Dopp Juice Archive

This is in response to the cribnotes post about our culture’s “war on Christianity” this holiday season…Dear Stephen,I’m glad you started this post with examples. You make a strong argument, and that’s a refreshing change of pace these days. Personally, I tend to side with the left on this one: Christianity has been forced on too many people for too long, and an education in diversity is crucial for pulling our culture to a higher ground. But just as I believe a feminist is wrong to place herself above men, I agree that it’s destructive to cut Christmas out of that education in diversity. In some situations, it’s appropriate to argue that Christianity gets plenty of attention in the rest of our culture, so we need to emphasize the other traditions whenever we get the chance. But yeah, cutting a secular christmas carol from a concert while leaving in “O Hanukkah” is absurd.It’s not a war on Christianity, at least not compared to the scale of war Christianity has waged on other cultures throughout history. It’s not a war on Christmas either. You had it right with the first point. It’s political correctness run amok. Pendulums of influence swing back and forth until they come to a common ground. And we HAVE made a hell of a lot of progress over the years toward what I believe to be the ideal goal: tolerance, acceptance, and peaceful coexistance across the board. As for “Chrismakkuh,” if you have one Jewish parent and one Christian parent, it’s just a term for what you’ve always celebrated. Don’t forget that Christmas as we celebrate it today is a blend of multiple traditions and holidays–including pagan–that came about when different cultures needed to coexist. It’s fair to keep Christmas on the front lines of the holiday season, as long as there’s space for the other equally significant holidays on the front lines as well. But–to use your analogy–both sides keep taking things too far, shooting off their mouths too much, and knocking out each others’ teeth. It’s time for a little more “live and let live” if you ask me.Peace,Sarah