Robbobrob Posted December 23, 2009 Share Posted December 23, 2009 If all Christians today have to complain about is being mocked, be it on websites or even on billboards, I say they are very lucky indeed. Back in the 1600’s did you know that it was illegal in Massachusetts to celebrate Christmas? Was this the first liberal attempt for a War on Christmas? No, it was a conservative group of fundie Christians known as Puritans who found no biblical reason to celebrate the holiday, and fined anyone who tried to celebrate it. They did not mock people for their religion….they fined, imprisoned, banished, and sometimes even hanged other Christians for their lack of fundie beliefs. If all we do is mock, or point out religious inconsistancies, Christians should be thankful for our freedom of speech to do so, and be thankful we all have freedom of religion, and freedom from having to follow other people's religions, so no one religion can take control, and do far worse than anything SAID here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hereticzero Posted December 23, 2009 Share Posted December 23, 2009 If all Christians today have to complain about is being mocked, be it on websites or even on billboards, I say they are very lucky indeed. Back in the 1600’s did you know that it was illegal in Massachusetts to celebrate Christmas? Was this the first liberal attempt for a War on Christmas? No, it was a conservative group of fundie Christians known as Puritans who found no biblical reason to celebrate the holiday, and fined anyone who tried to celebrate it. They did not mock people for their religion….they fined, imprisoned, banished, and sometimes even hanged other Christians for their lack of fundie beliefs. If all we do is mock, or point out religious inconsistancies, Christians should be thankful for our freedom of speech to do so, and be thankful we all have freedom of religion, and freedom from having to follow other people's religions, so no one religion can take control, and do far worse than anything SAID here. Yeah, the Puritans are SO worthy of being portrayed as god's chosen who fled religious persecution to brave the new world and bring god to us heathens! What they actually fled was persecution due to their weirdness, it had nothing to do with being persecuted because of their belief in god. They were a cult that Europe and Britain eventually got tired of. They were responsible for the murder of at least one Quaker and I believe they started the Witch trials. These are the classical weirdos Christians brag about bringing god to the new world. I wonder if Christians will write wonderful glowing stories of the Christian brutality towards homosexuals in Uganda in 100 years? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbobrob Posted December 23, 2009 Author Share Posted December 23, 2009 Don't forget, it is because of them we have Rhode Island(where all the banished ended up).....Brrrr... I will never forgive them for that. LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NonXNonExX Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 Please, NO WAR ON XMAS. It doesn't matter what you call it, though Xmas still seems to be the most popular, a big celebration at the end of the year is a great idea that is older than Xtianity. It's a great excuse to "eat, drink and be merry," catch up with old friends, decorate the place with a tree that Jeremiah would not approve of, maybe do something for the poor and underprivileged, and maybe even go to church with your religious friends or relatives to see what you've been missing (ha!). For the people i know Xmas is just a name, a name connected with bunch of romantic myths like baby Jesus, Santa Claus and the little drummer boy, all with equal actual credibility. I know some on this site have a real bone to pick with Xtanity, and i get that, i really do. But don't be a buzz-kill and throw out the baby with the bath water. Let's celebrate and enjoy Xmas as the modern, heathen holiday that it's already become for most people! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
george caitlin Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 atually, NonxNonExX, there is a great year-end holiday that is far older than the Christian, Christmas, substitute. There is eating, singing, and dancing. Decorations are done, and old friends are invited to enjoy themselves. It's called the Winter Solstice. Our celebration was great this year. Christmas really has become a rather tiresome commercial exercise to frantically boost year-end profits for retail corporations. Much of the gift-giving is done not because of love or gratitude but from a feeling of guilt and a sense of obligation. Wal-Mart and Best Buy can make their own way without me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Creepy Doll Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 atually, NonxNonExX, there is a great year-end holiday that is far older than the Christian, Christmas, substitute. There is eating, singing, and dancing. Decorations are done, and old friends are invited to enjoy themselves. It's called the Winter Solstice. Our celebration was great this year. Christmas really has become a rather tiresome commercial exercise to frantically boost year-end profits for retail corporations. Much of the gift-giving is done not because of love or gratitude but from a feeling of guilt and a sense of obligation. Wal-Mart and Best Buy can make their own way without me. Bingo!!! I can sympathize with some of the romaticism of Christmas, but in truth it IS a holiday stolen from pagan culture. As someone who has dug more and more into her Celtic roots, I am more and more