Written by Don Byrd
When did the hysteria over the “War on Christmas” finally go too far? Was it when Sarah Palin wrote an entire book about it? I’m not sure, but many from all political angles are agreeing that one’s religious liberty isn’t at stake just because a store greeter respectfully wishes “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas.” Likewise, a holiday display at the county courthouse that lacks a nativity scene isn’t out to restrict or belittle Christianity.
As the Tennessean points out, a Christian blogger has stirred the pot with this helpful flowchart to let you know if you have been persecuted. (hint: if someone wished you happy holidays, you haven’t been). And there are other signs of emerging sanity on this issue.
God became flesh and lived among us, and if that’s not enough for people, I think they’ve missed the point,” said [Rachel Held] Evans, who lives in Dayton, Tenn., and wrote last year’s best-selling book, “A Year of Biblical Womanhood.”
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It’s strange that folks would argue about saying “Merry Christmas” in public when Jesus Christ himself instructed his followers to make peace with religious opponents, said Dan Scott, senior pastor of interdenominational, evangelical Christ Church in Nashville. There may be extreme cases where Christians in America face opposition for their beliefs, Scott said, but it’s more likely that some suddenly are realizing they live in a religiously diverse nation.
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Daniel Darling, vice president of communication for the Nashville-based Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, addressed the topic in the December issue of Homelife magazine, urging Christians to be joyful instead of judgmental this season.
Will this be the year when celebrating Christmas doesn’t mean getting defensive about it?
