What do you think of Christmas?

As a kid I loved Christmas because I got stuff, now I love it because it's a wonderful, peaceful time spent with family. Living half the country away from my parents and my brother it's really precious. This year we'll be spending the Christmas time at my wife's parents and then go up to mine for new years.

Well there's a lot to that!
Like most other holidays it's kind of a consumer driven thing these days, which is kind of saddening and annoying but I do like it for the good times spent with family.
As Pekka said, you love the gifts as a kid but now that I'm older it just doesn't mean much. Cliche but it's the thought that counts and I prefer just being able to relax and spend quality time with family and friends, those that really matter to me.

Religious aspect? Eh....it's already a secular holiday IMO since (prepare for this) many religious people I know, as well biblical scholars, know that in reality Jesus was probably born sometime in the spring. Certainly not on Dec 25th, and that holiday is largely taken from the pagans and all that jazz.
pretty much: It's was always just a holiday for ceremony.
Atheists quit making everything such a whoop


Edited by The Angry Scotsman - 12 Dec 2011 at 4:02pm

My family are all atheists.

Despite this, we still give eachother Christmas presents in Santa Clause wrapping paper, put up a cheap tree with fairy lights on it and eat a Christmas dinner of Turkey etc and buy a big tin of Quality Street/Roses to be consumed watching a Christmas film. It may be economically driven, stolen from pagan rituals or whatever, but it is a social/societal jamberoo that is fun to get in on in the same way that other people go to festivals.

I wish shops didn't play Chirstmas music but other than that it doesn't bring any negative feelings out in me at all, even as someone who technically shouldn't have any part of it.

Its a hypocrisy I'm willing to live with.