Who Needs Christ at Christmas?

The American Humanist Association has invested $40,000 dollars to spread an anti-deist message using billboards on Washington, D.C. buses, to be sung to the tune of Santa Claus is coming to town, to wit:

"Why believe in a god? Just be good for goodness' sake."

Hey, I'm all for this. I was raised Catholic but, like many, strayed during college, and came to doubt religion and ultimately belief in the Judeo-Christian God, or any god. Some twenty years further on, my anti-god convictions are a little more blurry. I mean, who am I to say? Pretending to have that kind of knowledge is a little...well, godlike, right? And considering the complexities of life, nature, the universe, what have you, is it possible that everything is actually just random?

Complex and esoteric religious debates aside, the second part of the American Humanist Association's sentiment---just be good for goodness' sake---is incredibly valid. So being good will get you the ultimate reward in heaven? Maybe, if there is one. But why not be good simply because you ought to? Shouldn't knowing that you are doing what is right and moral be its own reward? Shouldn't that be enough to satisfy you in this life?

There is, however, another side to this issue. Why does the American Humanist Association (or any anti-deist or anti-religious group) feel the need to assert itself to the tune of $40,000 when it comes to one of the most treasured Christian celebrations, Christmas?

Fred Edwords, the AHA spokesman, said, "Our reason for doing it during the holidays is there are an awful lot of agnostics, atheists and other types of non-theists who feel a little alone during the holidays because of its association with traditional religion."

I don't know, Fred. Christmas has occurred every year in my house, where my spouse is Catholic and my daughter is being raised to be open-minded, and I don't feel even the tiniest bit alone. The Christmas season has two sides, religious and secular, and the line between them is pretty thoroughly blurred. I'm not sure who, really, is being left out. And let's say atheists and agnostics are being left out of Christmas? You don't believe in Christ anyway, right? So why do you want to be a member of a club that won't have you? And need I point out that an ad campaign that makes Christians feel bad about their faith is a little contrary to your stated mission of being good for goodness' sake?

The American Humanist Association should note the way we approach Christmas here in the early 21st century through our agreed mode of mass communication, the media. Christmas is already significantly less Christian than it used to be.

Ad writers are not allowed to call it Christmas, instead it's "holiday". Have a great "holiday". This apparently encompasses everything from Thanksgiving all the way to Christmas and maybe New Year's, and it has a decidedly un-Christian (and awfully un-warm) feel to it. As a mostly atheist, I can't stand the sound of it, but more than that, I think it's the most obnoxious form of political correctness ever. Christians celebrate Christmas, not "holiday". Jews celebrate Hanukkah, not "holiday". If you know someone's Christian, say "Merry Christmas". If you know someone's Jewish, say "Happy Hannukah". If you don't know what someone is, "Enjoy your holidays" at least makes sense...there is no holiday called "Holiday".

So, not that they asked for it, but here's my final bit of advice for the American Humanist Association. If you don't like being left out at Christmas---and again, since you're actively anti-Christian, you actually should be left out of Christmas---form your own anti-church and create your own all-inclusive, non-denominational winter holiday. Maybe you can steal one from the godless media, and call it Festivus: A Holiday for the Rest of Us.