wyly Posted December 3, 2012 Report Posted December 3, 2012 That's because Christians are being persecuted by being made aware of the fact that they're not the only people in society. ya the universe no longer revolves around christianity...it must be unsettling for them... Quote “Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives.”- John Stuart Mill
wyly Posted December 3, 2012 Report Posted December 3, 2012 It's not offensive, it's just silly. You're not putting trees in your house with lights on them celebrating Saturnalia or Kwanza. I know Christmas, in its current form, isn't terribly Christmas but I don't think you're average person is actually offended by being told Merry Christmas. you can call it christmas but it's not ...I'm celebrating the solstice, mid winter, spring is coming...that and not working spending time with my kids... Quote “Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives.”- John Stuart Mill
Merlin Posted December 3, 2012 Report Posted December 3, 2012 you can call it christmas but it's not ...I'm celebrating the solstice, mid winter, spring is coming...that and not working spending time with my kids... You raised your children by teaching them it's not Christmas time but solstice? I am merely curious about alternative parenting methods. Quote
wyly Posted December 3, 2012 Report Posted December 3, 2012 alternative parenting? I thought you were the alternative, my way is the norm...there is no jezus, there is no god, there is and always will be a winter solstice and I celebrate it's arrival just as my ancestors did... Quote “Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives.”- John Stuart Mill
Merlin Posted December 3, 2012 Report Posted December 3, 2012 alternative parenting? I thought you were the alternative, my way is the norm...there is no jezus, there is no god, there is and always will be a winter solstice and I celebrate it's arrival just as my ancestors did... You didn't answer my question. So when raising your children you didn't have a Christmas tree, presents and all that type stuff with them? I'm not trying to start an argument and I'm not trolling. I just want to try to understand. There is no need to be defensive, I'm not being partisan. Quote
Mighty AC Posted December 3, 2012 Report Posted December 3, 2012 We have a tree, presents, Santa story, family get togethers, we eat too much, etc. We call the holiday Christmas but the name Christ is never mentioned, even by family members that would still call themselves Christians. Quote "Our lives begin to end the day we stay silent about the things that matter." - Martin Luther King Jr"Those who can make you believe absurdities, can make you commit atrocities" - Voltaire
Sleipnir Posted December 3, 2012 Author Report Posted December 3, 2012 I was at an LCBO this weekend. One of the clerks was saying Merry Christmas to customers. I felt like contacting a Human Rights Tribunal, I was quite offended. :-D Word of advice: when contacting the tribunal to file a report, don't look happy. Quote "All you need in this life is ignorance and confidence; then success is sure." - Mark Twain
wyly Posted December 3, 2012 Report Posted December 3, 2012 You didn't answer my question. So when raising your children you didn't have a Christmas tree, presents and all that type stuff with them? I'm not trying to start an argument and I'm not trolling. I just want to try to understand. There is no need to be defensive, I'm not being partisan. the tree has nothing to do christianity, it's pagan...I'm not being defensive just reversing your logic...why is my lifestyle alternative? maybe your lifestyle is alternative...do you believe non christian families have different values than christians? Quote “Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives.”- John Stuart Mill
wyly Posted December 3, 2012 Report Posted December 3, 2012 We have a tree, presents, Santa story, family get togethers, we eat too much, etc. We call the holiday Christmas but the name Christ is never mentioned, even by family members that would still call themselves Christians. same here...the name christmas is totally meaningless to us it could be called bacchanalia and it would work just as well... Quote “Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives.”- John Stuart Mill
Merlin Posted December 3, 2012 Report Posted December 3, 2012 the tree has nothing to do christianity, it's pagan...I'm not being defensive just reversing your logic...why is my lifestyle alternative? maybe your lifestyle is alternative...do you believe non christian families have different values than christians? My post to you has nothing to do with Christianity. If you don't want to answer that is fine. I'm not really a Christian either, I was baptized as a child and went to Sunday School as a child but that's about as far as my Christianity went. So I'll try one more time, if you don't want to answer just say so so I won't waste my time. We celebrate Christmas the same way as Mighty AC does.In your home, do you celebrate Christmas in the traditional sense of calling it Christmas , having a tree, presents, etc or do you call it Solstice? Quote
wyly Posted December 3, 2012 Report Posted December 3, 2012 I explained that in my post to ac, christmas is just a meaningless name to me, it's the solstice, christmas/solstice it's the same thing ...just as Kleenex has become another name for tissue...my xmas as probably much like yours and ac's Quote “Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives.”- John Stuart Mill
Merlin Posted December 3, 2012 Report Posted December 3, 2012 I explained that in my post to ac, christmas is just a meaningless name to me, it's the solstice, christmas/solstice it's the same thing ...just as Kleenex has become another name for tissue...my xmas as probably much like yours and ac's Sorry, I type slow. I didn't see that response before I started my post. I think it's a secular holiday now really, just like Easter. Those that choose to make it mean more can but it isn't the sole reason for the holiday anymore. Every year there is usually some sort of outrage in the news targeted at Christmas but I haven't seen much of it yet this year. Quote
Boges Posted December 3, 2012 Report Posted December 3, 2012 I'm looking forward to all the Winter Solstice parties in the coming weeks. Quote
Mighty AC Posted December 3, 2012 Report Posted December 3, 2012 I suspect that one day, in the not too distant future, religious references in anthems and on money will disappear. I wonder if we'll eventually have an alternate name for a secular winter celebration. Or maybe the title Christmas will eventually be as innocuous as the Norse gods in the days of the week or the Roman gods in planet names. Quote "Our lives begin to end the day we stay silent about the things that matter." - Martin Luther King Jr"Those who can make you believe absurdities, can make you commit atrocities" - Voltaire
