A very merry Whatever-you-would-like-to-call it

One thing for which I am profoundly grateful, on this, the day before Christmas, is the paucity of the now-traditional hair pulling over what to call the “festive season.”

There have been occasional rumblings, to be sure, such as the email I received near the beginning of the month subject-lined “Christmas Tree.”

It was recycled from last year, one of those things some people see as containing a profound message. It included pictures of decorated trees; above each was the line, “This is a Christmas Tree.”

At the bottom of the email was the message, “These are NOT Holiday Trees…. We are not celebrating the birth of a Holiday!!! We are celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ!!!” and so on. There’s just a hint of rebelliousness about it, a sort of cry for freedom or something.

OK, we get it. You Christians can stop now. All you non-Christians who share their sentiments against the “political correctness” of a non-denominational “Holiday season,” you can stop now, too.

Case in point. South of the border, American Atheists president David Silverman was critical of President Barack Obama for talking too much about Christmas.

Perish the thought. Not only that, but doubt has been cast on the ownership of decorated trees. The practice, say the atheists, was started before Christianity, and so was the idea of celebrating around the time of the winter solstice.

Who then, really has title to Christmas? Again, Silverman: “Christianity thinks it owns this whole season, but this season, it belongs to everybody, and Christianity is not the first, nor the 10th religion to try and usurp the winter solstice for their own.”

Egad, dastardly Christians simply cannot be allowed to run about usurping the solstice. But if we all own Christmas — and isn’t that an intriguing prospect given that this season is supposed to be about sharing — the issue of what to call it remains.

A year ago, there was quite the brouhaha over this duel of the seasonal names down in Chilliwack, where the school board got into some trouble for calling the December break “Christmas Holidays.”

“We’re not having a holiday because it’s winter,” said Trustee Martha Wiens back then. “We are having a holiday because it’s Christmas, so why not just say what it is?”

On the other side of the argument was PAC president Kirsten Brandreth, who called the board “insensitive.”

But the Chilliwack board stuck to its guns, and this year as with last, the official school district calendar refers to “Christmas Holidays,” while most others, including Kamloops, use the term “Winter Vacation Period” or “Winter Break.”

Atheists can be a sanctimonious bunch in their own way, but they might indirectly have a point on this one. Maybe the exclusivity espoused by the likes of Martha Wiens and the author of the email on trees is passé.

No one can deny that Christmas has become something of a generic event that people of all faiths, or no faith, can enjoy.

So wouldn’t it be more productive, all things considered, if we stopped worrying so much? Let’s just make all the terminology interchangeable and be done with it. If you want to greet me with a “Merry Christmas,” a “Happy Holidays,” “Happy Hanukkah” or “Joyous Winter Solstice,” I’m fine with that.

Whichever of those you choose, that’s the one I wish for you on this special winter’s eve.