Christmas Hypocrisy?

[Cthulhu 2020]

Really? I tend to see them collecting for the poor outside of stores while ringing a bell saying "Merry Christmas" I had no idea all Christians were rich

Every single one of them rings bells outside stores? News to me. Last salvation army Santa I talked to wasn't even christian. He was just doing a job so his family could eat. I put 5 in the pot and 10 in his pocket.

[Deleted]

I mean an atheist celebrating the Roman festival for the god Saturn would also be equally hypocritical, no?

People like celebrating, peopel like social events, people like presents.

Having celebrations is just having celebrations.

[Kathandira]

I mean an atheist celebrating the Roman festival for the god Saturn would also be equally hypocritical, no?

As an atheist, I celebrate the holiday because it is a cultural event in the U.S.

I do not celebrate it in any sort of religious fashion. I just exchange gifts with people and have dinner. I do not go to church, nor do I hang any religious icons around the house. I simply celebrate it as a consumer event.

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Every single one of them rings bells outside stores? News to me. Last salvation army Santa I talked to wasn't even christian. He was just doing a job so his family could eat. I put 5 in the pot and 10 in his pocket.

Good on you!

[Gheld]

Whoever realized that people spending money on products stimulates the economy was a brilliant person (s). It's just too bad that so many people now advocate for the opppsite.

People are going to spend the money anyways.

Creating a yearly boom and bust cycle which sees virtual economic depression every January because people have emptied their wallets in December is not a positive trend.

[zenkai]

Every single one of them rings bells outside stores? News to me. Last salvation army Santa I talked to wasn't even christian. He was just doing a job so his family could eat. I put 5 in the pot and 10 in his pocket.

Because all Salvation army workers are doing that, amazing how he fished out that 10 in public in a locked canister. So tell me do you think everyone who Celebrates a Christian Christmas really is poor hating people? You said it I just want to see if you really believe it or you was just using the chance to spew your hate that you tend to do.

[Kathandira]

People are going to spend the money anyways.

Creating a yearly boom and bust cycle which sees virtual economic depression every January because people have emptied their wallets in December is not a positive trend.

Know what always bothered me? If I spend $100 on you for xmas, and you spend $100 on me for xmas, what was the point? Why didn't you just buy your own $100 item(s), and I do the same? I get that it is in the spirit of giving, but why not just do that spontaneously at any time during the year?

I prefer the Jehovah's Witness approach to gift giving. They give each other gifts randomly throughout the year to show their appreciation for each other. This would mean FAR more to me, than someone giving me a xmas gift because that is the appointed day to do it. It seems more systematic, and less sincere the way we commonly do it.

[Cthulhu 2020]

People are going to spend the money anyways.

Creating a yearly boom and bust cycle which sees virtual economic depression every January because people have emptied their wallets in December is not a positive trend.

There are a multitude of industries that make their way off of seasonal sales. Something that happens consistently every single year isn't something to worry about, especially if every company can prepare for dry months.

We saw an overall huge drop in gift giving in 07 during the recession, since people had much less money to spend than decades prior. This sudden lack of revenue in December made the recession that much worde.

You're right, we don't want to create spending that can't be maintained, it's why reaganomics fucked us so hard. It's debt spending, which can only be maintained for so long.

[Gheld]

Know what always bothered me? If I spend $100 on you for xmas, and you spend $100 on me for xmas, what was the point? Why did you just buy your own $100 item(s), and I do the same? I get that it is in the spirit of giving, but why not just do that spontaneously at any time during the year?

I prefer the Jehovah's Witness approach to gift giving. They give each other gifts randomly throughout the year to show their appreciation for each other. This would mean FAR more to me, than someone giving me a xmas gift because that is the appointed day to do it. It seems more systematic, and less sincere the way we commonly do it.

My family figured that one out a long time ago.

So we just save our Christmas shopping budget for the children.

[Cthulhu 2020]

Because all Salvation army workers are doing that, amazing how he fished out that 10 in public in a locked canister. So tell me do you think everyone who Celebrates a Christian Christmas really is poor hating people? You said it I just want to see if you really believe it or you was just using the chance to spew your hate that you tend to do.

You're terrible at reading, that much is obvious.

I gave him 10. From me to him.

If you think I said every staunch christian is a hypocrite about Christmas and Christy values, you should be able to point out where I said that. I doubt you'll be able to though. I've never claimed they all are.

[Deleted]

They should read 'Keep Christ To Yourself'.

[zEmini]

You are all wrong. Christmas is about receiving presents ... especially that ones that I get to open. The more I get the better!

[Reeve]

oof. thats quite an outdated view on nero. look for sources outside the apocrypha and the 3 senators and youll see that he wasnt the antichrist (literally what they call him) but instead he was a guy who probably actually did hate the jews, (since he had problems with revolts through a majority of his career) but the christians were practically nonexistent at that point.

one thing history has taught us is that it takes a government to persecute religion. so if you want to look for religious persecution you need to find a government which sanctions such persecution. since governments arent generally in favor of persecuting taxpayers, the amount of persecution in early history simply because of religion is rare. and the level of persecution by grassroots religions is gonna be almost entirely nonexistent. since the majority of religions in the early christian days were grass roots, well, there ya go

Tacitus, the ancient Roman historian, specifically mentions "to get rid of the report, Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians (or Chrestians) by the populace."

He may not have been "the antichrist" or anything like that, but what I said in the paragraph you quoted was not "outdated," nor wrong.

The apocryphal story is that he fiddled while Rome burned. Nero wasn't the horrendous monster people think he was (more like a kid who was out of his depth), but to say he didn't persecute the Christians is simply untrue.

