Merry Christmas

[Prospero]

Most of us live in Christian families. Maybe this ain't true for you, but I do, and Christmas means gift time. But first we go to the church (which happens once or twice every year, what a fraud). Then we unite, which also does not happen very often.

It would be too disrespectful not to participate (and I have much respect for my family) so I think I'll give some 'special' gifts this year, as for the years to come. I mean things I do myself rather than goods. It has been only two years, view my young age, that I've been buying gifts, only a few, and I'm about to change this. What will you do on December the 25th?

[scourge]

The tree still goes up and it remains a time of gathering. I have forbidden church attendance and gifts that are purchased.

[Dunkelheit]

Give oaths instead of gifts and you'll essentially be celebrating Yule. The decorating the tree, the ham dinner, burning of the yule log, etc, etc are all just traditional pagan traditions for the winter solstice. People are never satisfied with gifts anyway, I think underneath it all most people enjoy Christmas just for the coming together of family and the celebratory feasts and decorations. It would be absurd to give up holidays, well at least keep the meaningful ones (an easy way to identify useful holidays is that they follow the patterns of nature).

[Apocalyptic Raves]

I'm trying to gather a close group of friends for a yule celebration of sorts in the woods with a bonfire. That won't be on Dec 25 though, I reserve that day for my family even though I've specifically asked for no gifts, and my family has respected that despite the fact that every last one of them are Christian.

[AttheGates1996]

I'm not a Christian, but I still finding myself enjoying Christmas. As a matter of fact, I'm pretty anti-Christian, but that's not the point. I simply like the feeling of bliss that is spread through everybody during this time. Past memories are also great, very influential.

[Apocalyptic Raves]

Atthegates, I too used to enjoy this bliss you talk about but recently it seems more like indoctrination. Every winter after thanksgiving, the obsession begins. It turns every normal moderner into a ravenous uberconsumer.

[Dunkelheit]

I'm trying to gather a close group of friends for a yule celebration of sorts in the woods with a bonfire. That won't be on Dec 25 though, I reserve that day for my family even though I've specifically asked for no gifts, and my family has respected that despite the fact that every last one of them are Christian.

The actual date of the solstice varries from year to year, so you most likely can have it on the correct day and still have Christmas Day set aside for your family. The date was set to the 25th to coincide with the Roman calendar and match up better with Christianity.

[Apocalyptic Raves]

Winter Solstice falls on the 22nd

[Mithrandir]

Atthegates, I too used to enjoy this bliss you talk about but recently it seems more like indoctrination. Every winter after thanksgiving, the obsession begins. It turns every normal moderner into a ravenous uberconsumer.

I agree completely. The only thing Christmas means to me anymore is very interesting music. I'll be dropping into various cathedrals (the one's with the big pipe organs) to listen to the music/choral music that is performed on and around the day. Everything else I find boring/irrelevant. I don't have a family anywhere within a few thousand miles, so I'll be spending the day pretty much on my own, observing people. Christmas used to be a nice time in the late 80s/early 90s, especially when I was living in Europe, but as we all know various factors have led it to just be another day where people can feel good about themselves a little more overboard than usual.

[AttheGates1996]

Not in an attempt to sound rude but I think you guys are over analyzing Christmas. For one time in the year I think you should forget outside society and its obsession with a holiday. It doesn’t matter what it’s celebrated for, whether it be Jesus, or a pagan tradition. I like to simply escape from all stresses, such as work and school, and just sit on my ass listening to interesting music and relaxing.

I wouldn’t say that Christmas is anymore of an indoctrination than it was in the past, not to say that it was never like this, but I choose to let Christmas a blissful time by own thoughts, not because society wants it to be that way.

I hope that made sense. It very well might not have.

[Humanicide]

Let me go on the record by saying that i work at a hardware store, and if i hear one more fucking "Xmas carol" i am going to rip my hair out and go completely batshit crazy.

But anyway, i do not consider myself a Christian, however, i wish to avoid tensions within my family (my mother is not religious either, my father is somewhat, but nearly all of my immediate relatives are). My family does not frequent church during holidays, or at all (except when we have gone to Greece, my father's home, i have been to many churches there, quite well constructed, beautiful artwork as well). Rather, we treat the time as a time to come together and be a family, if not only for a few hours. We also go to my aunt's or have people over at my house.

Honestly, if there wasnt so much fucking commercialism involved with this holiday i dare say i might like Christmas.

[we hope you die]

Christmas has become a celebration of capitalism. To some it is still a religious event, be it christian or pagan, but for most it is a time to shop, shop for gifts and shop for food. All the big retail brands capitalize on this extra thirst that people have at this time of year. Capitalism is the new western religion, and christmas has become the biggest date on the consumerist calender.

[Gruumsh]

I live in a traditional christian society, where christmas means going to your granparents' house (where other members of the wider and closer family gather) to eat, drink and talk. It's good and relaxed atmosphere, with no consumer bullshit plastic gifts; my presents involve fruit, homemade juices, pršut (smoked pork meat, extremely delicious), i.e. the stuff that are usefull, and some money (which I try to spend wisely).

I don't go to church for a boring mass, christmas is for me just a time to have a good time, even though i'm not a christian and my wider family aren't some religious fanatics that pray all day long; we avoid consumerism crazyness that infects everybody else. Also, i don't want to upset my grandparents by tellig them i dislike (to say the least) christianity, they don't need that in their old age.

[Prospero]

I guess your from Croatia, I got ancestry from there. I visited Austria, Slovenia and Croatia this summer and I was impressed at how seriously religious celebrations were taken. But most importantly, I was impressed with the fact that everything would stop on Sundays! That was simply amazing, no country should allow people to work on Sundays. There is many other things that impressed me in this part of Europe. By the way, I'm from Quebec, Can. and here there is no rest on Sundays anymore... Perhaps this is why our society goes crazy every holidays.

[Humanicide]

In Europe, it is common to have businesses close 1-2 hours every day for lunch, or to have barely anything open on a Sunday. thats how it was when i visited Greece.

Greek Easter, by the way, is a celebration which is fantastic. Tons of food, alcohol, and good times.