Religious holiday cards from friends....

[Phentex]

Ok, yes, I know why some people are celebrating Christmas and I know that some people are very religious. But if people know I am NOT religious, should they send me HOLIER than thou Christmas cards? I'm not talking about Peace on Earth or God Bless You This Christmas or Behold the Reason for the Season, I'm talking about cards that preach. I'll have to look at the exact wording but I got one the other day which basically said that Jesus was born to save me and I should be thanking my lucky stars. It was super-religious compared to the run-of-the-mill Christian card. I'm guessing people don't feel the need to send different kinds of cards but here's my beef. This person knows me very well. *I* would never send her a funny card that mocked The Reason for The Season in any way. I love her dearly, but I find this very odd.

Thoughts?

[trotsky]

1. Mocking their faith - or even expressing your doubt about it -

is a horrible insult and an "attack" on their religion.

Mocking your lack of faith - or disrespecting it - is justified and even required by their faith, so they can dutifully return to their pastor and say, "I sent Satan a Christmas card!"

Oh, and don't point that out, either, because you will be insulting their religion again. :eyes:

[Phentex]

16. You're probably right....

though I don't feel she is mocking me. I do think she's trying to tell me something!

[Philostopher]

2. Perhaps your friend feels like she's 'done her duty.'

If she's a member of an evangelical church, that's all part of the modus operandi -- evangelizing, I mean. Is it insensitive? In a general sense, yes, I suppose it is. Would she understand if you said you thought it was insensitive? Probably not.

It's possible, too, that the cards were sold through some church-affiliated organization, in which case she bought a box of them and everybody got the same one. Again -- insensitive? Generally, yes.

But, odd? Not really -- Christians have been told by the TV news and the guy who's in the White House that they're in charge of the culture now. Dobson and Robertson are the 'go-to guys' on the empty-suit talk shows. They actually believe that somehow that gives them the right -- and perhaps even the responsibility -- to proselytize everybody they know that way. However valid it is, right now their beliefs are being given plenty of air. It's just what they've always wanted -- the meme right now is that mainstream and farther right Christians have been persecuted by our tolerant, broadly-accepting society for too long, and they should heave a sigh of relief that now the whole country accepts Jesus as its personal savior, and anybody who doesn't get with the program can suck eggs.

I don't know how long that stuff's going to hang around, though. What they don't ever get is that Christianity isn't supposed to be happy, shiny or appeal to the masses. That wasn't supposed to be the point -- it's supposed to require sacrifice and be difficult, so they can pat themselves on the back that they're giving up so much. It's the Calvinists and Paulists who have the reins of American Christianity, right now. Will they keep them? Who knows.

Will the rest of us have to put up with this stuff until something else happens? You betcha'. Tolerance -- that's so nineties.

[Modem Butterfly]

3. It sounds passive-aggressive to me

Personally, I would confront her on it. Not in an angry way, but I would ask her out-right to explicitly tell you why she sent you this card. I'm a big believer in getting things out in the open.

[Phentex]

17. I think I should mention it to her some time....

maybe not right away but the next time religion comes up. We are able to talk about a lot of things. I guess I should just ask her why she does this!

[displacedtexan]

4. Make a small donation to the ACLU in her name...

or get revenge: give her a fruitcake.

[Phentex]

18. HA! I should do that for several of my friends!

My mom STILL makes fruit cakes and she thinks people really like them!

[RebelOne]

5. Both of my sisters, who know that I am a devout atheist,

send me religious cards every year. I think they do it to tick me off.

[Phentex]

19. I hope she's not trying to tick me off....

But she HAS to know I'd find this irritating.

[Endangered Specie]

6. Send a "happy winter solstice" card...

or a "happy hanuka" card, in case they dont get the former.

donate the money to some secular organization.

Check here...
https://lightning.he.net/~atheists/catalogue/shop/cat006.php

[slutticus]

9. Yes..

..."HAPPY DEC 21st!!!, you stole our holiday!"

signed,
the Pagans

How the long night is spent is often chosen by each family group, and other than keeping a fire burning all night, not much is said of the middle parts of historical Yule celebrations. Singing songs, eating, playing games and sharing common warmth seem to be popular choices. The solstice is the symbolic rebirth of the Sun, and many many winter solstice rituals end with singing in the new sunrise.
http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art15644.asp

[Phentex]

20. I send a pretty tame Happy Holidays or

Season's Greeting type card. I think the Happy Hanuka card could open up the conversation though. :)

[JNelson6563]

7. Sounds like a history lesson is needed

maybe in the form of a trivia question. Which Emperor decreed when his Christian subjects would celebrate the birth of Jesus so that all his subjects could celebrate their holy day on the same date? Bonus points if you can tell me the pagan holiday it coincides with.

