No "Merry Christmas"

[vrjenny]

Well everyone...it has been quite a while since i've been on...but i thought i would stop by and give you a tid bit of info... here is a link about the boycotting of Target and others who refuse to say "Merry Christmas" so they wont upset anyone...guess what.... they did..ME! how about you... if so.. read this..

http://www.afa.net/targetboycott.asp

If it upsets you... send this link to as many as possible..

In Christ, Jenny.

[InternalFlame]

it is vert disturbing, the trend of "tolerance" and deleteing God from our daily lives...

[IreneM]

If you take Jesus out of the holiday Stop the holiday

that is what christmas is

retailers don't want that they just want people to spend their money

forget Jesus then forget the Holiday made it like any other day

if it offends some one tough twinky

the nation was founded on christian principals so get over it or get out go back where you came from

the offened offend me but I don't have the right to say so I am accused of a hate crime

this country to going to hell and going fast

In Christ

IreneM

[book_wirm]

I am going to submit a dissenting view on this thread. I want to make it plain, up front, that I do so peacfully and without desire to argue. But are we looking at this the wrong way? I think we are.

it is very disturbing, the trend of "tolerance"...

Agreed. "Tolerance" these days is sold as "acceptance" by another name. For the Christian "acceptance" is not a thing we are able to afford, though. We must remian true to the teaching that Christ, and Christ alone, is true.

But I fail to see how true tolerance offends our beliefs. Tolerance is putting up with something, whether you like it or not. We tolerate a headache...a long day at work...tax season.

But to tolerate another faith and their practices neither validates them nor invalidates our faith and practices.

...and deleteing God from our daily lives...

Another's practice of wishing you a "Happy Holidays" instead of a "Merry Christmas" hardly deletes God from our daily lives. It certainly doesn't remove Him from mine...and I reckon from yours either.

If you take Jesus out of the holiday Stop the holiday

Agreed. But I think the point is that whole time is a season for several holidays...not just Christmas. It is, then, impossible to remove Jesus from Hannakuh, or from Kwanzaa. He was never there. The problem, then, is making a good case for why the Jesus of Christmas should be recognized exlusively by those who do not share in our faith.

retailers don't want that they just want people to spend their money

And isn't that the point? Retailers are not in business to offend or promote your faith. They are in business to sell things to whoever will buy them.

the nation was founded on christian principals so get over it or get out go back where you came from

We tote that more than is acceptable. Frankly, few of us would worship with many of the founding fathers. That is, those founding fathers who did worship.

I'm not saying we should adopt this world's view of Christmas (remove Christ, insert Santa and make the focus presents) but simply because they do so does not prevent us from practicing as we see fit.

In Christ,

Eric

[Catsmeow]

It's called, "conditioning". It's a PROCESS. It's a slow, steady process to condition people to become passively accepting of the godliness our nation has progressed to.

We're a LONG way from where our founding Father's were when this country was formed. There was a time when Jesus Christ was front and center...and our nation bowed low to Him.

Today, He's a by-word that people are trying to eradicate.

So be it.

I'm not really listtening to anyone's commentary. I've made up my mind and set my face like flint.

My money stays in my wallet. PERIOD.

Edited November 18, 2005 by catsmeow

[larryt]

It's called, "conditioning". It's a PROCESS. It's a slow, steady process to condition people to become passively accepting of the godliness our nation has progressed to.

We're a LONG way from where our founding Father's were when this country was formed. There was a time when Jesus Christ was front and center...and our nation bowed low to Him.

Today, He's a by-word that people are trying to eradicate.

So be it.

I'm not really listtening to anyone's commentary. I've made up my mind and set my face like flint.

My money stays in my wallet. PERIOD.

Hi Cats,

You are right, we are a long way from when this country was founded, and I agree with you that Jesus Christ was central to many who founded this Country. One thing many forget also that they adamantly outlawed Christmas. People were jailed in New England for stopping work and participating in this "Romish Holiday" which is just what it is. It is the Mass of Christ(the incarnation) hence Christ-mas. You are right, we have come a long way from the Reformation, where Christianity meant not conforming to the world and dying to oneself.

LT

PS - did you mean godlessness in your first statement?

[apothanein kerdos]

We would rather the cashier say "Merry Christmas" to us after walking through stressful lines of people embarking upon a materialistic shopping spree during a season where the birth of the almighty dollar is celebrated?

I know that is a bit extreme, but please, follow me for a moment. What is Christmas? Not the meaning of it nor the intention, but what is it in a real setting? It is a time where prices are raised on certain items because companies know they can do this...people will buy it for loved ones regardless of the cost. We throw around slogans such as "tis the season to give" when that giving generally only aids those sitting in luxurious chairs on the 50th floor of some building in New York. I am not against Christmas or even against gift giving. Watching loved ones open up gifts under the tree that you bought for them is more joyful than recieving a gift. At the same time...Christimas has become nothing more than a giant marketing ploy. It's a way to take money from the giving heart and not have to face the consequences of such actions. It brings joy to my heart when these corporations stop saying "Merry Christmas", because they remove Christmas from their greed and selfish ambitions. I say shop at these stores that refuse to say "Merry Christmas' because they no longer tarnish the word. When Christmas is related to materialistic pleasures, we shouldn't be upset when someone tries to seperate the two.

When I hear holidays, I would rather think about the gift giving and things such as that. When people say Christmas, I'd much rather think about the gift of God given to the world then long lines at Target.

[apothanein kerdos]

Also, and I might make this a splinter thread, but we need to be careful saying "we are a long way away from where our Godly founders were". They weren't all that Godly to begin with. Any nation founded upon the principle that it's okay to enslave Africans (and certain Native tribes), commit genocide against Native Americans because of manifest destiny, and deny voting rights to women and the poor can't necessarily be all that "Godly". THey went to church....but so does Ted Kennedy

[BlindSeeker]

(Click to link)

In New England, for the first two centuries of white settlement most people did not celebrate Christmas. In fact, the holiday was systematically suppressed by Puritans during the colonial period and largely ignored by their descendants. "It was actually illegal to celebrate Christmas in Massachusetts between 1659 and 1681 (the fine was five shillings). Only in the middle of the nineteenth century did Christmas gain legal recognition as an official public holiday in New England."

Just for thought . . .

[His Ambassador]

Hey Guys:

Christmas is not a Biblically mandated holiday and since it was adapted from a pagan winter festival it is also not exclusively a Christian holiday. For those of us who celebrate the birth of our Lord on that day it's a holy day. For others it's at least a warm family time. Rather than critisizing the way others celebrate the day or because they don't celebrate the Christian holiday we should share with them what and why we celebrate the way we do.