If you are an atheist, do you still celebrate Christmas?

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   nmdondersposted 12 years ago

   Do you celebrate Christmas, a different holiday, or just do nothing?

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      Uninvited Writerposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Yes, I do celebrate Christmas. It is a holiday that is pretty hard to avoid and has become much more than a religious one.

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         Hollie Thomasposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         I celebrate Christmas because my family do and they want me around at that time of the year. However, when my daughter and son have left home, though, I will happily shut myself away with a couple of good books.

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            Uninvited Writerposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            True, my Christmas last year consisted of watching Dr. Who and being home alone

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               Hollie Thomasposted 12 years agoin reply to this

               I'm always glad when it's over.

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         glassvisageposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         Uninvited Writer, I agree - for me and my family, we've made Christmas our own, and we have our own traditions that go along with the season. For us it mostly means a time to be with family and give gifts, bake cookies, listen to the Christmas music that we've listened to for years, bring out the same old decorations, and eat great food
         http://glassvisage.hubpages.com/_fcap/h … liday_Ever

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      nightwork4posted 12 years agoin reply to this

      i celebrate the holiday called "Christmas" , just not for religious reasons. it's family time for me and a holiday that by that time of the year i need.

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   wildernessposted 12 years ago

   Sure - why not?  That early Christians tried to co-opt local solstice celebrations in order to gain converts and power (even while knowing the date to be false) does not change the fact that Christmas is a time of love, of giving and sharing, of family and happiness, of children and their laughter and excitement. 
   
   The actions of centuries dead zealots needn't affect my own enjoyment of the season, and it doesn't.  Neither does the insistence of the modern day version of those same zealots that it is their holiday and the rest of the world must agree to the reasons for it mean anything at all.
   
   Christmas is what it is - Santa bringing gifts, excited and wondering children, love and family.  There is absolutely no reason an atheist can't enjoy the season as much as anyone else.

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      A Troubled Manposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I think that the name of this holiday season should be changed to reflect the nature of it as opposed to continuing to embrace the co-opted version used to gain converts and power.
      
      New thread time.

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   kj forceposted 12 years ago

   The definition of an athiest is someone who denies God.....so I would have to assume no belief in Jesus or any of the Bible..
   so Christmas being the birth of Jesus, why would they celebrate it ? Although Christmas has kind of lost the " birth" signifigance through the years and appears to be just another commercial marketed " holiday" to rob people of their $$$$.

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      wildernessposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Celebrations were held on or about that day long before Christ was born, and even longer before the Church designated it as Christ's birthday even while knowing it almost certainly wasn't.
      
      If that is the only reason you can find to enjoy that happy time of year, well, I'm sorry.

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         kj forceposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         I do believe you misunderstood my reply...I find many reasons to celebrate life all year, not just on Holidays...I merely replied to the question, regarding athetists relationship to the particular holiday...there are several other reasons to celebrate that time of the year having nothing to do with the birth..Hannukah for one....that's for your feedback though..

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   janesixposted 12 years ago

   Christmas is just based on the winter solstice. The 25th is celebrated because after the sun doesn't change it's rising position for three days, on the fourth day after the solstice, it starts rising to the north again by about 1 degree.
   
   The bible is astrotheology and allegory. That's it.
   
   And I believe in God, mind you, but not the Christian Bible God.

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      janesixposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      And I do celebrate Christmas, only because it's a non-rreligious family tradition,and I enjoy it.

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   Annsaloposted 12 years ago

   I do celebrate Christmas but of course not in a religious way. To me Christmas time is about family, friends, food, and fun.

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   LensMan999posted 12 years ago

   Not at all.

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   themadimadimadiposted 12 years ago

   Being that it is supposed to be about Jesus and his birth, No. Then again, the real meaning of Christmas has totally been morphed and commercialized, so maybe if you would like to consider it a national holiday rather religious. Same for Easter. I don't celebrate either.
   You should give gifts to people because you love them, not because something you don't believe in was said to have happened..

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