finding meaning in the earthy traditions of ancient paganism rather than the commercialism of modern Christmas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NonXNonExX Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 For George and Ms. Doll, I'm not disagreeing with either of you all, just pointing out that the most popular name for the celebration is Xmas. Doesn't matter what you call it, Xmas is just a convenient name that most people recognize today. I am an ex-pat so i don't keep in contact with all my friends and relatives as much as i'd like and Xmas is a good excuse for reconnecting. I like giving unique little gifts that i pick up here, and they definitely don't come from Wal-Mart (although it's right down the street from where i live). I know people celebrated Winter Solstice long before it became Xmas. I'll call it that if it makes you happy!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hereticzero Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 My wife and I had fun celebrating the Solstice this year, instead of xmas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbobrob Posted December 28, 2009 Author Share Posted December 28, 2009 I enjoy celebrating as much as I can from all and any holidays. Don't need to belong to a certain religion to enjoy the parts you like. Having learned that the Puritans had banned the celebration, made this year all the more fun....(I don't take to being told what I can and can't do by "authority" figures who have not earned my respect). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
george caitlin Posted December 29, 2009 Share Posted December 29, 2009 Well, Non, the whole point that Robbobrob is making is that the "War on Christmas" is really nothing more than a feverish fantasy dreamed up by religious fundies, and also a cynical ploy by these conservative Christians to make themselves out as the victims, rather than the actual victimizers. It's a non-existent mirage. The phrase "War on Christmas" is about as valid as the phrase "Compassionate Conservate". Both exist only as a wild concept in disturbed minds, never in reality. Besides, why do we have to have an offical holiday to get together, have a party, and give gifts to friends? It would seem that with having New Years Eve" festivities at the end of the year maybe a celebration deeper in winter would be needed more, say a full-blown family dinner get-together and gift-orgy on March 15th (The Ides of March). Or, perhaps on March 21st, the Vernal Equinox. Further, as far as you calling the current holiday in question whatever Creepy Doll and I want, accordingly, I require you to refer to it henceforth as "Millard Fillmore's Birthday Celebration" (Jan. 7th). We have hard historical evidence that Fillmore actually existed, as opposed to Jesus. So no more of this "Merry Christmas" nonsense please; it's now "Happy Fillmore Day". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shyone Posted December 29, 2009 Share Posted December 29, 2009 Well, Non, the whole point that Robbobrob is making is that the "War on Christmas" is really nothing more than a feverish fantasy dreamed up by religious fundies, and also a cynical ploy by these conservative Christians to make themselves out as the victims, rather than the actual victimizers. It's a non-existent mirage. The phrase "War on Christmas" is about as valid as the phrase "Compassionate Conservate". Both exist only as a wild concept in disturbed minds, never in reality. Besides, why do we have to have an offical holiday to get together, have a party, and give gifts to friends? It would seem that with having New Years Eve" festivities at the end of the year maybe a celebration deeper in winter would be needed more, say a full-blown family dinner get-together and gift-orgy on March 15th (The Ides of March). Or, perhaps on March 21st, the Vernal Equinox. Further, as far as you calling the current holiday in question whatever Creepy Doll and I want, accordingly, I require you to refer to it henceforth as "Millard Fillmore's Birthday Celebration" (Jan. 7th). We have hard historical evidence that Fillmore actually existed, as opposed to Jesus. So no more of this "Merry Christmas" nonsense please; it's now "Happy Fillmore Day". Fillmore stockings might catch on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Creepy Doll Posted December 29, 2009 Share Posted December 29, 2009 Further, as far as you calling the current holiday in question whatever Creepy Doll and I want, accordingly, I require you to refer to it henceforth as "Millard Fillmore's Birthday Celebration" (Jan. 7th). We have hard historical evidence that Fillmore actually existed, as opposed to Jesus. So no more of this "Merry Christmas" nonsense please; it's now "Happy Fillmore Day". Oooh I like that! I work across the street from the University he founded and I live just a few miles from the house he built for Abigail. He died on my birthday too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neon Genesis Posted December 29, 2009 Share Posted December 29, 2009 I like the way an episode of The Atheist Experience podcast described the "War On Christmas" really as just Christians forcing their beliefs on everyone else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heimdall Posted December 30, 2009 Share Posted December 30, 2009 I borrow from one of Larry the Cable Guy's routines and wish everyone "Happy Non Specific Winter Holiday"...LOL...most people including all but the most rabid of the Christ Cultists respond cheerfully to that greeting...LOL - Heimdall Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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