While real wars continue to rage on in Europe and the Middle East, some Americans believe there is a war happening domestically: the “war on Christmas.”
Much has been said in the past decade or so about the debate between whether one should say “Happy Holidays” or “Merry Christmas” during December. The month encompasses not only Christmas but also Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Bodhi Day and Yule to name a few.
For some, it may seem like the obvious thing to do to slightly tweak our season greetings to be inclusive, but for others, especially on the religious right, any change is construed as an attack on religion, culture and the country as a whole.
I am old enough to remember when right-wingers began an all-out war against Starbucks in 2015 when they changed their cups from being overtly Christmas-themed to a simple red design with the company’s logo.
One evangelist, in particular, garnered national media attention with a video entitled, “Starbucks REMOVED CHRISTMAS from their cups because they hate Jesus … SO I PRANKED THEM … and they HATE IT!!!!.” The prank in reference was the fact that he had a barista working write “Merry Christmas” on his coffee cup instead of his name, a real “gotcha” moment.
While I do not support Starbucks as a company by any means, becoming irate over a paper cup design is hard to imagine. However, this evangelist was not alone in his sentiment. A relatively small but loud group of like-minded individuals have spent the following years attempting to increase the salience of the issue. They say it was not just about being inclusive – it was about destroying the very foundation of America. That is simply not the case.
America, by and large, is still a predominantly Christian nation, but it is also true that the amount of those identifying as religiously unaffiliated has been steadily rising. A Sept. 13, 2022 Pew Research Center poll found that 29% of Americans now identify as religiously unaffiliated, compared to just 5% in the center’s 1972 poll. Christianity, on the other hand, has decreased from 90% of Americans identifying as Christian in 1972 to now 63%.
The “issue” at hand here is not religion necessarily, despite the efforts of many to frame it that way. 93% of Americans celebrate Christmas, according to a Dec. 23, 2019 Gallup poll. I am no mathematician, but 93% is definitely not equal to 63%.
Christmas is indeed claimed to be the birthday of Jesus Christ, and many view Christmas through a strictly religious lens, with a Mother Mary ornament topping their tree and a nativity scene displayed in their yard. There’s nothing wrong with celebrating Christmas in that way, but it is important to acknowledge the holiday certainly transcends Christianity. Anyone who has visited the Coca-Cola Museum in Atlanta, Ga. can tell you all about the origins of Santa Claus, and just to clear things up, he does not appear in the Bible.
Even if only 7% of Americans celebrate a holiday other than Christmas, or no holiday at all, I would rather err on the side of inclusivity. I celebrate Christmas myself and I think it is great that so many people can gain joy from it, religious or not, but I also acknowledge that I am not the only person in the state, country or world.
The desperate urge to maintain the use of “Merry Christmas” as a greeting, to me, is a Western-centric view. There are entire continents that overwhelmingly do not celebrate the holiday. While it may be hard for Americans to look outside our borders at times, it can be meaningful to acknowledge others in the global community.
Coffee cups have changed, seasonal greeting cards have been tweaked and your local cashier is saying, “Happy Holidays,” and last I checked, the world has not ended yet.
Celebrate what you want this holiday season and do not let the culture warriors tell you otherwise.
Nathan Hope can be contacted at
nhope@kscequinox.com
