Happy Holidays or Merry Christmas?
"Are you allowed to say 'Merry Christmas' or must you say 'Happy Holidays' here?" the lady asked.
"No, we say 'Merry Christmas'" replied the cashier.
"Good, then I'll continue shopping here."
This short verbal exchange took place recently in one of my favorite retail establishments. Amazing isn't? A person willing to shop elsewhere because of they way an employee is told to greet customers during the holidays. Forget low prices, customer service, and availability of products. Finally, someone willing to send a message with his or her money based on the principles. Almost like not leaving a tip for bad service. Man, isn't that refreshing! Because really - IT IS THE PRINCIPLE of the thing isn't it? How can we paganize a holiday with a clear conscience by removing the word "Christmas"? I mean visualize this: It's the beginning of the Christmas season, the celebration of the birth of the Savior. The day after Thanksgiving. . .5 am. . . scores of worshippers gather around the low burning lamps of the mall parking lot, or stand around the covered pallets at Walmart waiting for the unveiling. . . And for the next 20-30 days, we plot and plan, pull out the credit card, shop-swipe-sign, shop-swipe-sign, shop-swipe-sign, until our hands are cramped, our hair is frazzled, and we can't wait for all the annoying relatives to crawl back into whatever or wherever they came.
Fast forward. . .Christmas morning. . . 5 am. . . ok 7am. . . coffee brewing, paper rattling, kid's screaming. . . out comes the stuff. . .big stuff, little stuff, expensive stuff, cheap stuff, stuff, stuff, stuff. Kid's calling each other. . ."guess what Santa brought!" . . . Mom's and Dad's whispering "Did we remember the batteries? Oh, no, why can't Home Depot be open today?" Swapping gifts, acting like we really like that ugly sweater or tie that'll go in the drawer and never again see the light of day. . . until the yard sale anyway. We've celebrated Christmas. So dang it, wish me a Merry Christmas, not Happy Holidays!
Ok. . . I'm exaggerating. I like the holidays. I like saying Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays. I do love my relatives. (And guys if you're reading this, don't take my presents back . . .please oh please oh please.) But I do want to make a point.
I'm really sad that our culture is even struggling with this issue. Traditional Christian values and accepted norms we have taken for granted for the past couple hundred years have been pushed to the breaking point. "One nation under God" "In God we Trust" (How did all those references to God get into our documents anyway? Darn aliens - that's just a theory) In this land of free speech groups like the American Center for Law and Justice (www.aclj.org) have to spend thousands of dollars for Christian chaplains to be able to pray in Jesus name. What? (Isn't that what Christian chaplains do?)
So . . what if we convince everyone in the United States to say "Merry Christmas" What if we get everyone to agree to say it our way? Have we preserved Christmas? Or have we won a fight of semantics? All I'm saying is this: Preserve "Merry Christmas". Keep saying it. Fight for it. Keep an official place in the culture for Christ. But remember that just because we may preserve the phrase "Merry Christmas" doesn't mean we've actually preserved the meaning behind it. Isn't that what really matters anyway?
"No, we say 'Merry Christmas'" replied the cashier.
"Good, then I'll continue shopping here."
This short verbal exchange took place recently in one of my favorite retail establishments. Amazing isn't? A person willing to shop elsewhere because of they way an employee is told to greet customers during the holidays. Forget low prices, customer service, and availability of products. Finally, someone willing to send a message with his or her money based on the principles. Almost like not leaving a tip for bad service. Man, isn't that refreshing! Because really - IT IS THE PRINCIPLE of the thing isn't it? How can we paganize a holiday with a clear conscience by removing the word "Christmas"? I mean visualize this: It's the beginning of the Christmas season, the celebration of the birth of the Savior. The day after Thanksgiving. . .5 am. . . scores of worshippers gather around the low burning lamps of the mall parking lot, or stand around the covered pallets at Walmart waiting for the unveiling. . . And for the next 20-30 days, we plot and plan, pull out the credit card, shop-swipe-sign, shop-swipe-sign, shop-swipe-sign, until our hands are cramped, our hair is frazzled, and we can't wait for all the annoying relatives to crawl back into whatever or wherever they came.
Fast forward. . .Christmas morning. . . 5 am. . . ok 7am. . . coffee brewing, paper rattling, kid's screaming. . . out comes the stuff. . .big stuff, little stuff, expensive stuff, cheap stuff, stuff, stuff, stuff. Kid's calling each other. . ."guess what Santa brought!" . . . Mom's and Dad's whispering "Did we remember the batteries? Oh, no, why can't Home Depot be open today?" Swapping gifts, acting like we really like that ugly sweater or tie that'll go in the drawer and never again see the light of day. . . until the yard sale anyway. We've celebrated Christmas. So dang it, wish me a Merry Christmas, not Happy Holidays!
Ok. . . I'm exaggerating. I like the holidays. I like saying Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays. I do love my relatives. (And guys if you're reading this, don't take my presents back . . .please oh please oh please.) But I do want to make a point.
I'm really sad that our culture is even struggling with this issue. Traditional Christian values and accepted norms we have taken for granted for the past couple hundred years have been pushed to the breaking point. "One nation under God" "In God we Trust" (How did all those references to God get into our documents anyway? Darn aliens - that's just a theory) In this land of free speech groups like the American Center for Law and Justice (www.aclj.org) have to spend thousands of dollars for Christian chaplains to be able to pray in Jesus name. What? (Isn't that what Christian chaplains do?)
So . . what if we convince everyone in the United States to say "Merry Christmas" What if we get everyone to agree to say it our way? Have we preserved Christmas? Or have we won a fight of semantics? All I'm saying is this: Preserve "Merry Christmas". Keep saying it. Fight for it. Keep an official place in the culture for Christ. But remember that just because we may preserve the phrase "Merry Christmas" doesn't mean we've actually preserved the meaning behind it. Isn't that what really matters anyway?
posted by Kim Reeder | 6:24 PM
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