Post by brentbranaman on Nov 27, 2009 20:18:07 GMT
I'll have to admit - I love the holiday season. I love Christmas music, Christmas trees decorations, snow (if I ever see it), gifts, etc. We even have a little nativity scene in our home.
I'd like to know how the other atheists here approach Christmas.
Here is my take: We don't do the Santa thing. Sure, we have Santas on the tree; we sing Santa songs; we watch Rudolph and The Santa Claus. However, we don't try to pass off a fictitious character as a real entity, bringing all sorts of gifts to those children who are nice and not naughty. It is too parallel to the western view of God for our taste. It can also be a little manipulative. From a very early age our 3 year old boy (now 6) understood many of the differences between things/people that are real and those that are pretend. I'll never forget the day he said while watching a video, "Daddy, hippos can't fly - that can't be real."
So, we tell the story of St. Nicholas each year. We explain that Santa represents the idea of helping those who are less fortunate in life. Not in a patronizing or pitying way but in a compassionate/empathetic way. They now prefer the "old school" depictions of St. Nick instead of the flashy modern Santa.
Of course, many of our friends aren't too happy that our children (ages 3 and 6) are already in the know. They've spilled the beans a few times to the dismay of a few. We try to keep them from blabbing stuff, letting them know that some people believe in Santa and some don't and that we should be sensitive to other people's views.
We also talk about other traditions during various times of the year. We talk about hanukkah during the holiday season. We place a menorah on a table during this time and tell the story of the Festival of Lights. We tell the story of the birth of Jesus also. But these stories and traditions are not the focus of our family.
We try not to immerse the kids in the consumerism that occurs during this time of the year even though we live in a society that has a consumer driven economy. We don't judge those who do - we live in a time and place that enables us to have many comforts and luxuries and that is not necessarily a bad thing. We just try to offset it a little by focusing on simplicity. That's just our choice.
We're not poor; we're definitely not rich. We end up spending only about $25 on each of our children. We try to focus on helping others by involving the children in the local food and clothing collections for those who are having tough times. I'm amazed at how they love the idea of giving to others in spite of all the focus on receiving. Actually, I guess I'm not - humans have an altruistic history. Its right there in our genes.
We don't shelter our children from the world. Actually, quite the opposite. We simply don't focus on various things that most people do. We do try to focus on kindness and helping others. That (IMO) is what this time of the year is all about.
I'd love to hear from the others here. I'm open to other ideas that the rest of you have. Since this time of the year is my favorite, making it even better would be great.
I'd like to know how the other atheists here approach Christmas.
Here is my take: We don't do the Santa thing. Sure, we have Santas on the tree; we sing Santa songs; we watch Rudolph and The Santa Claus. However, we don't try to pass off a fictitious character as a real entity, bringing all sorts of gifts to those children who are nice and not naughty. It is too parallel to the western view of God for our taste. It can also be a little manipulative. From a very early age our 3 year old boy (now 6) understood many of the differences between things/people that are real and those that are pretend. I'll never forget the day he said while watching a video, "Daddy, hippos can't fly - that can't be real."
So, we tell the story of St. Nicholas each year. We explain that Santa represents the idea of helping those who are less fortunate in life. Not in a patronizing or pitying way but in a compassionate/empathetic way. They now prefer the "old school" depictions of St. Nick instead of the flashy modern Santa.
Of course, many of our friends aren't too happy that our children (ages 3 and 6) are already in the know. They've spilled the beans a few times to the dismay of a few. We try to keep them from blabbing stuff, letting them know that some people believe in Santa and some don't and that we should be sensitive to other people's views.
We also talk about other traditions during various times of the year. We talk about hanukkah during the holiday season. We place a menorah on a table during this time and tell the story of the Festival of Lights. We tell the story of the birth of Jesus also. But these stories and traditions are not the focus of our family.
We try not to immerse the kids in the consumerism that occurs during this time of the year even though we live in a society that has a consumer driven economy. We don't judge those who do - we live in a time and place that enables us to have many comforts and luxuries and that is not necessarily a bad thing. We just try to offset it a little by focusing on simplicity. That's just our choice.
We're not poor; we're definitely not rich. We end up spending only about $25 on each of our children. We try to focus on helping others by involving the children in the local food and clothing collections for those who are having tough times. I'm amazed at how they love the idea of giving to others in spite of all the focus on receiving. Actually, I guess I'm not - humans have an altruistic history. Its right there in our genes.
We don't shelter our children from the world. Actually, quite the opposite. We simply don't focus on various things that most people do. We do try to focus on kindness and helping others. That (IMO) is what this time of the year is all about.
I'd love to hear from the others here. I'm open to other ideas that the rest of you have. Since this time of the year is my favorite, making it even better would be great.