Whether celebrating, Christmas, Chanukah, Kwanza -- or maybe “Chrismukkah” -- ‘tis the season.
Even for many atheists.
Absence of faith in God does not mean cultural holiday celebration is necessarily lost.
“My lack of belief has little impact on my observance of holiday traditions,” says 31-year-old Temecula resident Adrian Flores. “While I do not mark the birth of a religious figurehead or revel in the pagan rites that served as the figurative headwaters for modern-day Christmas, I do treasure the familial sentiments and warm traditions this season brings.”
According to a study conducted by the Pew Research Center and released in October, more than 13 million, or 6 percent, of Americans describe themselves as atheists or agnostics, and an additional 33 million people, or 14 percent, say they have no particular religious affiliation.
That 20 percent of America is a large slice of the shopping-season pie, and that could be a reason why so many retailers replace “Merry Christmas” and “Happy Chanukah” with the politically correct “Happy Holidays.” Nowadays, references to Christmas seem to have more to do with the bottom line -- “Save 50% through Christmas Eve” or “2-Day Shipping: Get It There By Christmas” -- than wishing good cheer.
The shift in retail marketing strategies over the last 20 years suggests corporations aren’t counting non-believers out of the biggest sales month of the year, and for good reason.
“Exchanging holiday gifts and merriment is just as important to me … as it surely is to someone doing the same out of religious faith,” Flores confirms.
Fountain Valley resident Jeffrey Isbell, 59, agrees the holiday season is a special time of year. Raised a Protestant Christian but now an atheist, he still celebrates many of the traditions of Christmas. Afterall, exchanging gifts, decorating Christmas trees and waiting for Santa Claus to arrive aren't bound in religion.
“It is a whimsical time. [As a child] I thought ‘The First Noel’ was a pretty song, and I think it’s pretty now,” Isbell said. “However, [Christmas] is more of a cultural experience for me, rather than a religious one.”
Isbell says that while holidays like Christmas and Chanukah are based on religious faith, the true meaning is not always as clear on a societal level.
For Flores, the meaning of the holidays is based in what some may consider very Christian ideology: “Togetherness, rather than divisiveness," he said, "is the truest testament to the strength of family and a powerful statement of the meaning of the holiday season."
9:34 am on Thursday, December 27, 2012 "176,395,008 citizens of the population that do not pay taxes. . . Who does that number include? Kids in school? Retired people? How do you define taxes? Are these people somehow avoiding sales taxes? How about FICA?
Big John 8:41 am on Thursday, December 27, 2012 "This conversation has become so lame. Does anyone really believe they are going to change anyone's mind or opinion about Christianity?" . . The article was about how non-believers celebrate the holiday season. It was was the narrow minded commentators who decided to chime in that Jesus was the only reason for the season. Who is trying to change who's mind?
9:41 am on Thursday, December 27, 2012 I doubt Jesus would feel sorry for lazy, hippies who chit in the streets and protest free markets. This was all a liberal pose against capitalism." . . God did not create Capitalism,man did. Therefore, it is not perfect. You can try to change the flaws in the system without condeming the entire concept.
BIG JOHN just made my point..........Right Wing Christians have no right talking about a God that they totally reject his policies about the poor. In the end, when Jesus said that to make it to God's kingdom for a rich man it would be like pulling a camel through an eye of a needle.......BA BYEE BIG JOHN!
I will mock whomever I choose if those that I mock are the lazy .000000000099% who instead of attempting to make an honest buck, reject employment for hand-outs (The no-good bastards). Most of these bums are just excuses that failed in their demonstrations. Even many on the left thought they were senseless. And I don't owe a single dime to college kids who took out loans for school. Do you think anyone of them would help me pay my mortgage? Greed can also be defined as those that expect to be taken care of by the city, state, or the Gov't without doing a thing in return. Sorry, existing isn't enough. Obviously, there are exceptions when good people have lost their jobs. But that .000000099% Occupy bit was laughable. They even recruited the homeless in their plight. And they were filthy as in they did use the downtown as a toilet and mocked those who walked by them. Oh how terrible to be dressed in a suit and tie and have a well paying job, eh? LBV, I couldn't care less if Jesus slapped the life out of the sad excuse known as OWS. It was a fraud anyway. You see, as you've mentioned earlier, you never know who Jesus really is. And you should worry about your own ass - that should keep you busy for a very long time.
Regarding your remark "...the lazy .000000000099% who instead of attempting to make an honest buck, reject employment for hand-outs," I suspect you don't realize that if you multiply .000000000099% by the 7 billion people on our planet, you get 0.007 people. (i.e. No one.) Regarding your suggestion, "And you should worry about your own ass - that should keep you busy for a very long time," Actually, worrying about me does keep me busy... all the time. And so does worrying about my loved ones. Don't you worry about yourself and your loved ones all the time? (Truthfully, i suspect you are a responsible person and I imagine you do worry about your family's welfare all the time. It's what we responsible folk do. But you seem to lack the empathy for others less fortunate than you... the empathy that I imagine Christ possessed and tried to teach to others.)
