Why do people celebrate Christmas?

[hitch0403]

Congrats on your 30 posts JJ.

JJ i would think that over 20 million attending the Lords memorial last year...the kingdom being preached in 236 lands FREEEEE.....The name Jehovah as God in KJC Psalms 83:18 might make some of u discern what Gods kingdom and who God is.

Math 24:14...what sect fulfills that scripture?

What can i say?I am far from perfect but can certainly discern what truth is?Try to take a few minutes and see what i mean sometimes.You question that JWS only say 144000 go to heaven.You arent right there.That is only the chosen that come from earth to rule with Jesus in Heaven.MILLIONS will look forward to everlasting life right here on earth as it was originally meant to be before rebellion in Eden.

Anyway...i mean well when i expose my zeal for God and HIS organization.

[lmrbean]

Jesus is the real and only reason for the season!

[timvolley]

people celebrate Christmas for many reasons sometimes it is just because they like giving and receiving gifts.

[masked_brown_guy]

It is a holiday tradition and people like to be a part of something big.

[Jon626C]

I don't like to celebrate Christmas. Thank You!

[countrygirl12]

Im born on Sept 2nd........i want you all to wish me a happy birthday today!!

It's not Sept 2.  Post this next September. lol

[countrygirl12]

Again i think if God would have wanted us to know the exact date of Jesus birth he would have.

Have you noticed each year we know when Nisan 14 falls on?The date of Jesus death cos Jesus wanted us to KNOW that!!

Actually we do not have an exact date of death.  The resurrection was 3 days later.  Easter (the date we celebrate the resurrection) is on a different Sunday every year.  It is somewhere between the first of March and the last of April.  The DATE of the actual murder of Jesus does not change.  The date we remember it does change.

It also does not really matter if "Christmas" was started as a pagan holiday.  Actually when the pagan holiday was celebrated it was not called Christmas.  I don't really care how it got started.
I also do not see a problem with people celebrating the birth of Jesus and I really don't think God has an issue with it either.  People need to just do their own thing.  Celebrate how YOU want to and leave everyone else alone.  If you are offended by someone's manger scene then close your eyes, don't look at it.  Easy fix.  But no, people have to cry and complain and shove their beliefs on everyone else.

[hitch0403]

CountryGirl...NOT sure u appreciated my tongue and cheek humor about Sept 2nd.

Nisan was the Jewish month.......the 14th day was the time Jesus was killed......

Pagan holidays dont sit well with God.You wanna decide for yourself what is good and bad thats fine by me.I dont put bible truths up here to debate with others that dont have a clue.

[fjaz1]

Those who believe in Jesus and God know it is to celebrate his birthday, unfortunately business has ruined the spirit of the true reason for the holiday.

[silentescape]

I view the bible as fiction. It's a made up work because people can't bare to not believe in a capital S Something after death. Heaven is a necessary lie just as Santa and the Tooth Fairy are necessary lies for children. It's because the way our society is, we can't help others without something being in it for us.We can't believe that tooth we lost with all that pain isn't going to reward us somehow. We can't bare to believe that after we're gone, we're actually gone.

Regardless, I celebrate Christmas because Christmas is more of a commercial holiday than anything. The music is okay. The food is good. The decorations are pretty. And again, we're a society that needs something to believe in. We like to celebrate. We like to live instead of just surviving.That's why I celebrate. Life is short, and it's the only one we have. Why not celebrate with every reason to do so?

It must be a burden to have such a cynical outlook on life.

Think about all the free time I have on Sundays instead of going to church. That alone is a wonderful thing. Also, the anxiety over whether or not I'm good enough to not go to hell isn't a problem. I don't have the "rules" of the religions to follow, and it's a burden that I'm happy not to have. It doesn't matter what happens after life. Seeing things the way I do has only given me more of a reason to do what I want with my life instead of following the will of a religion as so many other people do. It's not cynical. It's freedom.

[pwvogt]

Some of my atheist/agnostic friends do not celebrate Christmas because they think it is a made up pagan holiday.  Some of my fundamentalist Christian friends do not celebrate Christmas because they think ii is a made up holiday appropriated from pagans.  Go figure! 

If you have already made up your mind about "the reason for the season" then you will already disagree with what I am about to write.  The reason for the season is celestial mechanics.  People have likely been celebrating around the winter solstice long before recorded history.   Most researchers now believe that Stonehenge is a giant celestial calendar which produces a "ho hum" from most of us who are used to calendars and clocks.  But, imagine this, there are no clocks or calendars.  Every year you notice that at certain times of the year the days start getting shorter.  At some point you notice the days start to get longer.  Now imagine the power you would seem to have if you could *predict" when that change would happen.  Enter Stonehenge (and I believe a number of other prehistoric sites that now seem to have been aimed at predicting the start of seasons).  You can now predict when the days will get longer and celebrate the end of the darkest nights. 

So...I think anyone who wants to should celebrate "Christmas" in any fashion that they believe is culturally appropriate (no human sacrifices, please ;-)) like hanging out lights, or putting up trees and decorating them, or singing Christmas carols (hmmm...even some carols, like "Deck the Halls" seem to have been appropriated from other reasons to celebrate), or sitting on Santa's lap, or watching "Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer", or buying gifts for their family and friends...or...

[InfuseMe1]

...to keep the economy going?   

[paints]

I don't celebrate Christmas. Since my kids are grown and gone, there doesn't seem to be a reason to make a big deal about it.

[ro901]

It's just a retailer's dream. I'm always just glad it's gone.

[hitch0403]

Silent you sure are Satans delight.Thats where the rebellion started in Eden.Satans claim that humans didnt need God and can have their own independence without all his rules.

Then he also said in Job that man only serves God for selfish reasons.You give him things etc...plus his own life.

Jesus,Job and many others proved Satan a liar.The world conditions show man cannot govern himself apart from God.But you have freedom of choice and maybe you are happy to live 80 years...not give a dam about others or world conditions....Thats freedom???!!!!

You would have been better off being born NOT in Gods image.Kind of a waste to have intelligence,justice,love etc wasted on you!!!