How many Non-Christians Celebrate Xmas?

Actually x-mas isn't really when Christ was born, he was born more in the spring. The only reasons we celebrate it now is because pagans had mid-winter fests and the christians wanted something to celebrate. Or at least that is what I've been told.
My family doesn't celebrate x-mas like a lot of people. We have a few nativity scenes up, no x-mas tree, and no santa. I never really bought off on santa anyways, though the story of saint nick is inspiring. Holidays arn't really a big thing around my house.

ORIGINAL: rwbeagles

naaah Xmas is way too commercialized in the USA to be compared.

I do know some people mind that.

Personally I find the giving spirit and family gatherings enough reason to get jiggy with and enjoy Xmas.

Me too, although this year I really was depressed and couldn't get motivated, but I'm there tonight. I will "Act as if" as Dr. Phil says.

Personally I find the giving spirit and family gatherings enough reason to get jiggy with and enjoy Xmas.

 
That's where I think having kids, especially little ones, makes all the difference.  Not only do we not have kids, but no one we know does either.  To top it off, everyone's gotten in the "I really don't need anything" mode the last couple of years.  Makes shopping, which I usually love, a real bummer.  The bummer for them is that I'm going to bake again this year [sm=proud.gif]

I am Jewish and although I don't set up a tree, it is based on laziness because we go away that week and setting up a tree is a hassle.  I did put up xmas stockings though.  If my bf was not christian, maybe I wouldn't but when I lived with roomies who were not Jewish, we did Chrismakkah.  If I have kids, they will celebrate both religions, because my bf nor I are very religious and many of the Christian holidays are commercialized and if you don't take part, you feel left out.

Another non-Christian who does Christmas here. Though I personally try really hard to keep it low-key. We don't have a tree or decorations or anything.

I've actually been wanting to just knock it off but the extended family is sort of married to the concept so we must go along. My parents aren't Christian either and I grew up celebrating Christmas. It's just secular tradition at this point.
 
The major holiday for the faith that DH and I actually practice is next week, December 7. But it's not a very fun kind of holiday, there's no gift-giving involved. If I had my way the whole family would celebrate the Annual Gift-Giving Holiday at New Year's. That seems kind of like a logical time to celebrate, give gifts, etc.... We have Jews, Catholics, Buddhists and Atheists in the extended family and I think it would be awesome if we could all just break free of the December 25 date.
 
But okay, a talking Jesus doll? What is up with that? I'm slightly offended and he's not even my God!

ORIGINAL: glenmar

There are any number of Christians who in fact celebrate Hanukkah because they are married to a Jewish person 

 
That's exactly us.  DH is Jewish but not all too practicing, but would celebrate xmas if only because "everyone else does"  I celebrate but not because I believe in the religion, only because I get to spend time with family, etc.  I was raised catholic but don't practice either.  I have mixed views on the topic, a "god" versus darwinian evolution, for example. 
 
 

Well, I'm a christian and believe in Darwinian Evolution, but I might just be mixed up.  []
 
Anyways, I'm not much help except I can say I know many atheists that celebrate Christmas.  It's just a warm, happy, fuzzy season for them about family and giving.  I don't see anything strange about it.  I mean, Christmas is a religious holiday to me, but it is still mainly a family time.  I think it means different things to different people- from celibrating the birth of Jesus to spending quality time with family to giving as much as you can to even just buying other people gifts and receiving gifts. 

What about nativity scenes? with them Jesus's image and Mary and Joseph are made into images.

No, I said "action figures" - you know what I mean - toys for kids to play with and make toy companies and movie studios rich.

The creche is an ancient tradition. Now, I'm with Glenda, it's getting a little weird with the giant inflatable sno-globes and the lighted plastic thingies, but possibly people said that about the first lifesized carved dealies that people started decorating with, I don't know.

