As Christmas looms near, people worldwide, especially in the US, become fixated on putting up Christmas trees and decorations, organizing family gatherings, and bringing out the holiday spirit. However, one vital aspect of the holiday is the regard given between one another. Over the last decade, saying “Merry Christmas” has spurred a disturbance, and it has become more common to replace it with “Happy Holidays,” or other respectful greetings. Although the issue has died down over the last few years, there is no doubt that it lingers with uncertainty over checkout counters, at school, or simply with any stranger.
The term “Happy Holidays” is most often used today for secularist reasons, as the word “Christmas” is often used to commemorate Christ’s birth in the Christian religion. To accommodate different faiths and backgrounds, “holidays” broadly describe the festivities in the winter season for those who don’t celebrate Christmas.
Although December, for most, brings to mind Christmas, it encompasses many holidays, such as Hanukkah, a Jewish festival that spans late November and December, and Kwanzaa, an African American celebration taking place from December 26 to January 1. Out of respect for these holidays, the secular greetings acknowledge that Christmas isn’t the only holiday and religion celebrated during winter.
However, many criticize the use of this term, arguing that it proposes a “war on Christmas.” The theory claims that the use of “Happy Holidays” tries to remove the “Christ out of Christmas,” an assault on an obvious Christian holiday. Although society has molded the concept into a joke and a meme, it still plays a major role in political views.
The issue emphasizes its political importance, heating discussions between Republicans and Democrats. Because of each party’s preferences on religion and ideals, Republicans tend to lean strongly towards the use of “Merry Christmas” instead of “Happy Holidays” by most Christian values. In contrast, a larger percentage of Democrats tend to favor neither term, acknowledging that the “war on Christmas” is usually a view of more Conservative Americans.
Many industries have also been shifting to match these views of secularism, such as Hallmark, which includes “Joyful Greetings” instead of “Merry Christmas” on their holiday cards. However, one of the greatest controversies was sparked by the worldwide company Starbucks, which declined to use elements of Christmas for their designs on holiday cups, going so far as to make them just plain red one year.
Whether it is the use of “Happy Holiday,” “Seasons’ Greetings,” or “Merry Christmas,” the intention behind the holiday greetings is to spread Christmas cheer to strangers. Whatever one chooses to say to another should be respected and viewed as a friendly gesture during the winter holiday season, instead of a threat to one’s beliefs and values. The same goes the other way, where if one chooses to greet with “Merry Christmas,” it should be accepted gladly, after all, Christmas is widely celebrated as a festive holiday worldwide, whether religious or not.
