What would a genuine "atheist Christmas" be like? I drove by a house today and gave some serious thought to what I saw in the front yard. There were numerous "Christmas" decorations (though I find it hard to refer to them as such). There was a big Santa, an inflated reindeer, a penguin with a red cap, and a decorated snoopy. There were lots of lights and a few "tree shaped things". I looked closely; there was not a single image of, or reference to Jesus.
Now, I have no idea about the religion of philosophy of the residents of this house, so I am not about to make a judgment about them being atheists (only God knows their hearts). I am, however, using the visual portrayal in their front yard as an illustration. How would an atheist celebrate Christmas? Well, to say the least, he would not want much reference to the birth of Jesus the Messiah.
How can an atheist genuinely celebrate the birth of Someone Whose very life is a testimony to the reality of the God Who created all things, and is Judge of all people? How can an atheist find joy in remembering the birth of Someone Who declares the philosophy of atheism to be a foolish error? There is not much to celebrate about God Incarnate, when you do not believe in God.
Hence, the atheist celebration of Christmas would need to remove "Christ" from Christmas. That would leave it as ******mas. Yet, that would not be enough. Because, you see, the "mas" part of the word "Christmas" is referring to the Mass. The very liturgical celebration that the atheist sees as a pointless observance is offensive to him. So he would need to go further. For even ******mas reminds the atheist of the Catholic celebration that is centered on Christ Himself.
Therefore, he would need to reduce it even more so, and then there would be *********. Can you imagine trying to say "Merry *********"? Or what about asking if someone had a joyful "*********" celebration? I suppose that an atheist calendar would list December 25th as ********* Day, and on that day they could exchange ********* gifts. There is not much left when you remove Christ from Christmas. This is true if we do it intentionally, as well as when we do it out of neglect.
I doubt that any atheist would actually behave in this way--which once again goes to show the utterly ridiculous and self-contradictory nature of atheism. I do not hate atheists; rather, I feel sorry for them. Sorry that they cannot find the joy that we have found, and even more sorry that they are blind to it. I am glad that I have Christ, and that He has me. That means that I can truly celebrate CHRISTMAS.