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Whoever realized that people spending money on products stimulates the economy was a brilliant person (s). It's just too bad that so many people now advocate for the opppsite.

Actually, by and large, economists say that Christmas gift giving is extremely inefficient. The aggregate value of the gifts received, based on the way the people feel about those gifts, is far lower than the aggregate cost of materials and time and such required to create and sell those gifts, causing a net drain on the economy. I spend $100 buying you a gift that you'd only be willing to spend $50 on if you were buying it for yourself. Value is lost.

Christmas would be far more economically friendly if everyone bought their own gifts using the same amount of money they'd otherwise spend on other people.

[Katchii]

"Keep the Christ in Christmas" just means Christmas should only be celebrated in the manner Christians(TM) allow you to and if you don't do it the way they say you're an evil pagan and not allowed to enjoy the season because they own it.

No... It just means remember that Christmas is about giving, not getting gifts. Commercialism may be part of it and some people grudgingly accept it and buy some of the seasonal stuff to show they like the season. gifts. Having reindeer antlers just shows they like the season.

Jesus' birthday?

Jesus wasn't born in the Winter, based on information regarding location of stars in the sky, presence of sheep and shepherds outside, distance the wise men traveled, etc..... It was originally a Roman holiday called Saturnalia which was then adopted by Christianity.

http://www.simpletoremember.com/vita...eRealStory.htm

[SirBeef]

Keep the Christ in Christmas just means that they can't stand people telling them to have a happy holiday.

Bingo! Of course those people need to be reminded that Christ was most likely born in Spring, and it was in 336AD that Dec 25th was first celebrated as Christ's birthday, probably by Constantine, the first Christian Roman Emperor, and later made official by Pope Julius I. This was done to mask the old Roman Pagan sun god Mithra's birthday of Dec. 25th. But whatever.

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No... It just means remember that Christmas is about giving, not getting gifts. Commercialism may be part of it and some people grudgingly accept it and buy some of the seasonal stuff to show they like the season. gifts. Having reindeer antlers just shows they like the season.



Jesus wasn't born in the Winter, based on information regarding location of stars in the sky, presence of sheep and shepherds outside, distance the wise men traveled, etc..... It was originally a Roman holiday called Saturnalia which was then adopted by Christianity.

http://www.simpletoremember.com/vita...eRealStory.htm

8 min. Damn.

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Know what always bothered me? If I spend $100 on you for xmas, and you spend $100 on me for xmas, what was the point? Why didn't you just buy your own $100 item(s), and I do the same? I get that it is in the spirit of giving, but why not just do that spontaneously at any time during the year?

I prefer the Jehovah's Witness approach to gift giving. They give each other gifts randomly throughout the year to show their appreciation for each other. This would mean FAR more to me, than someone giving me a xmas gift because that is the appointed day to do it. It seems more systematic, and less sincere the way we commonly do it.

We are Atheists, But we love celebrating the giving nature of this holiday, and a bit of tradition from our parents. We give each other gifts, my daughter gets gifts, she gives us gifts thorough the year also. The thing is for Christmas, we do not set a budget for each other. We get what we want for Christmas. Rarely does it equal out. I usually give a lot more than I get back. But it is all for fun. Usually we save the bigger cooler items for Christmas.

[ellieg]

I like to say "merry Christmas" and not be shunned because I didn't say happy holidays. Some people think it means im forcing my religion on them. I don't see it that way. If you wanna say happy kwanza or whatever then go ahead. Im going to be grateful that you are wishing well on me. Im not going to bite your head off.

Its also about the spirit of Christmas. I don't care if jesus was born in the spring or its a stolen holiday or any other shit that doesn't matter. Just like thanksgiving, youre supposed to be extra thankful for all the friends and family you have. Donate some extra money, be a little friendlier with strangers, all that jazz.

[zenkai]

You're terrible at reading, that much is obvious.

I gave him 10. From me to him.

If you think I said every staunch christian is a hypocrite about Christmas and Christy values, you should be able to point out where I said that. I doubt you'll be able to though. I've never claimed they all are.

Ok

Those who want to "keep the christ in Christmas" tend to be the ones who hate poor people on welfare and are pretty miserly people in general. They are supposed to not worship gold nor desire wealth but do anyway.

So yeah, hypocrites.

I like to know why you believe people who celebrate a Christian Christmas hate poor people?

[Reeve]

I like to say "merry Christmas" and not be shunned because I didn't say happy holidays. Some people think it means im forcing my religion on them. I don't see it that way. If you wanna say happy kwanza or whatever then go ahead. Im going to be grateful that you are wishing well on me. Im not going to bite your head off.

Its also about the spirit of Christmas. I don't care if jesus was born in the spring or its a stolen holiday or any other shit that doesn't matter. Just like thanksgiving, youre supposed to be extra thankful for all the friends and family you have. Donate some extra money, be a little friendlier with strangers, all that jazz.

It's fine for you to say "Merry Christmas." That's just well-wishing.

Saying "keep the Christ in Christmas," on the other hand, is trying to tell everyone who isn't Christian that they're WRONG for celebrating the holiday they know and love. It's especially insulting, given the history of Christmas didn't start with Christ.

[Kujako]

It's fine for you to say "Merry Christmas." That's just well-wishing.

Saying "keep the Christ in Christmas," on the other hand, is trying to tell everyone who isn't Christian that they're WRONG for celebrating the holiday they know and love. It's especially insulting, given the history of Christmas didn't start with Christ.

It's why I always say "keep Moses in Presidents Day!" just to confuse people.

[Vapo]

Would be nice if people stopped celebrating Christmas and started celebrating Joulu instead as should