Letter to the Editor: Give Christmas back
BY James Hunt, Broken Arrow
Sunday, November 13, 2011
11/13/11 at 3:53 AM
Last year, as a pastor at a large
church, I literally received more
emails asking me to boycott stores
and parades for dropping the word
“Christmas” than I did wishing me
a Merry Christmas. The new Tulsa
Christmas Parade is the latest example
of people trying to “reclaim
Christmas for Jesus.” As a professional
in this area, let me suggest a
better way:
Let’s give Christmas back. Most
of the traditions were poached from
the pagans anyway. Add that to the
rampant commercialism, and what
we do on Dec. 25 hasn’t been specifically
“Christian” for decades. Why
not treat it like any other nonreligious
holiday — Columbus Day or
Super Bowl Sunday?
First off, this will let us relax and
enjoy the season. We can still gather
with friends and family, buy each
other thoughtful gifts and pray for
world peace. But it won’t matter if
the city’s snowman is bigger than its
nativity scene, or whether the guy
at Target said “Merry Christmas” or
“Happy Holidays."
Second, it will free up a lot of time
for doing Christian things. If there’s
no need to boycott stores for their
greetings, we’ll have time to boycott
them for their unjust practices. If
we don’t spend our money creating
separate parades, we can use it to
buy meals for the hungry, or winter
coats for children.
Just imagine. Maybe the best way
to make the holidays more Christian
is to spend less time arguing
over labels and more time acting
like Christ.
Letters to the editor are encouraged. Send letters to letters@tulsaworld.com.
Associated Images:
A giant inflatable snowman is pulled through downtown Tulsa during the McNellie’s Parade of Lights on Dec. 11, 2010. MATT BARNARD/Tulsa World file
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