Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays

Why are retailers afraid to use "Merry Christmas"? It is amazing to me that the demographic that stands to benefit the most from the "Christmas" holiday is the demographic that has a problem with Christmas. Retailers across the country are once again refusing to use the expression "Merry Christmas". I visited the Home Depot web site today and found that I could search for, and find, Hanukkah decorations, but when I searched on "Christmas" I came up with nothing. I called their 800 number and asked about this. The customer care associate read a scripted statement to me over the phone. Clearly they have already had a lot of people call in regarding the issue or they would not have a prepared statement. The text the associate read stated that the word Christmas is used in the stores at the point of sale where the customer would find the Christmas decorations. However, the Home Depot chooses not to use the word Christmas, preferring Happy Holidays, in their marketing and advertising. Are they afraid of driving away Christmas shopping customers if they call it Christmas?

It is true that Christmas is not the only holiday celebrated at this time of year. The "holiday" decorations that are already appearing on the shelves of stores include everything from Halloween and Thanksgiving, to Hanukkah and Christmas. But stores do not have any problem calling Halloween Halloween, Thanksgiving Thanksgiving, or Hanukkah Hanukkah. Why then is Christmas a "holiday"? Given that our country was founded on Judeo-Christian principles (see Endowed by the Creator), and that a vast majority of Americans still identify themselves as Christians, it is difficult to understand why the Christian holiday is the one under attack. The truth is that Christmas is under attack by a very small minority of the citizens of America. But for some reason retailers, city managers and countless individuals are afraid of this minority and will not stand up for the values with which they were raised. This phenomenon is much farther reaching than just the Christmas issue and will be explored in future posts.

For now though, I must return to the question with which this post began. Why are retailers afraid to use "Merry Christmas"? I submit it is not because Christmas is a Christian holiday! In fact, although historically Christmas is a Christian holiday, certainly today it is more of a secular holiday. I guarantee that non-Christians will take the day off, put up a "Christmas" tree, and give each other "Christmas" gifts. They don't even call them "Holiday" gifts! They call them Christmas gifts. And where do Americans get their Christmas gifts? They purchase them from retailers. So who benefits the most from Christmas? Right - Retailers!

The true meaning of Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. Even those who do not believe Jesus is the Son of God believe he was an actual historical figure. Though they may not stake their eternal salvation on Him, they count their calendar based on the year of his birth. Even if they do not believe He is the only way to heaven, most acknowledge he was a good man and a good teacher. Even the prophet Muhammed insisted that Jesus was one of a short list of the great prophets and that His teachings should be respected and followed. So why can't we say "Merry Christmas"?

Because it is a choice. But in this case, the majority of Americans are not making the choice. Rather the majority of Americans are allowing a minority of Americans to make the choice for them. A small minority of Americans have a problem with "Merry Christmas". So retailers, who benefit more from the Christmas holiday than anyone else, refuse to say "Merry Christmas". Cities, the majority of whose citizens still identify themselves as Christians, will not allow the traditional Nativity Scene to be displayed on public property unless equal space is allocated for other religious holiday displays - even if no other religions have a traditional display to erect. Schools, who should be teaching students about all different peoples, cultures and traditions, as well as tolerance of the differences, are intimidated into not celebrating one of the oldest traditions in our great nation.

In America the constitution guarantees us freedom of choice. We are promised that we can worship our God in the way we see fit without fear of persecution. But apparently this holds true only within the privacy of our own home or our own church if we are Christians. The very guarantees of our constitution have allowed the few to intimidate the many. Shame on the authorities, whether private or public, who have allowed this to happen. Shame on the majority of Americans who allow their rights to be trampled. Shame on any lawmaker who rules that it is illegal to speak out in a demonstration of our faith!

We have freedom of religion. Count a blessing.
Some have exercised that freedom to the detriment of others. Count a curse.

Oh......and MERRY CHRISTMAS!