JustAnotherGuy Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 Last Christmas, I believed in the Christian God. Now, I don't. Last year, I listened to Christmas music and still particularly enjoyed the religious songs. Now, I'm kinda having a hard time separating the feelings I get from those songs. I hear some of them and realize that, while the song in and of itself sounds good, I really used to enjoy it because of it's religious lyrics. So my question for you guys and gals is: Have some Christmas songs lost their luster? Please explain! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EastCoastGal Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 I'm probably going to contridict an impression I gave in an earlier post on this board, so forgive me, but here it is. I really love Christmas music because it makes me all warm and fuzzy. My mind really eats up that peace and love, warm and fuzzy fantasy of Christmas and I let myself run with it for my own enjoyment. Some of my favorites are religious, such as O Holy Night and What Child Is This. I don't know why I like them as I rail so hard against most religious fluff. I sing along in my car as I enjoy this singing for the sake of it. I think in my mind I look on those songs as "Historical". I don't mind how religion has influenced art and culture throughout the ages, it's facinating and valid. The only time those songs get annoying are when self righteous christians start showing up on your doorstep screaming them in your face in an obvious attempt to get you to fall to your knees and worship Jebus. Very annoying when they are used like that. I never enjoyed the songs due to the content of the lyrics, I always just liked the song as a song. Wind me up and watch me self justify! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shyone Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 I no longer distinguish between secular and religious Christmas music. Much of the music has "withstood the test of time" and is just simply beautiful. White Christmas is one of my favorites, but so are songs about Santa and reindeer, christmas trees, etc. The meaning of the words takes a back seat to the music, even though they complement one another. Oh Night Divine is a treasure regardless of why it was written, and I like songs from old times like Good King Wencelas and Lo How a Rose E're Blooming. Instrumental versions wafting through the air don't even have a hint of "religiousness" to me anymore. Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ouroboros Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 ImAlive, The first couple of years were hard. Whenever I heard a religious song on the radio, I'd get upset. I just didn't want to hear all that religious propaganda. But lately I've softened up. My youngest girl sings in the school choir and they had a recital a few days ago. Some of the songs were the traditional Christian ones, and then they had some other stuff too, even some Hanuka songs. It didn't bother me this time, at least not as much as it used to. It just takes time to sort out the emotional baggage you have from religion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
belladonna Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 Last Christmas, I believed in the Christian God. Now, I don't. Last year, I listened to Christmas music and still particularly enjoyed the religious songs. Now, I'm kinda having a hard time separating the feelings I get from those songs. I hear some of them and realize that, while the song in and of itself sounds good, I really used to enjoy it because of it's religious lyrics. So my question for you guys and gals is: Have some Christmas songs lost their luster? Please explain! I can't stand Christmas music, religious or not. When a Christmas song starts playing on the radio, I immediately switch stations and look for some comfortable Pink Floyd. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CelticWhisper Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 I always hated it myself (that little drummer prick needs to be shot...twice), but I'm trying something different this year. I'm going to see if I can fix my mental association of "Xmas music=pain" by listening to the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society's remakes of Xmas carols, with lyrics rewritten to pertain to the Lovecraft/Cthulhu mythos. We shall see how it goes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
belladonna Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 I always hated it myself (that little drummer prick needs to be shot...twice), but I'm trying something different this year. I'm going to see if I can fix my mental association of "Xmas music=pain" by listening to the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society's remakes of Xmas carols, with lyrics rewritten to pertain to the Lovecraft/Cthulhu mythos. We shall see how it goes. Well, I can't say I hate all Christmas music...this one isn't too bad: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
belladonna Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 Wiley! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Japedo Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 When I first left Christianity, I loathed Christmas Music. The love I once had for it turned to pure anger, rage, disgust and a whole bunch of other negative feelings. It used to remind me of lies and being grossly mislead. If the music causes you angst or anger, turn it off, there is no need to hurt yourself further. Having it discovered that music you used to sing as worships and praises to a nonexistent being is traumatic, allow yourself to heal at your own pace. As the years have gone on, I've healed from much of the pain the dogma has inflicted on me, as I have healed, I have also gotten rid of a lot of the negativity I once held, It took me quite a few years, but everyone's different. Christmas is a family holiday for me, and I hold that as sacred as probably others hold their dogma. There came a point where I had to start new memory's and meaning to things. I once again love the music, and it's always playing in my house this time of year. I appreciate the art of music and love it for what it is,the songs are beautiful but as far as Christs meaning, it no more gets to me on a level of meaning then Puff the magic dragon. O' Holy Night by Placido Domingo and Charlotte Church is one of the most beautiful songs, the song moves me but not due to lyrics, it's due to the amazing vocals and just how beautiful the song is. Carol of the Bells in another of my favorites. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
