The Right and the Left
Religious conservatives are claiming that anti-Christian "secularists" from the left are trying to destroy Christmas. They characterize these "secularists" as evil and anti-American. Others point to Macys department store as the culprit. In "Christmasrapping" I will discuss the origins of holidayization and dispel myths that have established Christmas as a social ill.

To understand why holidayization filtered down from it's origins to become a formula that everyone has been encouraged to use automatically while it received a political correctness stamp of approval, we need to look at why people felt Christmas was in the wrong. This brings us to the subject of minorities (there is concern for their quality of life and their feelings) but specifically  the preoccupation with "inclusion".

In view of this, there is prejudice against Christmas because of it's name, which means "the mass of Christ". Christianity being the majority religion predisposes Christmas to be portrayed as the bully in December. Some think that Christmas, the religious observance, is too dominant and, if only for one month, no one should feel marginalized by it. They think "Holiday" is a problem-solving word. With "Holiday" replacing "Christmas", the nativity is removed. Although Santa and other secular icons may remain, without association with the Christmas name, they are robbed of history and meaning, and float around as empty "holiday" icons."Holiday" replacing "Christmas" is also thought to be problem solving because it's inclusive, a non -specific term that includes other. less dominant observances (observances that are in the minority) that are thought to be suppressed in December, so no one's feelings are hurt. To compound the controversy, right wing Christians, the group outspoken in supporting Christmas, may have a destructive effect on the holiday they try to protect.

It would seem counter-productive for me to find fault with anyone's attempt to defend Christmas, but unfortunately, while speaking out in the way they know best, the right wing has brought baggage with them from their political platform that has nothing to do with the holiday. There are currently controversial areas where religious extremists are using the Bible as the basis for limiting some people's rights.They want Christmas, but the other things they want spoil, by association, the good name of Christmas. Right wing antics have given Christianity a bad reputation at a time when interest in organized religion is already at an all time low. The image of Christmas as backed primarily by religious extremists, pitting one set of values against another and polarizing people, is negative. No one knows how many people there are who will speak out for Christmas on the basis of right wing principals. If their numbers were overwhelming there would be no contest, but I believe their numbers are proportionately small. Alone there aren't enough of them to make a difference.
It's good for  people to be concerned about their right to freedom of religious expression in regards to Christmas, but conservatives would help Christmas more if they recognized a broader view of the holiday. Christmas is the broadest imaginable cultural celebration, not just religious.

A partial list of the areas that Christmas has enlivened and influenced over the centuries looks something like this: folklore, festival, art, music, literature, television and film, food, education, horticulture, class and gender reversal, civic ceremony, localism, family, race, ethnicity, commerce, and  charity.

The left wing objects to Christmas. Like the religious right wing, they are off base with their insistence on pigeonholing Christmas as a holiday only Christians can enjoy. Here they agree with conservatives about the definition of the holiday but have an opposite agenda. They feel that Christmas visibility should be severely limited because they feel it has touchy religious subject matter. Religious extremist feel Christmas is spoiled by commercialism and other secular elements and that their interpretation of religion should be the basis for the law. There's no question that atrocities and disservices have been committed in the name of Christianity (other religions share this legacy) but Christmas has never been part of these injustices. I don't think religion in itself causes evil. Believers who are inflamed by leaders with a political agenda do.

With "Christmasrapping" I would like to broaden the support base of Christmas. As someone who came of age in the mid-sixties and early seventies, I've always considered my persuasion more toward the left. If enjoying Christmas and other holidays means I'll be spurned by the left, then, for Christmas, I'm willing to step out of that box of prescribed thinking. The stance of "Christmasrapping" is that Christmas is bigger than left and right. No one has a monopoly on Christmas.
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