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christmas

  1. Minoosh

    I absolutely love the Nativity story

    I love, absolutely love, the Nativity story. Somewhere I have a small creche that I used to put up every year. A special baby is born into reduced circumstances and everyone, from kings to shepherds and the beasts of the fields, knows he is special. I enjoy the portents, the star, the herald...
  2. Brian-M

    Secular Christmas Music

    Now that the silly season is with us once again and people all around the world prepare to celebrate the various traditional midwinter festivals of the Northern Hemisphere, most notably Christmas, I was thinking that we could put together a playlist of songs that celebrate the season without...
  3. nvidiot

    Origins of Christmas

    Was interested to see the following dissection of the origin of Christmas, specifically that it was a pagan festival co-opted by early Christians to encourage conversion... Anything to it or is it a bit of willful cherry picking ignoring the larger questions? From here: (but I don't know if...
  4. Tricky

    Who is making "War on Christmas"?

    Over in the politics forum they're discussing Rick Perry's contention that Obama has declared "War on Christmas". That's a political thing. I'm interested in what people (especially theists) think about what is happening to the Christmas celebration. Christmas hasn't changed much since my...
  5. Cactus Wren

    I have a new favorite Christmas song

    fCNvZqpa-7Q
  6. commandlinegamer

    Why don't they build a spare goat?

    http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/8428650.stm Surely by now, they've have sussed the advantages of having another one ready as a contingency. Or maybe make it out of bricks. (Has Three Little Pigs been translated in Scandinavia?)
  7. Oliver

    Christians and Christmas

    So being a Christian myself [at least officially "on paper"], what is your stance about all the commercial background of Christmas and the meaning of it? In other words: While I see a lot of American Christians complaining about things like Gays, Abortion etc, I didn't sense a big controversy...
  8. T

    The Newest Warrior for the Blitzkrieg on Christmas: Me.

    I wait tables and bartend to pay for school. Around this time of year I usually bid my patrons 'Happy Holidays'. But apparently by doing so, I offend the pious Jesus followers so much that they feel compelled to call me an *******...
  9. MattusMaximus

    “How I Killed Santa”: The Physics of Santa Claus

    Link to blog post... I’m a bad, bad person. No kidding, I’m bad – really, really bad. I say this because in my physics classes today, I killed Santa Claus. Well, to be more accurate, what I did was use our knowledge of physics to kill the fantasy of Santa Claus (because it’s pretty damn hard...
  10. madurobob

    A UU Christmas Carol

    My wife and 10 year old son attend the local UU church. My son has been rehearsing recently for his role in the holiday play, so I went with them to church today to see the play. It was written entirely by the middle school students in the church and acted by kids from 3 to 18. I want to...
  11. sg1985

    Merry Christmas vs. Happy Holidays

    I just saw this website (Stand for Christmas) and needed to come here for some sanity. Am I the only one who wants to hear "Happy holidays" and not be constantly reminded of religious beliefs that I don't hold?
  12. truethat

    Do you Reject the Holidays as an Atheist?

    I'm wondering about the hegemony of Christmas in which we atheists find ourselves immersed. Ironically Christmas has always been a holiday that disappoints and yet each year I strive to make it work. This year I'm having Christmas party on December 12th. PM me if you live in NYC and like to...
  13. Ashles

    The Atheist's Guide to Christmas

    I don't know if this has been posted anywhere yet (or is even the right place) but I've just come across this book coming out soon: The atheist's Guide to Christmas Don't know much about it yet except the description:
  14. cj.23

    Easter, Yule, and Pagan Christmas

    Right, in another thread the claim has been made that Easter derives from both a Jewish and pagan roots - something I find extremely unlikely - it seems to me to clearly come from the Christian response to the Resurrection and the existing Jewish Passover, and I know of no pre-Christian roots...
  15. cj.23

    Seasons Greetings

    I wrote this over on RD.net last year, but it seems a good Christmas card for the JREF - Happy Whatever everyone! "Evening! I have been meaning to write a little Christmas post, so I will. It's in lieu of cards - I have not been organized enough to send any of those in over the last decade. I...
  16. Bob Blaylock

    Official Government-Approved Xmas Carol

    (To the tune of We Wish You a Merry Christmas) Can't wish you a merry Christmas… Can't wish you a merry Christmas… Can't wish you a merry Christmas and we'll tell you why. The ACLU won't let us… The ACLU won't let us… The ACLU won't let us, so we'll just say “good bye”.
  17. K

    Holiday Myths Debunked?

