America's war on Christmas

The War on Christmas begins around the same time each year when stores start selling plastic or forest-cut Christmas trees and inflatable Santa Claus giants. Depending on what most media outlets are writing or broadcasting, this war is more or less devoted to a subversive effort by extreme-left liberals to erase all traces of Christianity. And they are succeeding! Less and fewer ornaments are seen with the images of the Child Jesus, Mary, Joseph, the Magi and the shepherds, despite the fact that these "festivals" are commemorating an event that occurred 20 centuries ago, as represented by those figures. In fact, they have practically disappeared from shops, postcards, and lighting arrangements we all joyfully enjoy in front of many homes.

The truth is that, for many centuries, people had been celebrating Christmas by going to church, closing businesses, singing Christmas carols, and enjoying cider, champagne, or wine with family and friends. However, the war on Christmas is nothing new.

In 1657, the British Parliament prohibited closing businesses at Christmas or attending or celebrating a Christmas service. But the English people decided that they would not put aside their festivities without a fight. Riots and street protests broke out, while many people continued to celebrate Christmas clandestinely –in private– inside their homes or even in their places of worship.

To make matters worse, when the Puritans fled England, they discouraged Christmas celebrations in the New World, despite being Christians, and went so far in Massachusetts as to condemn them as a crime punishable by law; but they could not force other colonies in the New World to do the same. Christmas celebrations were common in Virginia, Maryland, the Carolinas, Delaware, and other colonies where immigrants kept the Christmas traditions they brought from the Old World intact.

Eventually, Christmas celebrations prevailed in the United States. However, as they became more popular over the years, they became more commercialized as well. Both Christians and non-Christians continued to place Christmas trees or anticipate the visits of Santa Claus, but with the gradual disappearance of the scene of Jesus' birth. Of course, allowing to be carried away by the obsessive impulse of buying gifts, more and more gifts! for family and friends. And the commercialization of that commemorative date became more and more intense: "Black Friday" was invented, the Friday after Thanksgiving and the official start of the Christmas shopping season, giving way to stores opening their doors Thanksgiving night to the detriment of their own employees, religious or not. Online retailers struggling to take part in the consumer's bonanza, created Cyber ​​Monday to entice WEB shoppers to buy more. And Christmas began to turn into a consumer feast.

Despite the commercialization of Christmas, it was still considered primarily a religious holiday for most of the 20th century. But over the past 25 years or so, secularists, pseudo-humanists, and atheists have become more vocal about the so-called and misinterpreted separation of Church and State.

Some private citizens, the ACLU, and other organizations have campaigned to file multiple lawsuits against local and federal governments to remove Jesus' birth scenes and other Christian symbols from public places. They have also taken legal steps to remove Christian references, songs, and the word "Christmas" from school plays and programs. Even some television networks have banned that word from their programs!

However, many Christians consider this an attack on their freedom of speech and religion. They claim that America was founded on Christian principles, that it is the product of Judeo-Christian culture and civilization, and that Christmas is a federal holiday that celebrates the birth of Christ, so Christian Christmas displays should be left alone wherever they are freely displayed.

When some popular retailers stopped using the word Christmas in their promotional materials and allegedly instructed their employees to avoid saying "Merry Christmas!," it ignited a fire of outrage among many Christians. When word spread, thousands of Christians signed petitions and boycotted shops that misrepresented these celebrations' significance, forcing some to change their stance. However, many stores continued to use general terms to refer to December 25th. Advocates on both sides of the debate enjoyed long-time coverage in the media and kept the war in the headlines year after year. The rhetoric increased in July 2017 and the following months when President Donald Trump announced during a speech at the Celebrate Freedom Concert: "... I reiterate that we are going to start saying 'Merry Christmas' again."

However, the anti-religious tendency continues to prevail, which has penetrated insidiously and very deeply in academic and intellectual circles, until it has managed to influence the decisions of the judicial system and the legislatures, not only to cancel a deeply-rooted popular tradition but to sow anti-religious doctrines in schools, colleges and universities.

Throughout history, no anti-religious movement has been able to sustain these culture wars for long and the popular traditions and the faith that guides the lifestyle of very broad sectors of society, both in past centuries and in our days, have eventually prevailed. Therefore, the odds are in favor of those who know the meaning of Christmas and thus celebrate it. Let us not allow ourselves to be subdued but let's say bluntly and cheerfully: Merry Christmas! Atheists or believers of other religions can celebrate in their own way. They deserve full respect. It would be enough if they learn as well to show a little respect for the traditions of others.