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You think the US is a religious country? More of an anti-religious country, imo.
I agree with Murk (are you really a murk?) It's all what you make it.
Since my bd is near (sometimes on) T'giving I've always loved that and I love the Fall season. The celebration of the harvest is a great concept. Giving back a portion of what has been given to you is another concept that I love. AND it's always on Thursday so Friday is nearly always a day off.
Christmas, in its basic form is the celebration of a miracle and represents the fruition of God's plan for salvation, followed by the crucifixion and resurrection. All as prophesied thousands of years before. Jesus fullfilled every Bible prophecy - how can anyone not believe that Christ was who he said he was? If you don't believe then which do you say he was? Liar or lunatic? Because if he wasn't Lord, he had to have been one of those. A "good man", as so many describe him, would never make those claims.
So yep. There's a distinct difference but it's all what you make it.
For me, not the same, although I can see the OP's observations.
Thanksgiving - for us - includes some family and friends, but Christmas does not (it's just the two of us, and it's by choice as I refuse to travel and I don't encourage visitors).
Dinners are not the same. We prepare the traditional Thanksgiving dinner at home, but Christmas meals for the two of us are entirely different (steak or prime rib).
One is religious holiday / Winter Festival and, although we don't go to church, we still acknowledge the religious side part of it and do our own tradition of it. We also like the other features of Christmas. We manage to find a lot of joy in it.
The only issue I have with the two holidays is that I think they are too close together, which I think is what adds to the stress.
I have to honestly say that, until recently, I never knew how very many non-christian people celebrated Christmas. I don't get it... why? So the kiddies don't feel left out when their friends talk about gifts?.
I heard a comment from Nina Totenberg the other day on PBS about why her family celebrated Christmas, even though they were Jewish...she said that the music was beautiful, in some cases, and it was too good a holiday not to take part in it.
In its purest sense, Christmas is a time for giving of yourself, family values, beautiful scenic vistas, happiness, joy, etc. I remember when I was growing up, in public school music classes, we sang all different types of songs, including gospel, Hebrew songs, etc. I remember one of my classmates, who was Jewish, took great relish in singing a Christmas song called Fum, fum, fum...
Except for the gifts and decorations, is there really that much difference between the two holidays nowadays?
They are both family oriented. They involve a nice dinner (maybe turkey's not on the plate again though).
How do you see it?
It depends on if you are spiritual or not. Some Christians incorrectly think Christmas is the most important holiday in their religion.
Originally, Thanksgiving was a purely Christian holiday that gave thanks to god for the harvest. It has since evolved into a cultural tradition where people enjoy a large meal with their friends and family. The meal may or may not be preceded with a prayer of thanks to their chosen deity.
Christmas, on the other hand, is a bastardization of the Pagan festival of Yule. As the Pagans saw the sun as the source of all life, the celebrated it's return after the Winter Solstice. The early Christians replaced the sun with Jesus, as he was the source of eternal life in their faith. This made it much easier to convert the Pagans to their faith.
Today, both holidays are cultural to many people and spiritual to others. I don't follow the Christian faith, but I can assure you that spending Christmas with my family is just as important to those who look at it as a purely secular holiday rather than a cultural one.
Like someone else said, thanksgiving is more of the meal, not the day. And the buildup isn't quite the same. I'm not even that religious but christmas is still a nice time to get together with people I don't get to see all the time.
I love Christmas music too! From the day after Christmas, my Pandora station of choice is James Taylor Holiday, closely followed by Folk Holiday and Celtic Holiday. And I have a huge playlist of favorites, from BB King to Pavarotti to Martina McBride.
I love Christmas music and keep it on constantly during all the chores, cooking, wrapping presents, errands in my car. After Thanksgiving, it's all Christmas music, all the time. Love it.
I have a hard time leaving out the "Christ" in Christmas. Don't even get me started on the traditional "music." I find many of the lyrics offensive to me. I still consider it a religious holiday and I am as far away from religion than anyone I have ever known....
I'm an atheist and people like you annoy me. You give all of us a bad name and help perpetuate this "war on Christmas" nonsense.
Why would you be offended by hearing song lyrics that talk about Jesus? It should be no different than hearing most other songs that are about "fictional" people.
Who cares? I love a good Christmas song.
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