School have banned the word "christmas"!!!

Person_one

jamespir wrote: »

stupid why ban a word why should we change our beliefs and religious festivals but allow other such religions to keep theres

I know its hard James, but we'll get through it together, we're going to work on thinking before you post.

Has anybody in an official capacity told you you can't celebrate Christmas or tried to prevent you from buying a tree or humming Rudolph?
Have you noticed a strange absence of Christmas related media and products this year?
Has anybody told you that you may not believe in the baby Jesus and have they explained how they plan to enforce this?

I'm going to guess the answer to those questions is 'no'.

So...following the evidence to the logical conclusion, does it seem to you as though anybody is trying to ban Christmas? No,it doesn't.

There, you did it!

Ravenlady_2

But they have not banned the word 'Christmas' purely because children are not at school for Christmas, they are at school for Advent, the period leading up to Christmas and are actually correct in using the term advent, something you could learn from.

If they had used the term 'Winter Festival' or some equally twee and ridiculous coinage then you would be right to be annoyed but they are using the correct term especially being a religious school.

GracieP

sassyblue wrote: »

I wouldn't be too happy about it, no way am l ever going to say 'Happy Holidays' and all that rubbish it's CHRISTMAS a Christian festival, this country is a Christian country.... and l don't have to be overly religious to celebrate it.

ska_lover wrote: »

Political correctness gone mad.

This country is not aimed at being a homestead for the original inhabitants these days. We are made to feel unwelcome. They should ban the word Diwali as well - But they won't!

jamespir wrote: »

stupid why ban a word why should we change our beliefs and religious festivals but allow other such religions to keep theres

Did any of you read further than the title of the thread? The school wants the children to refer to the specific CHRISTIAN period which many churches, Catholic, Anglican, Presbyterian, Lutheran, Methodist, etc are currently celebrating; Advent. It is the exact same as students at a Christian school being asked to refer to the period before Easter as Lent rather than Easter.

margaretclare

Stuart_W wrote: »

I'm a primary school RE teacher.

If we want to get all technical about this, Christmas is the beginning of Christmastide, a twelve day period which begins at the close of advent. Christmas is a time when Christians remember the birth of Jesus, even though this event is most likely to have taken place in January. Advent, which I have been teaching about this afternoon, comes from the Latin 'adventus' which means arrival or coming. It is a Christian period of preparation for the celebration of the birth of Jesus. Advent is the four weeks before Christmas, beginning on November 30th, or the Sunday nearest to it (the four Sundays before Christmas Day). On each of the four Sundays in advent in traditional churches, a different candle on the Advent Wreath is lit, traditionally representing something different. The feast day Epiphany is traditionally celebrated in Western Christianity on 6th January representing the time the Magi (aka The Wise Men) visited Jesus. I believe Roman Catholics celebrate this on the Sunday closest to that date.

It may be worth checking that the assembly wasn't simply explaining that we are in Advent now and it is not Christmas yet. I'm not entirely sure that attempting to ban the use of a religious festival name is actually allowed, although I work in a community school with children from various faith groups, and none. I often talk about Eid or Yom Kippur at different times of the year (or even Christmas - when one delightful 7 year old thought that in July it was Christmas in Australia!).

On the entirely practical front, I am in full sympathy with the problems Christmas cards can cause - in the playground and in the classroom, especially if children are just handing them out. A child not getting a card when everyone else does can upset them for the rest of the day. A simple school post box system soon solves that one, they love posting the cards and each class gets given all their cards at the end of the week, including ones the teacher or head has written to make sure every child gets something. For some pupils, "Happy Holidays" will be more suitable, and Jehovah's Witness children require generic winter themed cards, but everyone can be included.

Might be worth checking she didn't mean Christmas cards are banned until a different date. We restrict them to the last two weeks of term (so beginning next Monday).

I'm always trying to explain to people who are rushing around saying 'oh it's Christmas' that actually it is not. I'm not surprised that many children get confused by the 'Christmas' advertising on TV which seems to start soon after Guy Fawkes' Day, by all the supermarkets with Merry Christmas displayed prominently, coloured lights flashing everywhere, you name it. We are actually in Advent, and no, it is not a 'party season', it is a time for quiet reflection and expectation, hope even! Our ancestors would have repented and fasted during this 4-week period and would have thought modern habits odd in the extreme.

