House Republicans have declared war on the War on Christmas. House Resolution 951, sponsored by Henry Brown of–where else–South Carolina seeks to express “the sense of the House of Representatives that the symbols and traditions of Christmas should be protected for use by those who celebrate Christmas.”
Here’s the full text:
Whereas Christmas is a national holiday celebrated on December 25; and
Whereas the Framers intended that the First Amendment of the Constitution, in prohibiting the establishment of religion, would not prohibit any mention of religion or reference to God in civic dialog: Now, therefore, be it
- Resolved, That the House of Representatives–
- (1) recognizes the importance of the symbols and traditions of Christmas;
- (2) strongly disapproves of attempts to ban references to Christmas; and
- (3) expresses support for the use of these symbols and traditions by those who celebrate Christmas.
It’s not clear exactly what the Congressmen are trying to prevent. The only place Christmas is being reined in is where government gives preference to its religious observance over other religious beliefs. Granted, I’d rather Christmas was NOT a federal holiday (I’d be in favor of giving federal employees a floating holiday to use whenever they wanted), but I don’t think that’s a battle that can be won anytime soon.
Deciding when and where to draw the line does get complicated. For example, do I really care if my mailman wishes me a Merry Christmas, as long as it’s clear he’s expressing his own personal sentiment? And is it really a big deal if my high school chorus includes “Silent Night” along with Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” and “The Hanukkah Song”? I mean, Jesus may not be THE reason for the season, but he is ONE of the reasons for the season.
In any case, H.R. 951 is nothing more than a blatant attempt by Republican politicians to score points with their conservative base. It’s not out of any fear that the Holiday Nazis will kick their doors down to rip the Nativity scenes from their living rooms.
Jesus is hardly even one of the reasons for the season. I’m sure that you know as well as I do that the christmas celebrations predate Jesus by at least a thousand years. They’re anchored to the solstace, and would happen in some form or other no matter the reigning religious hegemony. That’s the very reason that Jesus has a mention in the season at all: early pagans weren’t wont to give up their holidays, so the early church thought it best to syncretize it with a celebration of their messiah. The only even remotely christian element of modern christmas is the nativity scene and story (and perhaps the oblique reference to St. Nicholas), and they—aside from being perverted beyond recognition—tend to play a tiny role relative to rest of the festivities.
I’m personally happy to have a fixed national holiday in the neighborhood of the solstace. There’s a lot of power in so many people celebrating the same holiday at once, the sense that the world has stopped in its tracks for a day or a week, which is certainly in the spirit of Saturnalia and the early solstace celebrations. Perhaps calling the national holiday ‘Christmas’ is somewhat vulgar, but it’s the least of our battles. The Pledge and national motto are certainly higher on my personal list of qualms.
“strongly disapproves”? What does that mean? Is that like when Demi Moore “strenuously objects” to the judge?
Has the same weight as declaring April Chocolate Chip Cookie Month. Resolutions by either chamber are universally voted for and ignored.