Dear Hearts and Gentle People

I was watching Macys Thanksgiving Day Parade Thursday morning and listening to the commentators banter with one another about gift giving when one of the women said to her male cohort, "Well, I know what I'll be giving you for the holidays!"

What's wrong with that, you might ask. Well, I'll tell you. Everything.

Just what did she mean, "for the holidays?" What holiday exactly? Thanksgiving? Valentines? Veterans? Ground Hog Day?

Now I know as well as you do she probably meant Christmas but her cute little politically-correct comment infuriated me. It's Christmas, doggoned it, and for the life of me I can't understand why more and more people insist on removing the traditions that remind us Christmas is primarily the celebration of Jesus.

Now before you assume I'm a total dimwit, I do know the etymology of the word 'holiday' is 'holy day.' That's nice. I'm still on the side of 'Christmas.'

Okay, what's the difference then between wishing someone Merry Christmas and wishing someone Happy Holidays? They both express wishes for good will to others. They both essentially mean the same thing, don't they? Then they should be interchangeable, right?

Wrong.

Christmas is not just any old holiday. The only reason it exists at all is because of our belief in the birth of Christ. And, like it or not, the religion most practiced in America today is Christianity. 96 percent of us to be exact. We are not a minority.

Our Constitution acknowledges that all our rights are derived from God. Our equality is based on the Bible and with the idea that only a religious people are capable of the morality necessary to maintain a democracy.

The birth of Christ is the most significant event celebrated in this country during the month of December. Yes, there is Ramadan and Hanukkah. And Kwanza. Speaking of which, my sister-in-law was a missionary in Mekele, Africa, for three years and according to her most native Africans think Kwanza, though noble in its intent, is an absolute joke.

Then why are so many trying so hard to keep the real meaning of Christmas out of the celebration? And why is the majority being asked to hide its faith for the so-called "comfort" of the minority? Our country is based on majority rule, is it not? While it would certainly be unreasonable to force everyone to adhere to the religion of the majority, it is equally unreasonable to ask the majority to deny its faith simply because a few people are "uncomfortable" with it.

And don't think this anti-Christmas movement is only a problem in other places and not Lincolnton. No longer are our children allowed to sing Christmas carols in our public schools or to participate in any classroom activity that mentions Jesus' birth. Oh, they can Happy-Holiday themselves silly but let a teacher slip and mention angels or The Three Wisemen during the daily inane "moment of silence" and she may be soon looking for another job. It has happened here.

And just for the record, calling the December holiday break "Christmas Vacation" instead of "Winter Holidays" will not offend the Constitution.

Every time a nativity scene is removed from public property, or children can't sing of Christ's birth in school musical presentations, or Christmas trees are banned in classrooms, and we don't send a letter of protest or make a phone call, we are aiding and abetting someone who has committed a crime. The crime of apathy.

In other words, in my opinion anyway, the reason Jesus is being systematically removed from His own holiday is because we are just too chicken to fight back.

Confrontations can be so sticky and nobody likes them, including me, but political correctness has just gone too far.

The sad part is that we've been slowly giving in to it for so long because it's just much easier to let the minority have its way than to take a stand.

The crux of the matter is that never in the history of our nation has it been more important than now to be unified as a people under God. And, oddly enough, the number of people who object to including Christ in Christmas is small. It's not the mainstream Jews. In fact, a Jewish group calling themselves the JAACD (The Jews Against Anti-Christian Defamation) describes its mission as combating anti-Christian bias and they want the "politically correct" to know that it's perfectly okay to say "Merry Christmas."

It's not Muslims either. It's not any organized religion. People of faith understand that when we practice what we preach, all religions are strengthened.

And it's not most teachers. Bless their hearts, a great many of them have their hands tied and hate being held hostage by political correctness as much as any of us. I've known some personally who have bucked the system, were chastised for it, and advoided dismissal. Some others were not as fortunate.

I'm told of a Biology teacher in another county who was so incensed that he wasn't allowed to put up a Christmas tree in his classroom that he asked the kids to bring in Christmas ornaments to hang on the classroom skeleton.

There's another teacher who boldly uses Handel's Messiah every year and has to send home copies of a Supreme Court ruling that explains why it isn't a violation of the so-called separation of church and state. By the way, there is no such clause as "separation of church and state" in the Constitution.

There have been a few brave midwest Mayors who have thumbed their noses at the ACLU and who continue to put up mangers on city property, at least one governor who dared to post the ten commandents in the capitol rotunda, and there are always a few seasoned teachers who continue to pray aloud to God with their classes every single day. Kudos to them all!

Dear Hearts, cowardice is among us but, fortunately, it is in short supply. It is in a court system that no longer responds to the rights and the needs of the majority. It is in politicians and lawyers who give in to a few politically correct malcontents and yes, it is in all of us when we allow it to happen.

As for the Merry Christmas-Happy Holiday debate, the fact is that the teachings of Christ are the basis for our legal system and government....'Thou shalt not kill,' Thou shalt not bear false witness'.....all come from the ten commandments. As a society, we believe these to be true, therefore, we have a reason to celebrate Christmas even if we aren't Christians.

What we lose with the ambiguous "Happy Holidays" is the connection between Christ and Christmas....exactly what the liberals want us to do. They don't want anything to compete with the control that government has over us and messing with Christmas is the first step in eradicating the most prominent religion in our country.

What can we do about it? Plenty.

Speak up. Call your elected officials, at both local and state levels, federal if necessary. Let's not allow ourselves to be browbeaten by the minority liberal agenda. Support our troops. Support our churches. Support those in authority who choose to make lone bold stands in hard decisions.

And during this Christmas season display your nativities, sing your carols, build your faith by serving others, and be of good cheer. If someone wishes you "Happy Holidays," don't get your panties in a wad. Be kind, loving, and accepting. Chances are they're totally unaware of the insidious intent of the political left and are merely wishing you good tidings.

On the flip side, don't go soft either. Consider the man who was so concerned about "hurting somebody's feelings" his greeting card included the following disclaimer:

"Any references in this greeting to 'the Lord', 'Father Christmas', 'Our Saviour', or any other festive figures, whether actual or ficticious, dead or alive, shall not imply any endorsement by or from them in respect of this greeting, and all proprietary rights in any referenced third party names and images are hereby acknowledged."

Folks, you have every right to call the holiday whatever you like but remember, as the saying goes, "Jesus is the Reason for the Season."

The Christmas wars are likely to continue for a while so be diligent and discerning. As you may have gathered, words alone are obviously not the problem; the motives behind them, however, can do irreparable damage to our country's Christian heritage. Unfortunately, retailers don't particularly care about that. Many of them just care about the money. In other words, the shelf life of a "holiday" card is much longer than a "Christmas" card.

So, go ahead with your "Happy Holidays, "Seasons Greetings," even "Have a Cool Yule." It's still Christmas, the celebration of the birth of a Saviour. You can even say "Bah Humbug" if you want. It's Christmas just the same, and even a grinch knows good news when he hears it.

Merry Christmas, dear hearts.