The difference is the spirit of the thing. The creche symbolizes something very specific which we celebrate now (like it or not, spring or not, pagan tradition or not) - the Incarnation. The talking Jesus doll? I dunno, what does he say - "Ye must be born again"? How do you summarize the greatest life that's ever been lived in a few electronic catch phrases when an entire Book (the bestselling Book ever) hardly suffices? Talk about bumper sticker theology gone to the next level.

I'm not pushy about Christmas (though calling it Xmas makes me shudder, I'll admit - what other religion would quiety stand by while the world X-es out their God's name in almost their biggest holy day?). Easter is far more important, though understanding Christmas is key to understanding Easter, really. I adore Easter, now. It's still largely religious in most places or ignored where it's not - to me that's preferable to the bunnies and "Hop right down to the car sale for these Egg-citing savings!" arrrrggggggghhhhh.

I'm a Christian, and of course we celebrate Christmas. And I do find the idea of a 'talking Jesus doll' offensive....how is that Christian anyway? Nativity scenes are a whole different thing, though. It also bothers me that 'everyone' now says Happy Holidays and Season's Greetings, just so they can get away with not saying Christmas. It's the same thing as saying X-mas, in my mind. They're trying to take the Christ out of Christmas. Or maybe some people are just trying to avoid using a long word like that, I don't know [&:] Also, the whole Santa Claus thing ( though not originally, as St. Nick) is used so that we don't have to focus on Jesus.....just like all those Christmas sales and all that.

Here's Santa Claus. Dang, he's just SO Christian. []

Nicholas was born in Asia Minor during the 3rd century in the Greek colony [1] of Patara in the province of Lycia, at a time when the region was Hellenistic in its culture and outlook. Nicholas became bishop of the city of Myra. He was very religious from an early age and devoted his life entirely to Christianity. He is said to have been born to relatively affluent Christian parents in Patara, Lycia, Asia Minor, Roman Empire where he also received his early schooling.[. . .]. Nicholas received his ordination as a priest at an early age.

In his most famous exploit however, a poor man had three daughters but could not afford a proper dowry for them. This meant that they would remain unmarried and probably, in absence of any other possible employment would have to become prostitutes. Hearing of the poor man's plight, Nicholas decided to help him but being too modest (or too shy) to help the man in public, he went to his house under the cover of night and threw three purses filled with gold coins through the window opening onto the man's floor. One version has him throwing one purse for three consecutive nights. Another has him throw the purses over a period of three years, each time the night before one of the daughters comes "of age". Invariably the third time the father lies in waiting, trying to discover their benefactor. In one version the father confronts the saint, only to have Saint Nicholas say it is not him he should thank God alone. In another version, Nicholas learns of the poor man's plan and drops the third bag down the chimney instead. For his help to the poor, Nicholas is the patron saint of pawnbrokers; the three gold balls traditionally hung outside a pawnshop symbolize the three sacks of gold. People then began to suspect that he was behind a large number of other anonymous gifts to the poor, using the inheritance from his wealthy parents. After he died, people in the region continued to give to the poor anonymously, and such gifts were still often attributed to St. Nicholas.

Why is he still so popular? Because he's the saint of presents? Maybe, but that's only recently:

In the Middle Ages, both Saint Nicholas and Martin of Tours were celebrated as true people's saints. Many churches were named for them and later gave their names to the villages that emerged around them. As described above, while most contemporary saints earned their place in heaven by dying for their faith in manners most unusual and cruel, both Nicholas and Martin lived peacefully to a ripe old age. At a time of Religious wars and Crusades the idea that one could go to heaven, even become a saint, just by the way one lived instead of the way one died must have offered a great deal of consolation for the Medieval common folk. Therefore this time made Saint Nicholas a 'popular' saint in every sense of the word, more than all

And so sad but so true today - I guess we've got this now, right?

