Christmas and Christianity in the Modern Culture
Dec 18th, 2007 by TheStraitGate
Christmas and Christianity in the Modern Culture
by The Liberty Alliance
As our nation continues to drift into a state of secular monotony that guarantees that nobody is offended (unless you are a Christian), we are again witnessing many retailers deciding to abolish “Christmas” in favor of the “holiday season.”
Because Jesus Christ — the Son of God who came to earth to save us — does not meet contemporary criteria for “diversity” and “multiculturalism,” the day that bears His name is becoming increasingly unacceptable. And yet these retailers that want to take advantage of the Christmas tradition of gift giving have become painstakingly opposed to the mere mention of “Christmas.”
I certainly understand that Christmas has become largely plagued by consumerism in our modern culture. Nevertheless, I find it troubling that secularist engineers are recklessly encouraging American companies to sweep the term under the rug because it might be offensive to a few people.
This effort has seeped into virtually every part of our culture. On a radio commercial heard this morning for a national restaurant, a female character declared “Happy Holidays” to her husband as she presented his presents to him. It was amazing that the restaurant ad would allude to the Christmas gift-giving tradition but reject the word “Christmas.”
In central Ohio, controversy involves displays outside government buildings and in public parks. First, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources recently ordered all state parks to remove Nativity scenes, citing a complaint. Second, the city of Whitehall, received a complaint from an anti-Christian organization (The Freedom from Religion Foundation) because of a Nativity scene at the city hall. The Nativity is part of a display that contains a Christmas tree and the secular symbol of reindeer.
These two cases and many others are indicative of the American culture wars. Typically, a handful of irritable atheists — and sometimes just one — raises an uproar about a Christmas display and a secularist legal group starts throwing around threats.
However, one cannot read our nation’s founding documents or observe the Judeo-Christian influence of iconic works of art and architecture in our nation’s capitol without seeing that America was founded by men who understood the need for Americans to publicly express thanks to God.
So what do we do to take a stand in these modern culture wars?
As Christians, we must pledge ourselves to becoming proactive with our families, ensuring that our children and grandchildren understand the colossal Judeo-Christian influence on our nation’s founding. We must also teach them of their constitutional religious freedoms and rights to fearlessly live out their faith in Jesus Christ, even though they may face opposition. And, most importantly, we must make sure that our children understand that Jesus came to earth as a first step in providing the avenue to heaven for all who believe in Him.
And finally, in this land of the free, we must never be afraid to proclaim a “Merry Christmas!” to all!