guyser Posted December 3, 2012 Report Posted December 3, 2012 "Happy Holidays" is a misguided attempt by PC hippies to avoid offense. lol Lets see....christmas, boxing day and new years plus hannukah , kwanzaa .... Yes , of course, must be some PC hippies idea. Or just a way to cover all ones bases. Quote
The_Squid Posted December 3, 2012 Report Posted December 3, 2012 I'm looking forward to all the Winter Solstice parties in the coming weeks. We're having one on the 22nd... the actual solstice is on the 21st though. Quote
The_Squid Posted December 3, 2012 Report Posted December 3, 2012 So you believe in Jesus? I didn't realize that. He probably existed, yes... was he the Messiah? That's as likely as Joseph Smith being a prophet. So elaborate, please. Tell me, based on your beliefs, why you think old bearded Jesus would shed a tear if he saw the consumerism that the celebration of his birthday has become; Assuming he is the Messiah, I don't think that he would be impressed by the rampant consumerism taking place in his name. and based on your assessment of what Jesus would feel, I am also interested in how you think he would feel about all the non-believers taking religion out of the public celebration of Christmas. Was Jesus a big fan of organized religion? Do you think he would have cared about Xmas? They didn't even put it on the right date to be his birthday and stole a bunch of pagan traditions! Hell, Jesus probably would have hated Xmas! How do you think he would feel about all of the atheists insisting on "happy holidays" instead of "merry Christmas?" Atheist fear mongering... no atheist that I know insists on changing greetings... There may be the odd one who is vocal about it on a blog somewhere, but most probably don't really care. How do you think he would feel about school programs only allowing "I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas" vs. "Oh Holy Night?" I don't really care. I think this is a case of administrators trying hard not to offend and to be "inclusive". As more people focus less on the true meaning and more people don't even believe, yet celebrate, it's going to be more "consumer focused." Non-religious people I know are not any more "consumer focused" than some religious people that I know. What is the true meaning of Xmas? I think that varies greatly depending who you ask.... ...where the religious has been all but banned from the public celebration, what else would one expect? Public celebration may be changing... but to say that equates to a banning of religious symbols is an exaggeration. I think that the holidays are just evolving to be inclusive of other people, especially when it comes to public displays by companies or municipalities and the like... And that makes no sense to me at all. Why would you care, when you don't believe? Do you have opposition to some aspects of capitalism? What does "believing" have to do with opposing the negative aspects of the increasingly commercial-focused culture? Yes, I am opposed to some aspects of capitalism. Although, opposed might be the wrong word... disgusted might be a better word. Quote
betsy Posted December 3, 2012 Report Posted December 3, 2012 alternative parenting? I thought you were the alternative, my way is the norm...there is no jezus, there is no god, there is and always will be a winter solstice and I celebrate it's arrival just as my ancestors did... But don't pagans have their own gods? Quote
betsy Posted December 4, 2012 Report Posted December 4, 2012 I suspect that one day, in the not too distant future, religious references in anthems and on money will disappear. I wonder if we'll eventually have an alternate name for a secular winter celebration. Or maybe the title Christmas will eventually be as innocuous as the Norse gods in the days of the week or the Roman gods in planet names. Frankly speaking, the way Christmas has lost its meaning, maybe it's better off that it disappears...since it only leads Christian families away from the values. Just like what one poster here said that even his christian family never mention the name of Christ. Anyway, where does it say anywhere in the Bible that we have to celebrate the birth of Christ...or even Easter? What they've become are traditions. And traditions got the Jews in trouble. We are told though to remember the sacrifice that Christ had given for our sins by the symbolical comemoration of the last Supper - when Jesus instructed, "Do this in memory of me" - and we have the communion once a month at church. Quote
betsy Posted December 4, 2012 Report Posted December 4, 2012 (edited) Well, apparently there are 330 pagan gods. Out of curiousity....pagans on this board, which among these gods/godesses do you worship? A SMALL DICTIONARY OF PAGAN GODS & GODDESSES http://www.unc.edu/~...od_dess_es.html Wyly, you speak of ancestors - would you say your ancestors woshipped the Norse gods? Some of you guys speak of the solstice....here are some of the dieties and monsters of the solstice. How do you do your worship? Wyly, I think you said you practice EXCEPT the naked dancing by the tree. What are the other ways? Gods, Goddesses, and Monsters of the Winter Solstice http://www.paganscir...winter-solstice Edited December 4, 2012 by betsy Quote
betsy Posted December 4, 2012 Report Posted December 4, 2012 Come to think of it, you aren't atheists at all.....and you're not agnostics either. Paganism involves belief in gods and goddesses/deities. Quote
betsy Posted December 4, 2012 Report Posted December 4, 2012 As long as I get the days off... I bet there'll be war if they try to take those away! Quote
Sleipnir Posted December 4, 2012 Author Report Posted December 4, 2012 Well, apparently there are 330 pagan gods. Out of curiousity....pagans on this board, which among these gods/godesses do you worship? A SMALL DICTIONARY OF PAGAN GODS & GODDESSES A 'small' dictionary of 330 gods - anyone else see the irony in that post? Quote "All you need in this life is ignorance and confidence; then success is sure." - Mark Twain
Mighty AC Posted December 4, 2012 Report Posted December 4, 2012 How do you do your worship? As it turns out I honour Odin on his day (Wednesday) with offerings of refuse, recyclables and the playing of hockey poorly. Quote "Our lives begin to end the day we stay silent about the things that matter." - Martin Luther King Jr"Those who can make you believe absurdities, can make you commit atrocities" - Voltaire
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