I once had this conversation when I worked in a nursing home and the owner was a Hindu. 'It's Christmas, Sister, it's party time!' 'No, actually it is not'. For people who follow other religions, I think that they see the 'Christian' way of 'celebrating' Christmas weeks ahead and omitting the essential preceding preparation, as very strange.

Christmas actually starts at midnight on Christmas Eve.

Person_one

margaretclare wrote: »

I'm always trying to explain to people who are rushing around saying 'oh it's Christmas' that actually it is not. I'm not surprised that many children get confused by the 'Christmas' advertising on TV which seems to start soon after Guy Fawkes' Day, by all the supermarkets with Merry Christmas displayed prominently, coloured lights flashing everywhere, you name it. We are actually in Advent, and no, it is not a 'party season', it is a time for quiet reflection and expectation, hope even! Our ancestors would have repented and fasted during this 4-week period and would have thought modern habits odd in the extreme.

I once had this conversation when I worked in a nursing home and the owner was a Hindu. 'It's Christmas, Sister, it's party time!' 'No, actually it is not'. For people who follow other religions, I think that they see the 'Christian' way of 'celebrating' Christmas weeks ahead and omitting the essential preceding preparation, as very strange.

Christmas actually starts at midnight on Christmas Eve.

Try to remember that strictly practicing Christians don't have a monopoly on Christmas (and its associated periods) and that your way is not the only way or even the right way.

margaretclare

Person_one wrote: »

Try to remember that strictly practising Christians don't have a monopoly on Christmas (and its associated periods) and that your way is not the only way or even the right way.

So what IS the right way?

Is Christmas not about the birth of Christ? If not, then what is it about, and why is it called 'Christ-mas' i.e. the Mass of Christ?

I have friends who have gone back to the old gods, Woden et al, and they have a winter celebration. I have no problem with that, because they do not call it Christmas, they call it Yule.

It seems to me that the month of December - if you leave Christ's birth out of it - is based on the worship of some bloke in a red suit with a long white beard, whose totem animal is an unlikely apparition, a reindeer with a red nose. The requirements of this deity are that everyone rushes around worshipping him by means of spending money they can't afford on things they wouldn't otherwise buy, and eating and drinking things they wouldn't otherwise in company with people they avoid for most of the rest of the year and don't like much anyway.

prowla

Christmas is all of December, isn't it?

Person_one

margaretclare wrote: »

So what IS the right way?

Is Christmas not about the birth of Christ? If not, then what is it about, and why is it called 'Christ-mas' i.e. the Mass of Christ?

I have friends who have gone back to the old gods, Woden et al, and they have a winter celebration. I have no problem with that, because they do not call it Christmas, they call it Yule.

It seems to me that the month of December - if you leave Christ's birth out of it - is based on the worship of some bloke in a red suit with a long white beard, whose totem animal is an unlikely apparition, a reindeer with a red nose. The requirements of this deity are that everyone rushes around worshipping him by means of spending money they can't afford on things they wouldn't otherwise buy, and eating and drinking things they wouldn't otherwise in company with people they avoid for most of the rest of the year and don't like much anyway.

Things evolve, to a lot of people Christmas is a time where you spend time with your family, friends and loved ones, exchange gifts, eat a special meal together, play games, catch up, generally enjoy each other's company. Its a cheery few days of light and bright colour in the middle of the darkest part of the year.

No reason for any gods or worship to be involved at all.

Lots of words eventually stop meaning what they started out to mean, look at the days and months for one, nobody is stopping you from celebrating the Christmas you believe in so why not leave people alone to celebrate what they want?

onlyroz

margaretclare wrote: »

It seems to me that the month of December - if you leave Christ's birth out of it - is based on the worship of some bloke in a red suit with a long white beard, whose totem animal is an unlikely apparition, a reindeer with a red nose. The requirements of this deity are that everyone rushes around worshipping him by means of spending money they can't afford on things they wouldn't otherwise buy, and eating and drinking things they wouldn't otherwise in company with people they avoid for most of the rest of the year and don't like much anyway.

Nowt wrong with that. I'm an atheist, and you pretty much summed up how I celebrate Christmas.

onlyroz

Person_one wrote: »

No reason for any gods or worship to be involved at all.

Nope, none at all. Call it what you like (Christmas, Xmas, whatever floats your boat), but the original purpose of the "mid winter festival" was to slaughter all the animals that you couldn't afford to feed until spring, and throw a bloody big party to eat them at.