par4dcourse Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 When I first left Christianity, I loathed Christmas Music. The love I once had for it turned to pure anger, rage, disgust and a whole bunch of other negative feelings. It used to remind me of lies and being grossly mislead. If the music causes you angst or anger, turn it off, there is no need to hurt yourself further. Having it discovered that music you used to sing as worships and praises to a nonexistent being is traumatic, allow yourself to heal at your own pace. As the years have gone on, I've healed from much of the pain the dogma has inflicted on me, as I have healed, I have also gotten rid of a lot of the negativity I once held, It took me quite a few years, but everyone's different. Christmas is a family holiday for me, and I hold that as sacred as probably others hold their dogma. There came a point where I had to start new memory's and meaning to things. I once again love the music, and it's always playing in my house this time of year. I appreciate the art of music and love it for what it is,the songs are beautiful but as far as Christs meaning, it no more gets to me on a level of meaning then Puff the magic dragon. O' Holy Night by Placido Domingo and Charlotte Church is one of the most beautiful songs, the song moves me but not due to lyrics, it's due to the amazing vocals and just how beautiful the song is. Carol of the Bells in another of my favorites. That's pretty much my take too,. The longer I'm away from xianity, the less it bothers me. As an added note, the commercials using bastardizations of classic carols really yank my chain. I don't want to listen to a really bad version of a really cheesy carol selling cars, or phones, or whatever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 Wiley! Herro! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OpheliaGinger Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 I like the classical stuff that has stood the test of time, but none of the new pop stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oddbird1963 Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 Wind me up and watch me self justify! EastCoastGal, There's no need to justify your choice of music to anyone. Some music makes us sentimental, nostalgic and wishful for some unrealized ideal. Add that to the fact that some music is so plugged into the fabric of our culture, there's no wonder there is music you may disagree with philosophically. But philosophy is rarely what music is totally about. Enjoy a song because you enjoy it. That's justification enough. OB '63 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hungrydingo Posted December 11, 2009 Share Posted December 11, 2009 I'd rather listen to Megadeth! I never cared much for Christmas music. There are about 20 different songs remade 15 times each and they're repeated ad nauseum for an entire month. Even when I was a christian I hated Christmas music. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadow Wolf Posted December 11, 2009 Share Posted December 11, 2009 I despised most Christmas music until last year. And then I was introduced to Twisted Sister's Christmas Album. I really can't take it seriously, but at least it kicks up the ante on tradition Xmas songs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
♦ Fuego ♦ Posted December 12, 2009 Share Posted December 12, 2009 The church has produced some damn fine sounding music over the years. I gag on the love songs to Jesus now, but the classics by Bach and others are astonishingly beautiful. Thankfully they are usually in a different language if sung. Christmas songs can be lovely, but it really does bug me to honor the savage god of Christianity, so I don't sing them. I can still enjoy the tunes. It just dawned on me recently that Jingle Bells isn't really a Christmas song, just a wintery banzai sledding song. I'm learning "Linus and Lucy" on the piano, the famous Snoopy dance song from the Charlie Brown Christmas special. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnceConvinced Posted December 12, 2009 Share Posted December 12, 2009 Warm fuzzies remain warm fuzzies no matter whether you're a Christian or not. There is plenty of Christian music that has and still does that to me, just as there are many secular songs that achieve the same. I've always said, since becoming an Ex-Christian that those feelings of the Holy spirit in you, brought on by worship in the church, would still be there if the band was playing "Stairway To Heaven" instead of "How Great thou Art". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OpheliaGinger Posted December 12, 2009 Share Posted December 12, 2009 I like songs like "Oh Holy Night" and "Carol of the Bells" because they are dramatic. "Carol of the Bells" is something I imagine someone getting murdered to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
♦ Fuego ♦ Posted December 13, 2009 Share Posted December 13, 2009 I like songs like "Oh Holy Night" and "Carol of the Bells" because they are dramatic. "Carol of the Bells" is something I imagine someone getting murdered to. Maybe it sounds like a Tim Burton movie soundtrack. He often has a musicbox sound to his dark films. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HRDWarrior Posted December 13, 2009 Share Posted December 13, 2009 I'm kinda in the middle on this one. I love a lot of Christmas music (ONLY around Christmas though, I HATE it before thanksgiving and after new year's), but some of it just doesn't hold the same meaning for me. Then again, there were some of my favorites (like "We Three Kings" in particular) that I liked for reasons other than the words (tune, style, etc) to begin with, so I still sort of enjoy them, but the meaning isn't as deep. My favorites now have shifted a bit to the instrumental versions (love the Maneheim (spl?) stuff) and the ones that are general. I'm still at a point where due to the message some songs that I used to love are rubbing me a bit wrong, and I may skip them on my IPod, but I haven't erased them yet, either since I still enjoy something about them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Astreja Posted December 13, 2009 Share Posted December 13, 2009 I still love the music part of O Holy Night, but the lyrics really creep Me out. My favourite seasonal songs are Linus and Lucy (the opening theme from A Charlie Brown Christmas) and Carol of the Bells as performed by Trans Siberian Orchestra. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vendredie Posted December 14, 2009 Share Posted December 14, 2009 I love the religious ones far more than the secular ones. And anything instrumental. The "secular" ones need to be stabbed in the face, they're so annoying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
belladonna Posted December 14, 2009 Share Posted December 14, 2009 I love the religious ones far more than the secular ones. And anything instrumental. The "secular" ones need to be stabbed in the face, they're so annoying. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=foybsDsn5hk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Searska Posted December 14, 2009 Share Posted December 14, 2009 Eh, some xmas songs are not so bad. Trans-Siberian Orchestra has some fairly decent stuff. Then again, I like the rock n' roll feel to it. I've written fight scenes to "Wizards in Winter" and "Christmas Eve Sarajevo 12-24." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vendredie Posted December 15, 2009 Share Posted December 15, 2009 Eh, some xmas songs are not so bad. Trans-Siberian Orchestra has some fairly decent stuff. Then again, I like the rock n' roll feel to it. I've written fight scenes to "Wizards in Winter" and "Christmas Eve Sarajevo 12-24." FUCK YEAH TRANS SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA! I've also imagined a fight scene to "Carol of the Bells." Sadly, my mp3 player fucked it up, so now I have to re-download it. Ah well. The colorguard actually did a dance to Wizards in Winter a few years back, it was GREAT. I love TSO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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