Christmas is not the same

[Mothernature]

I'm feeling a bit sad about Christmas this year. I use to enjoy Christmas carols and putting up the nativity set and reading Christmas books with the kids. It just isn't the same anymore. Now I want to criticise the lyrics to the songs I use to love but have to keep silent. Whenever the kids bring up something about Jesus' birth, like the star or the manager or the wise men, I want to tell them that it didn't really happen but can't. I cringe when they bring me Christian books instead of Santa and snowman books to read at bedtime. Anyone else mourning the loss of Christmas?

[Mothernature]

Manger not manager. Autocorrect😒

[Positivist]

I view the songs as the mythology it is. I cringe when people take it to heart tho. That’s kind of like me thinking The Lord of the Rings is a true story (it is a better story). 

 

I love good music so still listen to a lot of it. 

 

Having kids would add an element of difficulty tho!!

[Lilith666]

The Jesus Christmas is essentially a celebration of death and torture and forcibly impregnating teenagers, dressed up in "Christ's love." It's about anything but.

 

There may not be a "real" meaning of the holiday as far as world-saving historical events go, but it doesn't hurt to have a reminder to be kind and generous to each other. That's real enough for me.

 

As far as carols go, I do miss believing in the lyrics but I don't miss feeling like I should be thinking about Jesus every time I was having fun eating food and watching Christmas movies instead. Renouncing Christianity has its benefits as well as sacrifices.

[MOHO]

I put lights on the piece/love bush.

Hung the piece/love wreaths.

Pored drinks at the piece/love cookie exchange.

 

As far as Christmas piece/love music...smooth jazz, baby! No lyrics!

 

[Mothernature]

Yes I still enjoy the tree which has a pagan origin anyway and Santa Claus which is far removed from the Christian saint now. It just irks me to hear the "true meaning of Christmas" when it isn'

[Mothernature]

Isn't really true at all.

[Mothernature]

8 hours ago, Lilith666 said:

As far as carols go, I do miss believing in the lyrics but I don't miss feeling like I should be thinking about Jesus every time I was having fun eating food and watching Christmas movies instead. Renouncing Christianity has its benefits as well as sacrifices.

Cheers to that!

[Orbit]

On 12/1/2017 at 7:26 PM, Mothernature said:

I'm feeling a bit sad about Christmas this year. I use to enjoy Christmas carols and putting up the nativity set and reading Christmas books with the kids. It just isn't the same anymore. Now I want to criticise the lyrics to the songs I use to love but have to keep silent. Whenever the kids bring up something about Jesus' birth, like the star or the manager or the wise men, I want to tell them that it didn't really happen but can't. I cringe when they bring me Christian books instead of Santa and snowman books to read at bedtime. Anyone else mourning the loss of Christmas?

 

I still love xmas! I just view the carols as cultural mythology, and get on with my tree and holiday baking. I probably wouldn't put up the nativity scene, but everything else, I'm gung ho--lights, tree, yard decorations--it's mostly a pagan holiday anyway. You could "disappear" the religious books without saying anything ("I don't know where that went..."), leaving the secular books, or get new favorites. I re-defined xmas to be about time with family, and as a winter solstice festival, and I honestly don't feel like I've lost anything.

[Orbit]

On 12/4/2017 at 12:59 PM, MOHO said:

I put lights on the piece/love bush.

Hung the piece/love wreaths.

Pored drinks at the piece/love cookie exchange.

 

As far as Christmas piece/love music...smooth jazz, baby! No lyrics!

 

 

I've found that big band swing is great for the holidays, it sounds very festive.

[sdelsolray]

37 minutes ago, Orbit said:

 

I've found that big band swing is great for the holidays, it sounds very festive.

 

Two great swing era movies are the Benny Goodman Story and the Glenn Miller Story.  They are more biographical than fiction.

[Lydie]

As a religious person it was a time to;

• be offended at people ‘not honouring the true spirit of Christmas’, 

• cringe at having to invite people church to hear what you were starting to see was b.s.

• buy extra food for church fellowships even if you could barely afford it.

• be scared that people were under the influence of the devil for ‘worshipping Santa’

• be torn when you saw a Christmas tree because the bible said bringing a green tree indoors was idolatry (somewhere in Numbers I think).

 

Now I recognise this about Christmas

• that in western countries winter is a gloomy time and in older times even life-threatening. The evergreens were a symbol that spring would return.

• The winter solstice was a point to look forward to as it would get better from there.

• They needed something to get them through winter and something to look forward to and keep spirits up. A feast to look forward to. Celebrating that the days are starting to get longer.

Of course the church got in on the act and appropriated the Winter Solstice.

 

So I can now enjoy it for the cultural phenomenon it is. The carols as folk songs. I feel pain that it’s not real but It is a relief not to have to think about this newborn being illogically tortured to death by someone who is also ready to send you to hell at the drop of a hat if you don’t love the baby enough.

 

[Tsathoggua9]

I still enjoy the carols, myself. You don't have to believe in anything to enjoy a good tune!