Christmas Season is Here...
December 21st 2010 22:37
Does anyone out there ever sit back and think "hmmm... it is almost strange how all of the members of society in general all agree to participate in Christmas... when it seems to hold more negatives than positives for people.
Oh sure, the cookies are yummy and it is always fun to get together with family and friends- but when it comes to Christmas- it is obligatory.
You must participate whether you can afford it or not and if we are to be completely honest- Christmas shines a giant spotlight on everything that is wrong or lacking in your life... and so, suicide rates go up, break up rates go up, people the world over create more and more serious financial problems and issues for themselves as they spend money they can't really afford to spend... and why? Because, there is a perception that "we all have to" because "it is Christmas"
Opting out of Christmas draws looks of disbelief and confusion...
Why?
I find it very interesting how hard some will defend Christmas... often with poorly informed arguments that, when scrutinized, kinda fall apart:
Argument: "But it is Jesus birthday!"
Is it? Are you sure? Here are a few little known facts about that - (and don't take my word for it- do a little research and verify it for yourself)
1) The date of Jesus birth is not recorded anywhere- not even in the bible. So we have to wonder why the arbitrary date of Dec. 25th was selected to be Jesus birthday... strangely, ancient Pagan festivals celebrated in and around December 25th were popular for a very long time before Jesus was born- and they included the veneration of ornamented trees, drunken parties, gift giving, green and red, yule logs, mistletoe... etc...etc...
2) There is no record in the bible of any of Jesus Apostles or disciples celebrating Jesus birthday... or any birthday for that matter.
3) There are numerous celebrations commanded in the bible- and these include instructions on how to celebrate them... Christmas is not one of them nor are the traditional.
4) In December, Israel (where Jesus was born) is cold and rainy. At higher elevations, there is often snow. Shepherds do not sleep in fields with their flocks at this time of year because it is too cold- not good for the shepherd and not good for the sheep... yet, the bible says that at the time of Jesus birth, the shepherds were sleeping in the fields with their sheep...
5) According to the bible, Jesus died at the age of 33.5 years old. We all know he died in around March/April. If you count back 6 months in either direction- you don't land on December.
OK- so it is not Jesus birthday- it is something else masquerading as Jesus birthday.
Argument: I Celebrate because it is an opportunity to spend time with friends and family
That is reasonable, but really, plans can be made to spend with friends and family at any time of the year- "just cuz" and would carry far less stress for people and far less pressure to bankrupt ones self for the occasion.
Argument: I love Christmas because of the Christmas spirit! Everyone is so happy and life is so wonderful!
OK- I don't see it. I drive the streets filled with what seem to be elevated levels of road rage; I see angry and miserable people on one end of the spectrum on one hand and obligatory apathy on the other in shopping malls;
I see increased drunk driving charges, homicides, suicides, domestic violence etc.
I see people volunteering to help the homeless... making sure their kids get a present on Christmas day, feeding them turkey dinner.- don't get me wrong, those are all kind things to do- but people tend to focus on helping the less fortunate at Christmas time and ignore them the rest of the year... Why aren't these people volunteering to help the rest of the year? What are these families eating when it is not Christmas?
As I observe people rushing around at a frenetic pace, I feel fortunate to have stepped outside of that box.
I don't celebrate Christmas... and from the outside looking in at all of the people trying to live up to the expectations of the season, I can only shake my head at what appears to be some form of mass delusion about what the holiday is, means and requires of it's participants. I am dumbfounded by people's willingness to lie to their children about Santa and go out of their way to delude them for many early years of their lives... At the moment a child comes to realize that it was all a lie, I guess the Christmas magic will prevent these kids from loosing the perception that their parents could be trusted at all times. Scratch that- It is probably not that important. I mean, do kids REALLY need to be confident they can trust what their parents tell them?
"Well, my parents said drugs are harmful... but they also told me Santa was real until I was 9 so..."
Nope... there is nothing in the world that could make me go back to celebrating that very dark and negative "holiday".