Julie

[slutticus]

10. This is a good article..

...http://www.iranchamber.com/culture/articles/persian_roots_christian_traditions.php

[Phentex]

23. Very interesting article!....

and that would be perfect to share! Thanks. :)

[kdmorris]

13. hmmm

Wasn't it Constantine? And the holiday was Saturnalia, yes?

[JNelson6563]

15. Yes, I believe so

I knew the Constantine part, Constantinople makes that easy for me to remember. I had forgetten the holiday though.

It's always a real buzzkill for the more self-righteous Christians when you throw some facts their way. Good clean fun IMO. ;-)

Julie

[Behind the Aegis]

8. They are in charge no need to be concerned with others

There are a few Christians who are thoughtful of others, especially family and friends, and send cards to match those folks holidays or level of religion. Others just send everybody the same card, it is too much trouble to buy different cards. Then, there is the last group...they want nothing more than to cram their beliefs down your throat, but if you did the same, they could scream they were being oppressed!

Personally, I have multiple cards, some in other languages. I send Christmas cards to Christians (sometimes religious ones to those I know to be devout), I send Chanukah cards to my family, I send season greetings to non-practicing people (I know no atheists, to date). And, if I had other witch friends, I would send them Yule cards. I do it because I am trying to show them I respect their beliefs. Oddly enough, I have never received a Solstice card from my family (who know what I practice), and I often get Xmas cards from others who know my family is Jewish. Oh well! At least I show them respect and that is important to me.

[Phentex]

21. That is very thoughtful of you...

Maybe I'm overthinking it, but I don't think she's the type who can't be bothered. In fact, for my birthday, she found a beautiful card that had three children dressed up for a fancy party. The three kids looked like me, her and a red-headed friend of ours. She even commented on how it looked like us when we were kids.

I'm grateful for any card really. I think I should just tell her her message is falling on deaf ears.

[fshrink]

11. I think we should promote postcards showing

dismembered bodies, burned corpses , dead children and so forth due to our bombings here and there. Words would be, wishing you a happy thoughtful Christmas or other. Re-frame this.

[Phentex]

22. Oh, you wouldn't believe some of the messages I've thought

up in my head!

[curse10]

12. I love getting those cards

I find them highly amusing.

[Gelliebeans]

14. and usually those "religious cards"

contain a "brag letter" (well mine do because I won't call these people during the rest of the year) Ain't caller ID great ;)

This year I was insulted twice (in one card)from one of my looney relatives not only did she send a nice religious card with a picture of the family on the front in "their sunday best" but....in the brag letter contained her ELATION that we were blessed to have George Bush
re-elected president.
:puke: :puke: :puke: :puke: :puke:

[Phentex]

24. Heads will roll!.....

If I get any Bushie gloat letters this year!

My nephew is in Iraq. People know I'm sensitive to the entire Bush/war dumbass repugs right now!

[Kolesar]

27. mail them back some photos of mutilated Iraqis

Sorry about the image. I am feeling cranky this morning.

[Biased Liberal Media]

25. My mom still sends me Jesus cards for xmas

despite now knowing that I am Atheist. I guess it's her way of hoping I'll come back to Jesus. Dream on.

[StrongbadTehAwesome]

26. I've gotten a couple like that from people in my family.

I figure people send out cards for the holiday that they celebrate. As long as their cards are just Bible verses or nativity scenes, I have no problem. I expect that my family is going to send me cards for Christmas instead of Hannukah/Solstice/whatever, and likewise I send them Solstice cards instead of Christmas ones.

If I get a "Jesus is the reason..." card though (or something even more preachy), that person gets a "Cold weather is the reason for the season" card with lots of info about the solstice, Mithra, Saturnalia, Yule, and the like, explaining that ancient people all over the world arranged festivals for their various sun gods at this time of the year to celebrate the lengthening of days.

Free expression of religion is fine with me, but attempts at proselytizing will be met with an onslaught of information. :)