Why do Atheists Celebrate Christmas?
Posted: Sunday, November 22, 2009
by Connor Davidson
The question of whether Atheists celebrate Christmas is a question that I am often asked by people. The question that I am about to answer I am sure will be controversial and I doubt it will make me Mr Popular. Though, I do think that the majority of SearchWarp, from what I have seen, are a very clever bunch and able to listen to other peoples views. Thus, I have confidence that what I have to say will be considered and I will not get the usual: "la, la, la I'm not listening and you're going to hell, muhaha!"
However, should roles be reversed and Intelligent Design had a mountain of evidence (though I am inclined to my own skepticisms of this happening) then I would not be an Atheist and nor wound the majority of the science world.
Now, what I really want to make clear here is that just because you don't believe in a creator or biblical miracles and so on; it does not mean you reject the entirety of religion. For example, I don't go out and murder people because the Ten Commandments say I should not. Thus, Atheists follow some teachings of the bible. The difference is that Atheists don't follow it because it is in the bible: they realise that killing others is not a moral activity and that if everyone constantly went about killing everyone it would not be good for our survival.
In the context of Christmas, Atheists have seen that it has many great aspects: family, love and friendship which, I cannot see anyone in their right mind having an objection to. The only difference is that we do what some people will condemn; and don't bother with the religious side.
The most famous Atheist Richard Dawkins celebrates Christmas and even goes out and sings Christmas carols! Mr Dawkins is a fan of much religious music and has no objection to singing a good song: he simply does not believe the "deeper meaning" behind the song. I personally love the music of Ricky Skaggs and I think he is one of the greatest musicians alive. But he is a deeply religious man and reflects that in all of his music. Here is a link to one of my all time favorite songs: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekdb2iqPRW8. Who could not like that song?
Have you ever herd the term Atheists for Jesus? This sounds like to total oxymoron, but if you think about it there is much truth in the statement. Jesus or the scholar that created him (I can't say for certain which), had a lot of good things to say and much of what he taught makes sense. So, although Atheists reject dogma on every level they would be stupid to ignore every good piece of advice (and I use advice for a reason) in the Bible. The great thing about Atheism, and the reading of the Bible from an Atheist perspective, is that you can pick and choose what you follow and what you don't. For example, I don't much like some of the violence in the Old Testament - see Exodus 34: 13-17.
Thus, I plan to celebrate Christmas this year like all other years: I will have Christmas dinner, send and receive presents, put up a Christmas tree and happily take the day off. Because I follow the evidence and don't believe in God does not mean I don't like having a fun day. Why would I? And what is the problem with that?
Finally, Merry Christmas each and everyone who celebrates Christmas for whatever reason.
Connor Davidson is a UK based writer. He writes on wide variety of topics with his main interest being science, maths and engineering.
Feel free to reprint these articles on your website by using the reprint button. If you have any questions or comments please post them below - I read all comments.
You can keep up to date with his writings by following him on twitter or Google+
Feel free to reprint these articles on your website by using the reprint button. If you have any questions or comments please post them below - I read all comments.
You can keep up to date with his writings by following him on twitter or Google+
This Article has been viewed 2,760 times. (Not updated in real-time.)
More commentsMerry Christmas to you too dear Connor. God Bless you.If God blesses me I need to totally reconsider the whole article.Thanks for the comment.hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!! Love this answer!
Wow, I really enjoyed your article and it made me see realise quite a lot. However (there is always a however with me - sorry) may I ask? At Christmas do you ever feel a bit more uplifting, that is more good will to men so speak due to it being Christmas and the time for giving?I would say yes to that.Thanks for the comment.
I am reading this again through the readers club. Just as interesting as the first time. I think they still say there are no atheists in foxholes. Linda DThey do still say that, and it seems to be potentially offensive to both atheists (implying they won't fight for what's right) and religious people (implying religious belief is often caused by intense stress when rational thought has to take a back seat).Fortunately for everyone, the saying is complete nonsense, atheists are well represented in foxholes!