2:08 pm on Thursday, Jimmy Almond "And I don't owe a single dime to college kids who took out loans for school. Do you think anyone of them would help me pay my mortgage?" . . There are some differences between a mortgage and a student loan: 1) If you do not pay your mortgage, you will be foreclosed on and kicked out of your house. If you do not pay your student loan, they cannot erase your knowledge. 2) If you run into financial problems you can declare bankruptcy, move out of the house and have the loan discharged. No such protections exist for student loans as the bankruptcy court is not allowed to discharge these loans.
Makes no difference to me. I borrow, I pay. The student borrows and should do the same. I owe nothing to anyone except for what I borrow. I'm not a student loan default program.
I'm empathetic to those that deserve empathy. I'm against the miserable leeches of society that suck from the fruits of the labor of the willing. I have no sympathy for these cockroaches - NONE! They Food stamp, welfare, Gov Assisted housing the USA to death. The OWS movement was a sham. Liberals are all about love - they love poor people…as long as they stay poor.
8:26 am on Friday, December 28, 2012 "Makes no difference to me. I borrow, I pay. The student borrows and should do the same. I owe nothing to anyone except for what I borrow. I'm not a student loan default program." . . It is sad that you are so tied to your convictions that you cannot see shades of gray. A student today graduates in a job market where recent college graduates have an abysmal chance of getting a job in their chosen field, but they still have to pay back a loan they took out based on the assumption that they would be making more than a barrister at the local Starbucks. You can walk away from your home, they cannot walk away from their education. There are other options besides going to the tax payers. The schools could be forced to put some skin in the game by being forced to provide either some of the financing or providing money while the loan is in default. I think that this would make them more proactive in making sure that the value of the diploma is in line with the cost of the education. The banks should also be forced to assume more of the risk. Why should the government provide more protection to a student loan lender than they do to a mortgage lender?
9:22 am on Monday, December 24, 2012 "Yep, just like I thought, You have not been to New York City and have faith it exist. Tangible? Nope, you have not been there therefore you take it's existence on faith." . . Since Roberto seems to have walked away from the table, I'll show my hand. I was born in New York City. Once again you have your facts wrong.
8:36 am on Friday, December 28, 2012 "Liberals are all about love - they love poor people…as long as they stay poor." . . First, what do you base this statement on? Second, is this kind of like how Conservatives love fetuses as long as they stay fetuses. Once they are born, they are on their own.
I'm not a bank. Neither are you. People who took out mortgage liar loans or borrowed deeper than their pay checks should have allowed are no concern of mine. Students who borrow for their education are not guaranteed a job or a job market in their field upon graduation. The moral of the story: PAY YOUR DAMN BILLS! Or get your electricity shut off. I'm sick of your excuses, Carl! No wonder you love the welfare state - cradle to grave, California.
9:20 am on Friday, December 28, 2012 "I'm not a bank. Neither are you. People who took out mortgage liar loans or borrowed deeper than their pay checks should have allowed are no concern of mine. Students who borrow for their education are not guaranteed a job or a job market in their field upon graduation. The moral of the story: PAY YOUR DAMN BILLS! Or get your electricity shut off. I'm sick of your excuses, Carl! No wonder you love the welfare state - cradle to grave, California." . . It is obvious from your response that you did not bother to read my post.
8:53 pm on Saturday, December 29, 2012 "You probably don't care, but I actually find that comment quite funny. In a good way. But, like I said you probably don't care." . . Who doesn't appreciate a compliment? Thank you.
8:49 am on Tuesday, January 1, 2013 "The idiot liberals think Mormonism is such a nasty cult. But Islam is a peaceful religion." . . I don't think that it is the Liberals who think that Mormonism is a cult. I would look instead to the Evangelicals. I personally oppose all fundamental forms of all religions. That is where you will find the danger of religion.
8:49 am on Tuesday, January 1, 2013 "Just wait until that peace, breaks the USA into fragments in the coming years. The Muslim in Chief is LHAO at the USA, the very country he chose to destroy. The very country, the libs allowed him to destroy. Everything he campaigned on - unemployment rate, job creation (LMAO), debt (21 trillion at the end of his 2nd term), etc was a complete lie. The Muslim Brotherhood and the Middle East is laughing as well. Thanks, Libs!" . . "Finished with my woman 'cause she couldn't help me with my mind..."
Chill out, friend. We're going to continue to survive... as we always have.