Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays? Does it Matter?

irrelevant to me

There are a number of holidays in the season.
One expression is specific, the other is all encompassing.
I'm fine if someone wants to wish me a happy, or merry anything.

Bigger fish are waiting to be fried!

reply to post by spacedoubt


now i'm thinking about halibut cheeks

Its funny how some are like " they've banned Christmas" the PC brigade have banned Christmas. Yet here in the UK Christmas pretty much starts in mid October . With all the tv adverts an promotions, and lasts up until the January sales. No one calls it the holiday season. Its Christmas all round. For a good 1/4 of the year. Merry Christmas?

Bah Humbug!

catfishjoe
Let people call it what they want.

Isn't that what they did?

Let people who want to call it "Christmas" parade on one day and let people who want to call it "Holiday" parade on another day.

Merry Christmas everybody!

I like the holiday Festivus from Seinfeld. Festivus for the rest of us!!!

intrptr
reply to post by abecedarian

 

No day should be particularly 'special' to anyone; every day should be 'special'.

Everyone is special too, not just on certain days. I muse when people who have nothing to say all year suddenly grin and wish happy happy to me. It seems programmed.

Well, at least they do it once a year.

ColCurious
reply to post by catfishjoe

 

"Christmas" as we know it today was already a mixture of ancient persian, roman, germanic, celtic and slavic traditions and customs long before Christianity was even established in our occidental civilizations.

That's a historical fact... so the saying "Happy Holidays" is actually the most accurate.

But you are missing the point. Here in the UK the festival at the end of the year is called Christmas. It is an amalgamation of many pagan rituals hence the yuletide log, mistletoe etc as you pointed out BUT this is traditionally a christian country despite the number of active followers. All our holidays are based on christian traditions. So why should they have to be renamed, because 0.5% of a recent immigrant population finds it offensive. They chose to come here, remember. This is PC gone mad and give the idiots on the right (like Farage and the BNP) tons of fuel to whip folks up.

Imagine if 0.5% of the population of Iran started complaining and wanted Ramadan renamed "a period of fasting comtemplation". I think you would find a few corpses the next day !

If people truly believe in respecting peoples beliefs then surely you have to respect a country basic beliefs and historical traditions. In the UK,US and Europe this time of year is called Christmas and should be respected.

FYI : I am an atheist and I think God is sad reflection on peoples inability to deal with the real world.

My family and I do not go to church. We don't worship any one particular god. We still call it Christmas. Its always been Christmas. As I stated whatever you call it, its not going to offend me. I don't care what you call it. And the people that get butthurt about it need to realize that everyone is different. If one gets cut, do we all not bleed red and all that other crap.

reply to post by catfishjoe


What does it matter . . . TO WHOM?

Many authentic intrinsic Christians care a lot about such symbolic issues because our values, our faith and we ourselves as individuals are being shoved down the garbage chute as fast as the globalist oligarchy can do it.

Just because it's in incremental frog-in-the-bucket steps does NOT make it less evil . . . less dangerous, less outrageous.
.

THESE BLOKES ARE spreading tyranny far and wide . . . and their main target is Christianity and Christians--particularly intrinsic, authentic ones . . . they know that their main opposition with the spiritual potency to give them trouble resides in that cohort.


twoday.net...
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reply to post by BO XIAN


What does it matter to you if someone wishes you a happy holiday? Do you get all puffy and angry? I don't. I tell them merry Christmas. Its easy as that.

reply to post by catfishjoe


I don't get all huffy, either. I very pleasantly wish them a Merry Christmas.

I might, however, complain to the manager of a store who has the "Happy Holidays" orders in place . . . it seemed to me that Salvation Army's bell ringer at Wally's had that instruction today. Sigh.

What IS the world coming to! The SALVATION ARMY! SHEESH.

BO XIAN
reply to post by catfishjoe

 

I don't get all huffy, either. I very pleasantly wish them a Merry Christmas.

I might, however, complain to the manager of a store who has the "Happy Holidays" orders in place . . . it seemed to me that Salvation Army's bell ringer at Wally's had that instruction today. Sigh.

What IS the world coming to! The SALVATION ARMY! SHEESH.

Ahhh Walmart. That place would turn any Christmas loving person into a grouch.

yorkshirelad

ColCurious
reply to post by catfishjoe

 

"Christmas" as we know it today was already a mixture of ancient persian, roman, germanic, celtic and slavic traditions and customs long before Christianity was even established in our occidental civilizations.

That's a historical fact... so the saying "Happy Holidays" is actually the most accurate.

