LafayetteLady
Posts: 7683
Joined: 5/2/2007
From: Northern New Jersey
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ORIGINAL: Iamsemisweet
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ORIGINAL: hlen5
I think some people think it's just another straw on the pile.
- No public prayer,
OK. But why are Christians so insistent about public prayer? Nothing stops them from praying all they want, in public or in private. Why is it so important that other people be inflicted with their prayers?
I believe it is more about people wanting to change the Pledge of Allegience ("one nation under God"). I don't believe that there should be prayers in schools or at government meetings, but changing the Pledge of Allegience that has been a focal point of our country is just wrong.
I also think that when the concept of a moment of silence for prayer and/or reflection is said in any public meaning, if there is no mention of WHO you might be praying to, people are overreacting.
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- No public displays of Christmas (Creches, etc.),
I see creches at churches and private residences all the time. So again, who is stopping them? Yes, government entities don't put up stuff like this anymore. How does that interfere with anyone's religious freedom?
While I'm sure that hlen meant on public property, the point remains that we are often changing things to avoid offending a very small number of people, and often many of those alternative beliefs don't really care one way or another if there is a cross or a Star of David on the lawn of the municipal building.
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- "Holiday" concerts instead of Christmas concerts,
Like at schools and things? Yes, this is true. So what? Not all students are Christians. Again, how does this interfere with anyone's right to practice their religion. The answer is, of course, that it doesn't. The reverse is also true. My school district used to have Halloween parties, until the fundamentalists got all hot and bothered about that. Now they call it a Harvest party. Dumb.
And that Halloween issue really drives the point home, even if it isn in reverse. When I was in elementary school (a million years ago), I don't remember if it was a "Christmas" concert or a "Holiday" concert. I do remember that we sang both Christmas carols and Hannuka songs. I still remember parts of the Dreidel song (although obviously not the proper name). We didn't sing Kwanzaa songs, because Kwanzaa had not been invented yet.
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- "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas"
Again, BFD. Personally, I say merry christmas, but that doesn't mean the holiday has the least bit of religious significance for me.
I think it is one thing for a company to say their "policy" is to use "Happy Holidays," but I also think that insisting on it goes a bit too far.
I use three major hospitals in my area. One is Catholic, the other Jewish, and the third is not a private hospital. After Thanksgiving, The Catholic hospital has nativity scenes, Christmas trees and all the trimmings. I have always found the Crucifixes quite offensive at that time, since it is the celebration of Christ's birth, not death, but no so much I won't use the hospital. The Jewish hospital is all decked out in blue and silver, with Menorahs and Stars of David and all the Hannuka trimmings. The third has representations of all kinds of holidays. To my knowledge no one has ever made that big a deal out of it.
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am not picking on you hlen, I know this is the attitude. But all I can conclude is that people like my crazy FB friends aren't offended because their right to practice their religion is being interfered with, they are offended because others don't share their beliefs. Guess they are just going to have to get over it. Which is basically what I told my two FB friends. I imagine that they have unfriended me by now, so problem solved.
I certainly can't speak for your current (or former) FB friends, but many Christians aren't pissed because others don't share their beliefs. They are pissed because they are being asked to compromise their beliefs in favor of someone else's. Because Atheism IS just another belief, so many see it as catering to them over others, since when it comes to prayer and such, most religions pray to Someone or Something. Granted that isn't simply about Christmas, but it very much is catering to one group over another and that is what pisses people off.
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RE: Pissed off Christians - 
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