More People Are Celebrating Christmas Without Religion

[trotsky]

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/christmas-without-religion_us_5a3299b3e4b0bb42ac170ca9

More Americans are embracing the holly, jolly, cultural parts of Christmas and shedding the holy and religious aspects.

...

Researchers found that a growing number of U.S. adults believe the religious parts of Christmas are being emphasized less in American society ― and many aren’t bothered by the change. In addition, the number of people who believe in key aspects of the Christmas story ― such as the virgin birth and the wise men bringing Jesus gifts ― is declining. Significantly, even a small percentage of self-professed Christians are doubting these biblical narratives.

...

Tom Krattenmaker, who writes about religion in public life and authored Confessions of a Secular Jesus Follower, told HuffPost that the poll findings may reflect the growing number of Americans who are religiously unaffiliated.

“As more Americans drift away from religion in general and Christianity in particular, it stands to reason they would take a more secular approach to the holiday,” Krattenmaker said.

[JNelson6563]

1. My family is all heathens

and we do Christmas. We eat, drink, exchange some gifts and hang out. Much talking and laughing. One of my favorite days.

[PJMcK]

2. Yep, that's what we do

Each year, we have a family reunion at my sister's house. We've been doing this for at least 25 years. No church or sermons, just family and friends eating, drinking and laughing.

We have a few peculiarities. There's a box full of broken glass that's wrapped as a gift. Any newcomer to the family is given that and as it's handed to them, the package is purposely dropped with the sound of the broken glass. Kind of cruel but kind of funny. Another is a Jim Nabors LP, still in its shrink wrap is annually given to someone. It's usually disguised as something else and then the recipient has to re-gift it the next year. We've been doing that since the 1980s! Lastly, Dad loves chocolate covered cherries so each year he ends up with three or four boxes.

It's a couple of days of joy and sharing. Very nice. Who needs religion?

[TlalocW]

3. I've made the argument with my religious friends

That with the advent of the internet, it's been easier to see the hate, hypocrisy, and greed of the religious groups that are the loudest, while at the same time see the people they often rail against (LGBTQ, Muslims, etc) are often decent people. This taints even the "good" churches who don't stand up to the bullying coming from the loudmouth churches. Then they all go and rail/lament the increase in "nones" and atheists in society and blame it on this or that when if they really wanted to see the cause of the increases, they need look no further than their bathroom mirrors.

Now, combine the above with using the internet to find people who can support what you're going through (switching from religious to non-religious can be traumatic), and that's where you're getting the other thing these churches hate - the "loud" atheist (ie the no-longer willing to be closeted ones).

So more secular Xmases is not a surprise.

TlalocW

[msongs]

4. local mall plays hard core jesus is lord music. you shoppers r going to hell if u dont get with it n

[Voltaire2]

5. Heathen Christmas Here!

Always been that way for me.

[Igel]

6. That part of Xmas was always heathen.

Uneducated, poor people with time off and often with Xmas bonuses.

The middle/upper classes knew the theology. The lower classes got drunk and got laid for Jesus, as far as they were concerned.

US culture is undergoing a shift similar to what Russian culture did a century ago.

[struggle4progress]

7. Perhaps your view that "the middle/upper classes knew the theology" while

"the lower classes got drunk" is inaccurate: the Jesus stories frequently show a certain predisposition towards the impoverished and outcast and powerless, as opposed to the wealthy and connected and powerful

... his shelter was a stable, and his cradle was a stall;
With the poor, and mean, and lowly, lived on earth our Savior holy ...