    Here is an article that lists some common holiday/Christmas myths and then claims they are debunked. While I agree the "beliefs" are false, the author doesn't bother to state his sources for how all of the sited beliefs have been debunked. So, it isn't as good of an article as it could have been.
  18. joobz

    Ed BMJ Sleighs 6 Medical Myths

    Sorry for the bad hoiday pun, but I thought the article interesting. http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/337/dec17_2/a2769 Seems funny to see that the Sugar makes kids crazy thing is an example of observational Bias.
  19. ravdin

    Anti religious sign on display in WA state capitol

    I thought this story would be of interest among this crowd: http://www.ktvb.com/news/regional/stories/ktvbn-dec0208-holiday_display.232fd607.html The encouraging part to me was that all of the believers who were interviewed for the video felt that it was fine to put the sign on display- while...
  20. Safe-Keeper

    Jeremiah 10 - does God hate Christmas trees?

    Jeremiah 10:1-5 in the Bible says the following (King James Version): [1] Hear ye the word which the Lord speaketh unto you, O house of Israel: [2] Thus saith the Lord, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them. [3] For...
  21. sadluxation

    Rational Celbration of Christmas (UK)

    Thought that you may want to come to this if you're UK based. Nine Lessons and Carols for Godless People 21st December 2008 Hammersmith Apollo So far the confirmed speakers are Stewart Lee, Mark Thomas, Ricky Gervais, Justin Edwards, Chris Addison, Ben Goldacre, Simon Singh, Josie Long, Jo...
  22. T

    Christmas Conspiracy: Was The Grinch Part of a False Flag Operation?

    So think about it... The Grinch, a character whom we have since grown to hate, was placed in our minds as the perpetrator of an event (Stealing Christmas) that forced us to fear the loss of our most prized holiday. This in the end made us appreciate it all the more. Does this not sound like...
  23. Temporal Renegade

    A Brief History of Christmas

    Courtesy of The Wall Street Journal: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119820996084944523-email.html
  24. F

    My Favorite Christmas Activity

    Actually, this is for my wife and I, becuase we make a habit of this every year around this time. Each Christmas, usually on Christmas Eve or the day before, we'll go driving around looking for Christmas Light Displays on people's houses. We're not looking for the best, the brightest, the most...
  25. sinclairmcevoy

    What are your thoughts on Santa?

    I'm listening to a radio show right now that has Santa on for the kids. I disagree with the fact that someone is promising kids things that they probably won't get. They phone in, say what they want for Christmas, and he says "Look for it under your tree, I'll try and get that for you." I think...
  26. bjornart

    Scandinavian remnants of ancestor worship

    Whenever I read threads on the war on christmas and how atheists shouldn't be celebrating christmas I feel extra lucky about being Norwegian (even though my reasons apply to other Scandinavians and possibly Finns, and Icelanders and...). For one thing we still use the name of the old...
  27. S

    War On Christmas, Or Something

    Okay, this is a letter to the editor that appears in today's (13/12/07) Leader-Post. I'm copying it verbatim, as it's short. I hope that doesn't violate forum rules. It reads thusly: "Censoring Christmas Gillian Gibbons, a British schoolteacher, was sentenced to fifteen days in prison and...
  28. Stone Island

    Usefullness of Religion (Whether or Not It's True): the Christmas Tree

    Does having a Christmas Tree reduce or increase your carbon footprint? Are you helping or harming the environment? Would AlGore approve? I would think that any excuse to get people to plant millions of trees every year, i.e., Christmas Tree farms, would be a net benefit to the environment...
  29. T

    Will There Be Apology Headlines?

    Just as with gasoline, when the price creeps up $.10-.15 over a three week period and the headlines scream about it, and this civilization-destroying "spike" leads the nightly "news"casts every night for weeks, we are reading/hearing how retail sales are "sluggish" or so low that it does not...
  30. Temporal Renegade

    Christian group: Don't shop at stores that censor the word "Christmas."

    Begun, the Christmas Wars have: http://www.wxii12.com/money/14661906/detail.html

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