the whine of the self-entitled majority

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Christians hold most of the political offices in the United States. In many places, you can't even win a political office if you're not a Christian. Christians own most of the property, own most of the businesses, and write most of our laws. They are most of our newscasters, most of our athletes, most of pretty much everything, except maybe scientists. Quite a few scientists don't believe in any god, let alone Christianity's God. But that's another matter. There's no question that being a Christian conveys many advantages in this country.

One of Christianity's main holidays is even a federal law. "Ah-hah!" say some Christians. "See, that proves that . . . "

Please continue, what does that prove? The only thing we've seen here is that it proves that you're not an American if you don't honor Christmas. Of course, that's not true.

What it really proves is that the majority of lawmakers, and the majority of voters, were and are Christian. So they made their main religious holiday a national holiday. Partly it was self-serving. Partly it was practical. Since most people will take the day off anyway, might as well make it a holiday. Most people in the US are Christians. That's what it proves.

This is changing. No surprise, some people don't like that. They want "our country" back. Though we've long described our country as a melting pot, it's happening more and more now. So Christians don't automatically get their way, and only their way, on everything.

That's what all the arguing is about.

For Christians to complain that there's a war on them or their holiday is ridiculous. Seems like they think if they whine loud enough, people will give them what they want. After all, they are used to getting their way here. Before they whine about some people saying "happy holidays" instead of "merry Christmas" or calling the tree a holiday tree, they should ask themselves how they would like to have their religion treated the way other religions have often been treated. And whether they would like to trade places, leaving completely aside what they think about the importance of belief. How many times do you hear anyone acknowledge the holidays of other religions that are celebrated at this time of year? And when someone does that, usually they get a funny look. And those are small potatoes compared to other things. Just try being a Muslim or an atheist in the United States today.

People in every religious group will find some ground or reason to complain that they aren't being treated fairly. Not having your town's mayor call it a "Christmas tree" is nothing compared to what people in some other religious groups have to put up with every day.

[Guest Guest]

Oh, how the truth can hurt!

[Guest Guest]

And the whine goes on and on and on and on . . .

. . . on other "topics," though. The whiners don't seem to want to touch this one.

Now the whine is about "X-mas" versus "Christmas." Some of the chief whiners are characterizing it as their holiday being hijacked. Of course, that has nothing to do with the display at Kearny Town Hall. There isn't a shred of evidence that the mayor or any member of the council used that term. In fact, the discussion was about what the mayor and council called the holiday tree, and there isn't any evidence that any of them called it anything. So it's plain as day that this entire serious of mini-discussions is about a small group of people who will never be satisfied that the town is doing enough to honor, commemorate and celebrate Christmas, or doing it the way they want it done. Now one of them is threatening protests at town hall next year if they don't get their way. Next thing you know, they'll want Town Hall used as a church. Give 'em one thing, they'll just want another because goodness knows, they are the real Christians in town. What a pity the other Christians don't measure up to their high standards.

Getting back to "X-mas," the term originated with the Greek and Roman alphabets but that does not explain how it came to be used in the United States. It's not a term that I use, because to me it would be going out of my way to be disrespectful. The word is "Christmas". I'm not so lazy that I can't add the extra five letters. But the use of the term "X-mas" probably began without any intent to disrespect - maybe in a newspaper headline, where the paper needed to save a few letters. It was commonly used for years before people started whining about it. It does have a lot to do with the secularization of the holiday. And you can't force people to use your term for something, any more than KOTW or anyone else can force 2Stupid4Words not to refer to President Obama as zerO. It has nothing to do with the holiday display at Town Hall.

Which, by the way, isn't just for December 25th. One of the latest whines is that December 25th should be reserved for Christmas alone. First, you can't force people not to celebrate something else on that day. Second, the display is for the entire holiday season - it's up for about a month - and all religions. By law, it has to be. The town could have a Christmas tree decorated as a religious symbol but then it would have to offset that with displays recognizing other religious traditions. Our town doesn't have a big budget or many personnel resources for this. There's nothing wrong with the existing display. Again, it's just a matter of a few malcontents who will never be happy no matter what the town does.

No one hijacked Christmas. Christians celebrate it all over the world. Other people disrespecting it or calling it by another name or just not celebrating it with them does not interfere with their ability to celebrate fully and joyously. Their constant whining is what interferes with that. A real Christian would remember that the early Christians were persecuted. Modern-day Christians in the United States have nothing to complain about. They get their way more than they should.

The few so-called Christians who are whining about this should look in the mirror instead of criticizing others. Matthew 7:5.