I agree with everything that Yvonne has said.
Christmas to me is kind of secular, because really, when I think of Christmas, what comes to mind are Christmas lights, shopping, and tons of feel-good movies. The religious significance of Christmas to Christians becomes secondary. I've been told that Jesus was not even born on 25th Dec, so perhaps that has something to do with the way I see Christmas.
I'm going to get angry retorts from the Christian community over here, but I'm going to stick my neck out and say it anyway. I suspect this entire thing about how the religious significance of Christmas being taken away and only Christian displays are being targeted etc is really a backlash because the Christians are so vocal about other issues like abortion, homosexuality and even evolution.
Issues like these are social issues which should have nothing to do with religion, but very often your religion will tell you which is the 'right' stance for you to take, which side you should be on. Do you then impose your beliefs on others then? If my religion says nothing about abortion, should anti-abortion laws apply to me? If my religion preachs the superiority of a sex over the other, should anti-discrimatpry laws apply to me?
There's no simple answer. There lies the problem. For each of the examples that I've named (abortion, homosexuality, evolution), I can name many Christian groups/associations that are against them, and are pushing for laws. Some of them are very well known to be very vocal, and very influencial. In comparison, the number of people from other religions organising themselves and lobbying is much less, I think. At least, I haven't come across many of their readings, unlike readings from Christian groups.
This of course, could simply be due to sheer numbers; in a country where 90% of the population consider themselves Christian, of course there are more Christian groups.
But if I'm not a Christian, I'd be very nervous that laws of a country are being written with obvious Judeo-Christianity slant, and yet a clause to say that these laws only apply to Jews and Christians is not present. I'd be more nervous when the city halls of this country put up religious decorations associated with a Christian festival, but not for festivals of other religions.
I'm not sure if I'm taking an over-simplistic view about the entire thing. I'm NOT trying to start a social issues debate here. Honestly. I'm also not trying to suggest that Christians are wrong for taking a stance on a social issue based on religion. The way I see it, your religion shapes your values, and values determine what kind of society we live in. Therefore it's perfectly legitimate to bring in your religion when debating about a social issue.
I think I'll stop here before I offend more people. I just want to say that I'm not an anti-Chistianity person or anything like that. I'm using Christianity as an example here because this poll is talking about a Christian festival.
metwin1