You're a very talented writer Connor, with an amazing ability to express your points of view.I am a Christian, though I know that at least 10 times a day I fall short of what I believe my father expects from me.One lesson I learned early in life that comes straight from Christ is "Judge not lest ye be judged" coupled with "let he who be without sin cast the first stone".Those who love God should love you regardless of your beliefs. They should show their love and respect to you and when they do, you will see God through them, and thus you may be persuaded.In the meantime, all people have a right to celebrate Christmas in whatever way they see fit. Many of the traditions that we hold dear today are pagan rites that have been added to a holy celebration.For everyone Christmas should about love, joy, and peace. It should be about being with friends and family and knowing that you have a bond with them that cannot be broken.For Christians, all that is prefaced by their love and knowledge of a sacrifice for us that began with the virgin birth. We choose to believe and as someone once said, we believe in oxygen even though we can't see it, so why should we not believe in God.I'm afraid I would have to disagree with the last statement. We can can prove by much science that oxygen exist (and you can see it, sort of, in water).Thanks for the comment.
I'd first like to start off with this statement: I'm agnostic. After looking over both sides of the religion argument about God's existence, I decided that there may or may not be a God, rather than what I used to believe; which was that there is a God, but he takes a backseat and does not get involved.Now, on to your article. It was well written, as to be expected from you, and I'd like to give my two cents, as they say. I would celebrate Christmas, whether a God exists or not. I believe Christmas is a time of enjoyment, fun, love, and interactions with family and friends. I believe that no matter what, everyone should have a good time on Christmas, no matter what!Now, for the flaws in evolution. There are theories about them, and some of which are on the show: "Was Darwin Wrong?" Sadly, I watched months ago, so I can't exactly re-iterate what was said. The eye is mentioned, by the way.I don't care if there's a God or not. If there is, there is, if there's not, there's not. I'll live my life the same way no matter what. I don't want to be amazed if I find the other's true, so I'll just be half and half, thank you very much.You should go and write why do agnostics celebrate christmas.Thanks for the comment.By the purist definition of atheist, all agnostics are atheists. I know that sounds weird, but it's true. An atheist is basically someone who is not a theist. A theist is someone who worships a god.I only say this because those who claim atheism very rarely say, "Nope, there can't be a god, no way." Most of them just don't particularly care one way or the other, and don't let the idea rule their life.
Connor,It's obvious to me that you are still searching, not 100% convinced in your decision. My one request to you...being an obviously intelligent person, read the Bible, specifically the New Testament (Saul on the road to Damascus). After you have read it in it's entirety, please write another article about your experience during this time.I think you may find what you are searching for. Just a small challenge from a person who has seen the difference.I would love to read about what goes on in your life as you read the ENTIRE Bible.I have already read the bible several times through and it has not changed where I stand.Thanks for the comment.
WELL.
This entire thing is fascinating to me. The article, because I really love to know how people think and what makes them tick and since I'm not an atheist, I really enjoyed your explanations and learned some new things (which I also love). The comments too, because I would never have expected your article to cause this whole brouhaha over evolution vs creationism. Who saw that coming??? Maybe you did.Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed reading through this whole study in human dynamics! It kind of reminds me of a country song I heard in the store the other day, whose chorus was, "God is good, beer is great, people are crazy"...
Look forward to hearing you again. :)
P.S. Still laughing at your "atheist humor". I'll be chuckling about that for a while, so Thanks!I admit I never seen this coming. I knew there would be a reaction but had no idea about the scale of it.Thanks for the comment.
I wonder why someone would think that an atheist couldn't celebrate christmas. It's not exactly a christian holiday, looking at it from a historical context-- if the catholic church adopted it, then why couldn't an atheist also celebrate it the way they wanted to?Connor, I appreciate that you base your beliefs on fact and logic, as you seem to be expressing in your little spiel about evolution vs. intelligent design. I wonder though, how much effort have you put into looking into the different arguments for each side? 'Cause really, there's quite a bit of support for creationism, etc., some of it being well founded and some of it not-- just like there's quite a bit for evolution that is well founded and not.I ask, because it seems that if you're going to base your beliefs on fact, then you ought to search out and weigh as much of it as you can, not skipping over anything, or just being convinced at the first sight, or looking only at one side of the argument-- if I be lucid.I constantly get asked this question. I have looked into both in great detail and every time I find that evolution has fact and creationism falls back on dogma and poor or incomplete arguments.Thanks for the comment.
Talking about fact, God cannot be proved by facts, only faith. eg: " Moreover, without FAITH it is impossible to please him well, for he that approaches God must believe that he is, and that he becomes the rewarder of those earnestly seeking him." Hebrews 11 6. And follow on down. BY FAITH
If you want to be Mr.Popular, write a bible.
Otherwise, keep up the good work!
Good point.Thanks for the comment.
More comments
We want your comments! If you can read this, you don't have javascript enabled, so you can't use this comment system. Please enable javascript.