Cross post

I posted the below essay as a response on a chat board.

The person I responded to had said that she/he has given up on the church, and asked how to deal with Christmas, since it's celebrated so widely, given that decision.

I just thought this came out pretty well, so thought I'd share it here....(sorry about the no caps...that's how I post on that website):


i was raised christian, but, not very heavily....my parents only ever made me to go confirmation classes and get confirmed, but after that, it was my choice.

as a teen and young adult, i was very involved in the church, and even considered the ministry...but, life, and an expanding knowledge of the history of judeo christian cultures changed me, and i have not been a practicing christian for most of my adult life.

however, to me, the christmas season, or the yule season, in the pagan vernacular, is far more meaningful in SO many ways that have NOTHING to do with religion, than any other season of the year.

why?

because i remember.

i remember the christmases of my childhood, which had very little, if anything, to do with religion.

i remember the warmth, the anticipation, the excitement, the beauty.

i remember my loved ones who have passed away, and how much i cherished spending the holidays with them, and how they made the holidays magical for us every year.

i remember how "home" was transformed when the decorations came out of the basement, and the tree came in the back door. it was like magic came to visit.

i remember generations of ancestors whom i have never met, but whom i honor every year when i eat the traditional foods that my family has had at christmas for close to 400 years.

my dad prepared the special ham all the years of my life til he passed away.
then my brother took over the honor, with the ghost of my dad standing at his elbow...and, now that i have left the area where i grew up, i am doing it myself, and will prepare it for my in- laws this year.

so much of it for me is about sentiment, and nostalgia, and about loving my memories.

however, the winter solstice does have religious meaning for me, now.

you may find it interesting that the vast majority of christmas traditions; wreathes, trees, lights, exchanging gifts, celebrating the birth of light in the dead of winter...even "santa claus" (look up "the battle of the oak king and the holly king" some time, if you're curious) are all based upon ancient pagan practices...so the holiday IS actually far more pagan than it is christian.

the church saw a perfect opportunity to make use of a big pagan festival, and superimposed the celebration of the birth of christ over these midwinter celebrations in order to win converts.

most scholars will tell you jesus was not born at mid winter.

so, on the part of the early church, it was brilliant marketing, and has proven to have been a very successful endeavor!

i have returned to my roots, spiritually. in other words, i prefer to practice a spirituality that makes sense to me, ethnically. i am not jewish or of hebrew or nazerene ancestry. i also choose not to affiliate myself with a religion that sprang out of a culture that allowed and encouraged genocide.

SO—ALL of the seasonal traditions, except celebrating the birth of jesus, fit perfectly for me because of this shift in my perspective.

whatever your reason for leaving your christian path behind, you can still find ways to celebrate and appreciate this season.

i hang a wreath, which means, to me and other pagans, the rebirth of the sun in the dead of winter. it is an emblem of the cyclical nature of life on this planet.

i have also traditionally put up a tree, and decorated it with ornaments shaped like fruit, nuts, musical instruments, birds, pine cones, and suns, moons, and stars, to encourage the earth to bring forth abundance in the coming year.

i wish people a merry christmas, because "christmas" is what we call it in the dominant culture, whether we acknowledge the christ aspect of it or not.

happy holidays works, too.