Should Atheists Celebrate Holidays e.g. Christmas?
 

For quite a while this is something which has annoyed me but came to light yesterday. Atheists claim that there is no God, and they don't go to church, don't give anything up for Lent etc but are hypocritical when it comes to holidays such as Christmas and Easter. I know its turned into more of a commercial thing than an actual religious holiday, but the origins still go back to religion and in my view, atheists should not be hypocritical and take the holidays which suit them because they enjoy it. In my view, to celebrate something like Christmas shows you cannot be a true Atheist, because if you was you wouldn't be celebrating it. Other religions don't dip in and out of other religions as it suits them, and as Atheists are classed as a religion, they should not dip in and out of Christianity.

Some Atheists are born into Christian families which I am aware of, and as its more of a British tradition these days rather than an actual religious holiday but a lot of these families as a whole are Atheists. So the question is, should Atheists celebrate certain holidays such as Christmas?

Very long argumentative debate: http://www.thisisbigbrother.com/foru...d=76317&page=1

Well a lot of the celebrations involved with Christmas actually come from pagan traditions and not Christian ones.

Also, I think christmas brings people together and has come to mean more than a religious celebration for many people, so I think people should be allowed to celebrate what they like.

define Christmas, is it the Coca Cola advert, the many different versions of Pagan Santa, the christmas tree ritual. Getting leathered as the bible prohibits...

or the plain praying for jesus and following the bibles teachings?

It is all of that and it has lost its roots and it seems that most people these days just celebrate it for the hell of it and not for the actual purpose. IMO there is no such thing as an Atheist because the natural customs of a country enforce particular holidays and festivals so its to do with your upbringing, family etc. But those who claim to be Atheists I think cannot be truly Atheist because everyone is aware of the roots of these holidays, and if they felt that strongly against them then they clearly wouldn't celebrate them which is my point.

There is such a thing as an atheist- A person who does not believe in God or higher being. To say there isn't such a thing is ridiculous. Also, a lot of the celebrations of Christmas come from pagan festivals and not christian ones. For example, I celebrate christmas- give presents, spend time with family etc.. but don't celebrate any of the christian aspects.

But it all derives from the religious aspect. Its became more of a British tradition with the increasing number of 'Atheists', but I still think that everyone knows the roots of the holidays in question no matter whether they celebrate it through tradition and not religion etc. My view is that it doesn't matter about whether it comes from pagan festivals or not, it all comes from a religious one and is adapted through the years. I still feel that if an Atheist felt that strong about being an Atheist, then they simply wouldn't celebrate anything at all as everyone knows where the roots lie.

I don't feel that strongly, I just don't believe in God. For me, christmas means something else and I'm not hurting anyone by celebrating it this way so I don't see that it matters.

I'm agnostic, and wholeheartedly confess to being cast under the materialism spell when it comes to Christmas and Easter. I just think it's nice to have a bit of chocolate or a few presents around those times of the year, and families bond over them, whether or not they believe in the religions that bring them together.

i know what you mean shaun, but personally I think if your not a christian and your celebrating Christmas then it just explains how pretentious the rest of your persona/community is.

You might as well be Jewish and celebrating christmas.

I mean anyone can celebrate anything at anytime of year, but if you dont like god, then just dont call it christmas and just call it a party or something.. :p

I couldn't care less if you thought that :tongue:

I'm having fun :wink:

lol

Weren't you arguing against me a minute ago?

what are you on about?

All iv said is logical points to both sides of the debate, im not taking sides in this... just tryna make points and drum up debate lol :p

As Conor said there is already a thread on this, please post in it. :wink:

As a Christian I can come up with arguments why Christians should not celebrate Christmas or Easter - So there

I have also communcated with Christians who do not recognise Christmas.

Probly not, but I wantpresents

No they should not. They don't believe in anything and they want to celebrate Christmas without knowing what it this and what does it represent to a kind of people.
It's like if Muslims celebrate Hannukah, it's not right.
After all, Atheists can find their own day and everyone will be happy.

And Sticks, I know many people who don't recognise it and who are christians but it doesn't mean they want atheists to celebrate it instead.

And it's the same thing for Easter. People want presents or chocolates but when you talk about the religion meaning they are like "Oh no no no I don't trust in anything....but I still want presents !"

I think none Christians should be allowed to celebrate Christmas. It's a celebration, they aren't hurting anyone.

Then why Christmas (or Hannukah or other days) which is a christian day ? It's slighly hypocrite. Nowadays, people celebrate it only for the presents and don't know what does it mean for real.
And the other 364 days they say they are atheist. Sorry but if you are atheist, you respect your choice and the religions of the others even if you don't trust in any of them.
And it is hurting because I really can't stand that behaviour. I can't help that.

I don't mind what people celebrate. I think it brings people together and it's nice to give and recieve presents. Sorry you can't stand it but I just don't think celebrating anything could be seen as a bad thing.

Pardon ? Do you know what Christmas is at least ? It's like if you say to a Jewish not to celebrate Hannukah.

Tbh, nobody is hurting anyone by celebrating it, so I dont really think its upto anyone but themselves.

I agree with Matt10k. There's absolutely no way in Hell that Christmas or Easter will be de-materialised in the near future, so, "celebrating" it for its religious values or not, if you chose not to "celebrate" it, you'd be a very unhappy bunny come Christmas/Eastertime. :)

But why on a religious day then ? Can't they create an other day only for atheists ? It's just something I will never understand.
They don't respect people who trust and who are Christians. This is not a right thing to do considering that you don't trust in anything.

Of course people have the right to celebrate when and what they want, but it doesn't sound right, or you trust in a God then you celebrate an important day or you do'nt trust in anything and you don't anything related to a God or you create your own day.