Christmas and all that it personifies, including that funny old image of Santa Claus, perpetuated by Coca Cola back in the 1920' or 30's. Is it not time for this myth to be finally consigned to the folklore of our bygone days ?

There are many of those who believe Christmas is more injurious than beneficial to us. They speculate it divides many people, families who are normally estranged from each other, the lonely feel more lonely purely because they're excluded from any family festivities. Unless one is a practising Christian, why celebrate the myth anyway ?

For myself, I'll always love Christmas, Santa, and everything else connected with this uniquely Christian celebration. And I'm an atheist. Despite many of our learned community leaders, Captains of Industry, politicians, academics and social engineers, all who say we should now discard this event, in order to inculcate a far greater social inclusion for everybody in our multicultural society ? I'd still ask why ?

If this happens, I'll eat my 12g !

>>For myself, I'll always love Christmas, Santa, and everything else connected with this uniquely Christian celebration<<

Uniquely Christian? Not a chance, mate. The Bible does not record Christ's date of birth and all those people celebrating Christmas in July might actually have the date right as far as we know.

The reason we celebrate Christmas on the 25th of December is because Christmas traditions developed from northern hemisphere pagan celebrations of the winter solstice. The winter solstice was a symbol of rebirth and awakening; and it meant celebrations with feasting and family. A pagan solstice feast would have been very different from the Christmas we know but there would have some elements common to both: as Christianity superseded paganism the people kept the traditions they liked, discarded the ones they didn't and invented some new ones. They wrapped it up in a different symbolism but they kept their holiday.

Take the Christmas tree as an example: it is actually a fairly recent tradition for the British and their cultural descendents. Queen Victoria and Prince Albert introduced the tree to popular culture - the tree is a much older Scandinavian/Germanic tradition, and one can only imagine that Victoria thought it a nicer tradition to introduce than sauerkraut with Christmas dinner.

The traditional form for a Christmas tree is a pine tree. But for me Christmas isn't Christmas without a small gum for a tree. They're buggers to decorate and a lot more labour intensive than the fake pines but I like them. It's what my family have always done. Not a wholesale rejection of the tradition but a slight twist on it. A lot of people go for a cold lunch instead of the roast and hot pudding these days.

Take home message: Christmas changes with the times but it still marches on. The ghost of Christmas future might point to less people attending Midnight Mass and less nativity models but he'll still point to a lot of people celebrating Christmas.

Merry Christmas,

Tony

Christmas in Australia is now more a cultural festive season than a religious one.
I doubt we would ever not celebrate this time of year.
Religious or not, Christmas and Santa Claus should always be part of our lives.

I imagine that we will be hearing from the hard multiculturalists who are forever demanding more out of the Aussie taxpayers hide to put bread of their tables, and the hating fundamentalists of the Atheism Religion as we usually do come any Christian event. There will be usual cultural cringe of the Fabian Socialists who fly low under the radar as "Progressives", not imagining that the electorate are smart enough to look up the history and goals of that movement.

Apart from that, Australian families will largely do as they always have done, enjoy one of the few rests and festivals available to them.

Special thoughts for the lone out there. Especially the sick and any who have been alienated against their children (PAS), which is common for grandparents as well as separated spouses. Illness is a cruel mistress, creating social barriers and doesn't go away for a special day or few. Not seeing family, and particularly the young as they enjoy the ordinary, mundane but very enjoyable events of life is tragic.

i thought much the same ohsong[of love]..
but.the spirit world..love the joy of christmass..
[what..the symbols mean/or represent..is secondary]
its the family focus..rather than..the vile crass commercialism's].. eg cocke tastes..[ok tasted]..just fine...ina shot of rum..and the pretty lights etc plus..[sharing with other]..families at leisure..loving...gift giving...joy sharing/jesus birth..hanging the xmass tree..ornaments..finding the broken bulb...saving the wrapping [paper..laying down contently..ever so slightly satiated

if you...have them..enjoy them...but by/the law of karma..each..good..must have its antitheses..thus we have the kiddy fidlers..the guy in the red suit

[as alexx explained ]

xmass was..about lawfull killing..in..the beginning
http://rss.infowars.com/20131220_Fri_Alex.mp3..

i hate the omnipresent fake satan/clause..[who..knows we been/good or bad][a pathetic godless omnipresence]..who judges/that deceives people away from the real;holy spirit..int xmass spirit

the clever thing..is once you find out santa=satan
but..that he aint real..you stop thinking..about god.

its all supposed to be about jesus/giving loving..joy
but im not feeling it..but thats no excuse not to try[every negativity hurts us spiritually]..anger helplessness makes us sick

dont for a second regret having the chrisy-mass joy
and closeness with loved ones..every/thing..is BOTH good/bad
too much love is as bad as not enough[but those who can love..too/much..also have the reverse..]..so both happiness and joy [peace and lies]..each have their place..my life proves we need both.

"DEAR EDITOR: I am 8 years old.
"Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus.
"Papa says, 'If you see it in THE SUN it's so.'
"Please tell me the truth; is there a Santa Claus?

"VIRGINIA O'HANLON.
"115 WEST NINETY-FIFTH STREET."

VIRGINIA, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men's or children's, are little. In this great universe of ours man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect, as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.

Yes, VIRGINIA, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no VIRGINIAS. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.

Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies! You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas Eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if they did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that's no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.