So beloved is St. Nicholas by Russians, one commonly heard saying is "if God dies, at least we'll still have St. Nicholas."

we celebrate X-MAS, its the same holiday as christmas with the obvious missing. i personally dont see what christmas tree's, presents, and santa's have to do with the birth of christ [&:] 
 
on this note, have you heard of "[linkhttp://www.buynothingchristmas.org/]nothing for christmas[/link]" ? it is something christians have started doing. apparently they are starting to figure out their kids don't know what christmas is all about.....i think they should have known when people started calling it x-mas, that one would even call it that implies to me the total exclusion of christ from the celebration.
 
i just came up with this x-mas idea, my husband does not attend church, but i think he would call me an arse right now. but honestly, i think that pretty much sums it up for what alot of people celebrate, X-MAS, they have a big holiday, but it has nothing to do with jesus.
 
i think maybe you could replace the gift-recievers name for the x. christmas should be giving gifts to christ not each other. so when i give my husband his gift, i should probably say, merry mikemas. this could be awkward though if you have a relative named chris. i better just stop now, my catholic parents and grandparents will think i need some demons exercised if they ever read this [8|]

lets not even get into how the ressurection of christ relates to bunnies and eggs []
 
off topic.....
 
i'm still scarred from an experience at church as a child on easter sunday. when you walked into the front room of the church there was a huge cross with an incredibly realistically done up live jesus hanging from it, blood, thorns, everything. i still am not positive that the man wasnt actually crucified, you could not see how he was attatched to it, other than the nails. as a child this was deeply disturbing, it still weirds me out, no wonder i don't go to church anymore!

My boyfriend is not religion is any way.  He belives that when you die that is it.  There is no spirital world or anything like that.  He also belives that there is no such thing as luck, life is all based upon fact and statistices.  He sees realigion as a form of brain washing, like beliving flying pigs and unicorn are real.
 
Now come christmas he could care less about the whole realigious part of it but he loves the celebration.  His family does the whole gift opening and christmas eve dinner thing.  It's a special holiday but in no way does he connect it to being linked to any realigion.  The same with Easter, no differnt than 4th of July, it's just a holidy everyone celebrates because it's fun.
 
For me, I was raised a catholic and have my own thoughts on things.  I still have hope that there is more then just this world.  I don't go to church anymore but having faith  still means something to me.  Christmas for my family is more than just opening presents, we would all get together and say prayers and link it closely to our religion.

ORIGINAL: brookcove

What about nativity scenes? with them Jesus's image and Mary and Joseph are made into images.

No, I said "action figures" - you know what I mean - toys for kids to play with and make toy companies and movie studios rich.

The creche is an ancient tradition. Now, I'm with Glenda, it's getting a little weird with the giant inflatable sno-globes and the lighted plastic thingies, but possibly people said that about the first lifesized carved dealies that people started decorating with, I don't know.

The difference is the spirit of the thing. The creche symbolizes something very specific which we celebrate now (like it or not, spring or not, pagan tradition or not) - the Incarnation. The talking Jesus doll? I dunno, what does he say - "Ye must be born again"? How do you summarize the greatest life that's ever been lived in a few electronic catch phrases when an entire Book (the bestselling Book ever) hardly suffices? Talk about bumper sticker theology gone to the next level.

I'm not pushy about Christmas (though calling it Xmas makes me shudder, I'll admit - what other religion would quiety stand by while the world X-es out their God's name in almost their biggest holy day?). Easter is far more important, though understanding Christmas is key to understanding Easter, really. I adore Easter, now. It's still largely religious in most places or ignored where it's not - to me that's preferable to the bunnies and "Hop right down to the car sale for these Egg-citing savings!" arrrrggggggghhhhh.

That makes sense.

We actually celebrate Easter more than Christmas. Except with less food. 

Actually x was the roman or latin or something like that symbol for Christ. So that is why it has been abriviated to x-mas instead of c-mas or somthing like that. When I use it, it is just because it is shorter and I'm lazy.

ORIGINAL: Laurelin_429

Well, I'm a christian and believe in Darwinian Evolution, but I might just be mixed up.  []

OT: If you knew how many creation vs evelution debate we get in to on my CHRISTIAN messageboard, you would be amazed.  So you arn't more mixed up than most people.