But you are missing the point. Here in the UK the festival at the end of the year is called Christmas. It is an amalgamation of many pagan rituals hence the yuletide log, mistletoe etc as you pointed out BUT this is traditionally a christian country despite the number of active followers. All our holidays are based on christian traditions. So why should they have to be renamed, because 0.5% of a recent immigrant population finds it offensive. They chose to come here, remember. This is PC gone mad and give the idiots on the right (like Farage and the BNP) tons of fuel to whip folks up.

Imagine if 0.5% of the population of Iran started complaining and wanted Ramadan renamed "a period of fasting comtemplation". I think you would find a few corpses the next day !

If people truly believe in respecting peoples beliefs then surely you have to respect a country basic beliefs and historical traditions. In the UK,US and Europe this time of year is called Christmas and should be respected.

FYI : I am an atheist and I think God is sad reflection on peoples inability to deal with the real world.

Well said. I agree with everything you've said except the last line about God as a sad reflection. But, I respect your right to believe as you will just as you respect us Christians' right to celebrate "Christmas"

Your exactly right though, those who are offended can simply choose not to celebrate it (but, yet they still do) and leave the other 90% of us alone. They don't have to celebrate it and I get so upset by this PC BS that I, just as in Iran (as you said), wish we could make some heads roll!

Remember the reason for the season!

I have always used Happy Holidays because I can use from Thanksgiving until New Years. It also saves having to say Merry Christmas and Happy New Years. Two words and I have all my bases covered. Never seen anybody care about people saying Merry Christmas and I knew people who worked at retail stores where some made up story would come out about how they were not allowed to say Merry Chistmas that of course was complete bunk. I have seen some old people get mad when teenage cashier in a store said happy holidays to them, they went on about how she should be allowed to say Christmas and she said the store said she could say whatever she wanted and she changed it all the time to avoid bordem. Honestly who cares. Call it whatever you want but, do not bother people if they call it something different. I mean lets face it Christmas is a holiday that is a mix Christianity, paganism, and commercialism so anybody can celebrate it and it can mean anything to anybody.

reply to post by MrSpad


Actually . . .

Almost ever since I had a PhD from Bombay . . . a very high class and high caste Indian who disdained the caste system . . . I had her for 3, 3-credit hour courses . . .

She left her Christmas lights on all year because she felt that the values it stood for were worthwhile all year. She was not a Christian.

. . . anyway . . . almost ever since those classes, I took to saying "Merry Christmas" all year . . . typically at parting . . . but sometimes at greeting.

Even the Chinese got it--after some initial "!?WHUT?!" startle reaction.

Partly it's just being silly--saying it year around . . . but partly it's just being serious . . . about the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Sometimes, during this season, I'm tempted to say HAPPY 4TH OF JULY but it doesn't work quite as well as "Merry Christmas" in July.

.

If it is still early in the month i'll say "happy holidays" after all Christmas is not the only holiday celebrated this month. However if it Christmas Eve into Christmas day I will say Merry Christmas to any and everyone and could give two s...s how anyone feels about it.

I'm tired of this pc stuff, i'm tired of everyone being so offended over the silliest of things. Kindness begets kindness and vice/versa.

Pussification of america.

reply to post by catfishjoe


Even though I celebrate Yule for religious reasons, I also celebrate Christmas but for American reasons. Christmas has never been the exclusive domain of Christianity and it's borrowed (in good faith) like many other holidays. To me, Christmas is a western culture holiday and also a very American tradition.

On Yule, I say "Blessed Yule!" and on Christmas, I say "Merry Christmas" just as loudly. If I knew when I'm supposed to say it, I'd also say "Happy Hanukkah", too. Usually, if it's not a day of an actual holiday but just the season, I'll say "happy holidays".

Why anybody would be upset about a celebration of birth and renewal with no controversial genocide involved (like Thanksgiving)... it's beyond my understanding. It's not like Christmas celebrates tax season or slavery... it's mythology and very popular mythology at that. It's harmless and healthy (if you ignore the consumerism aspect of it).

If someone tells me they don't celebrate Christmas or are put off by Christmas, I will probably remember that and not wish them a Merry Christmas. If someone wishes me a happy or merry or joyful anything, that's fine with me, and appreciate it.

I think there's way too much focus (at least as reflected in the media) about people's choices. Celebrate what you want, in the way you want to and if a person chooses to tell me about their cultural ideals and holidays, I will probably be interested, because I like things like that. What I enjoy most about this time of year is the sense of wonder and togetherness that is sometimes apparent, especially with the youngsters. For some folks, it's a time of year of increased introspection. What I DON'T like is when I perceive a sense of pressure from one group to attempt others to comply with THEIR view of what various holidays mean. It means what it means to you.

As long as someone's idea of celebration doesn't involve shooting or otherwise launching projectiles at me or mine, then enjoy whatever symbology or traditions floats your boat, or not if that's your thang.