Interesting but little known fact:
In the middle ages, "Old Nick" was a name for Satan (check some old dictionaries or encyclopedias)
Oh sure, the cookies are yummy and it is always fun to get together with family and friends- but when it comes to Christmas- it is obligatory.
You must participate whether you can afford it or not and if we are to be completely honest- Christmas shines a giant spotlight on everything that is wrong or lacking in your life... and so, suicide rates go up, break up rates go up, people the world over create more and more serious financial problems and issues for themselves as they spend money they can't really afford to spend... and why? Because, there is a perception that "we all have to" because "it is Christmas"
Opting out of Christmas draws looks of disbelief and confusion...
Why?
I find it very interesting how hard some will defend Christmas... often with poorly informed arguments that, when scrutinized, kinda fall apart:
Argument: "But it is Jesus birthday!"
Is it? Are you sure? Here are a few little known facts about that - (and don't take my word for it- do a little research and verify it for yourself)
1) The date of Jesus birth is not recorded anywhere- not even in the bible. So we have to wonder why the arbitrary date of Dec. 25th was selected to be Jesus birthday... strangely, ancient Pagan festivals celebrated in and around December 25th were popular for a very long time before Jesus was born- and they included the veneration of ornamented trees, drunken parties, gift giving, green and red, yule logs, mistletoe... etc...etc...
2) There is no record in the bible of any of Jesus Apostles or disciples celebrating Jesus birthday... or any birthday for that matter.
3) There are numerous celebrations commanded in the bible- and these include instructions on how to celebrate them... Christmas is not one of them nor are the traditional.
4) In December, Israel (where Jesus was born) is cold and rainy. At higher elevations, there is often snow. Shepherds do not sleep in fields with their flocks at this time of year because it is too cold- not good for the shepherd and not good for the sheep... yet, the bible says that at the time of Jesus birth, the shepherds were sleeping in the fields with their sheep...
5) According to the bible, Jesus died at the age of 33.5 years old. We all know he died in around March/April. If you count back 6 months in either direction- you don't land on December.
OK- so it is not Jesus birthday- it is something else masquerading as Jesus birthday.
Argument: I Celebrate because it is an opportunity to spend time with friends and family
That is reasonable, but really, plans can be made to spend with friends and family at any time of the year- "just cuz" and would carry far less stress for people and far less pressure to bankrupt ones self for the occasion.
Argument: I love Christmas because of the Christmas spirit! Everyone is so happy and life is so wonderful!
OK- I don't see it. I drive the streets filled with what seem to be elevated levels of road rage; I see angry and miserable people on one end of the spectrum on one hand and obligatory apathy on the other in shopping malls;
I see increased drunk driving charges, homicides, suicides, domestic violence etc.
I see people volunteering to help the homeless... making sure their kids get a present on Christmas day, feeding them turkey dinner.- don't get me wrong, those are all kind things to do- but people tend to focus on helping the less fortunate at Christmas time and ignore them the rest of the year... Why aren't these people volunteering to help the rest of the year? What are these families eating when it is not Christmas?
As I observe people rushing around at a frenetic pace, I feel fortunate to have stepped outside of that box.
I don't celebrate Christmas... and from the outside looking in at all of the people trying to live up to the expectations of the season, I can only shake my head at what appears to be some form of mass delusion about what the holiday is, means and requires of it's participants. I am dumbfounded by people's willingness to lie to their children about Santa and go out of their way to delude them for many early years of their lives... At the moment a child comes to realize that it was all a lie, I guess the Christmas magic will prevent these kids from loosing the perception that their parents could be trusted at all times. Scratch that- It is probably not that important. I mean, do kids REALLY need to be confident they can trust what their parents tell them?
"Well, my parents said drugs are harmful... but they also told me Santa was real until I was 9 so..."
Nope... there is nothing in the world that could make me go back to celebrating that very dark and negative "holiday".
hmmmmm...
Interesting but little known fact:
In the middle ages, "Old Nick" was a name for Satan (check some old dictionaries or encyclopedias)
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