funny. Throughout the rest of the movie they left in phrases like "you're one crazy ass bitch," which I would think is more offensive to parents watching the flick with their kids.

Another classic was Clint Eastwood, playing a gunslinging preacher in Pale Rider. There is a scene where six men walk in on him as he is sitting in a café and they start shooting up the place. The sheriff across the street looks outside his window, assuming the men had done the job he paid them to do, and then suddenly out walks Clint, leaving six hired gun-hands, dead behind him. The next scene he says to himself, "Jeeeeeezus!"

On cable, that had to be removed entirely.

Stupid.

Post by **_krose** » Mon Dec 24, 2007 6:10 am

dartagnan wrote:On a similar note, I used to think that when TV shows removed the "Jesus" expressions, and the God word from the phrase "God dammit," that this was an attempt to appease theists who were offended when God was being used in cursing. But I think I now realize it has nothing to do with that at all. It is probably just an attempt by the secular progressives to remove God and Jesus whenever and however they can.

I think you should return to your first impression. I can understand that some might want to avoid seeing worship, but why would any secular humanist want to eliminate blasphemy? That doesn't make sense to me at all. The reason those words are removed over some others is that Christians consider it breaking one of the Ten Commandments (it's not), and therefore more offensive. You're never going to see any non-cursing mention of god bleeped.

Post by **_The Nehor** » Mon Dec 24, 2007 9:19 am

krose wrote:
I've come to approach all holidays as good excuses to get a few days off to party and have fun times with family and friends.

I can't decide. Am I supposed to be depressed, hopeless and bitter because I have no deity, and therefore no purpose; or am I supposed to constantly "eat, drink and be merry?"

A little from column A, a little from column B.

Post by **_Trevor** » Mon Dec 24, 2007 2:24 pm

dartagnan wrote: But I think I now realize it has nothing to do with that at all. It is probably just an attempt by the secular progressives to remove God and Jesus whenever and however they can.

That seems like a stretch to me. There are plenty of atheists out there who have no problem taking the name of God in vain. Very few are so committed that they would avoid it just to avoid mention of these things.