We are currently in “the Christmas season,” when nearly all public spaces have Christmas decorations put up and Christmas music playing, while shops also have employees dressed in Christmas themed outfits promoting their store’s Christmas sale.
It is safe to say that between November and Christmas Day, it is impossible to not notice the latter as it makes itself the key focus of the season, yet there are also other festivals from around the world happening during this time of year. Some examples are: Hanukkah, Yule, Mawlid-al-Nabi and Kwanza, to name a few. As a result, many prefer to wish one another “Happy Holidays” rather than “Merry Christmas” – a sensible solution to the matter. Unfortunately, the replacing of the old Christian-centric greeting with a more inclusive one has been interpreted by some as an affront to Christianity, with others going so far as to call it a “war on Christmas.” They are essentially claiming that by not making Christianity the main focus, other faiths are “forcing their views onto everyone else” as if all non-Christians don’t have Christmas rammed down their throats all day, every day for two whole months a year.
Many of us have witnessed a person who does not celebrate Christmas ask their teacher to play something other than Christmas music in the classroom, only to be unceremoniously dubbed “grinch” by their peers. People argue that “Christmas is a time for joy and goodwill! What kind of person wouldn’t want to be a part of that?” as if Christianity is the only faith with a festival centred around light and love for one another.
Other faiths are more than rich enough to have their own customs and festivals. Non-Christians do not “need” Christmas. They also do not ask that everybody partakes in their customs – they simply say that they do not wish to celebrate Christmas. In conclusion, there is no “war on Christmas,” just people with differences trying to peacefully coexist.
by Sanga Arivanantham
