That saying "Happy Easter" is out of place?

[Ethicaldebacle]

We're a Jewish family, and only celebrate Xmas in a secular / Santa way. We celebrate all other main Jewish holidays at home and our friends know this, yet they sent a message of happy Easter. Isn't this out of place? (They even knew we just had a Passover Seder!)

Of all the things I believe, you calling Easter eggs this ludicrous name is the thing I believe least.

GF nonsense.

in our coop yesterday there was a tannoy announcement saying happy easter to all our customers that celebrate

Yes this. Fgs let people say a nice thing without analysing why they should have used different words.

I guess you can reply with 'thank you but we don't celebrate easter'. They clearly were thinking if it in a chocolate eggs and bunnies kind of way. In the way you say you celebrate Christmas in a 'santa' way. I can't imagine they were trying to insult your faith or convert you to Christianity?

It’s a cultural event, with it’s roots in the Christian Tradition.

I’m Catholic, went to church yesterday, we gave our Chocolate Eggs, as they symbolise rebirth.

The Easter Bunny, and loads of other bits of Easter, are nothing to do with Christianity .. just enjoy those bits.

i dont say happy christmas to a jewish lady i know

I was with you until you said ‘seasonal spring chocolate eggs’

Yeah it's mouthful isn't it. And sounds more like something a drunk AI would say.

Don’t ya mean anti-semantic

I’m Catholic and celebrate Easter, Christmas etc in a Christian way, but will happily accept any good wishes coming my way (and return them!). Maybe you should’ve got in first with a happy Passover and tried to share your tradition? Seems a bit miserable otherwise

I'm sure they meant it kindly, best to just accept it as such.

This kind of thread plays into the hands of racists who don't want any multiculturalism and wrongly claim you can't say happy Christmas anymore. My experience is usually that people like being included in the joy of other group's festivals rather than finding it offensive.

I think it's lovely to learn more about other people's religions and wished well even if it's something I don't celebrate myself.

I’ve several times had “Eid Mubarak” messages from Muslim friends. I’m a Christian. I have always thought it very lovely that others would think of me on days important to them.

Do you think they were bored, so not really listening 🤔

I'm Jewish & I get you. I also cringe when people wish me a happy easter, though I've never said anything - I hear my late parents, survivors from Poland and Germany, at the back of my head, saying "make sure you stay indoors during easter, it's when the gentiles return from church having heard how the jews killed their saviour and rustle up a pogrom"....

They sound truly awful.

Nothing worse going on in this world than good wishes.

I’d be “fumming.”

I find Happy Holidays a bit odd in the U.K.
We don’t use the term ‘holidays’ to mean Christmas/Easter in general here. They are festivals celebrated in religious and secular ways, celebrations.

In the uk we tend to use the term holidays to mean going away, taking annual leave, having a week or two elsewhere.

If you celebrate Christmas in a secular way then why don't you celebrate Easter in the same way as well? It also has its roots in pagan tradition with symbols of rebirth and renewal.

You're confusing people by celebrating Christmas but not Easter. If you don't want your kids to feel left out then you should fully embrace your Jewish identity. Celebrate all the major Jewish festivals and give them something to feel proud of.

Don't celebrate the festivals of a faith you don't believe in even in a secular way then you start to dilute your own sense of identity. I think this is what you're feeling a bit uncomfortable about but I maybe entirely wrong.

Hurry up, kids, it’s time to hunt for your seasonal spring chocolate eggs!

I mean we are atheists, the majority of our friends are atheists, and we still say Happy Easter to each other. It means ‘have a nice long weekend if you’re off, have a nice holiday, have a nice fun day with friends and family, I’m thinking of you’ that sort of thing. My religious friend sent me a happy Easter, I sent one back - our Easters are quite different but we still wish each other goodwill.

As another secular Jew, I wonder if they are a bit muddled about you "doing Christmas" (in your own way) and perhaps thought you might take the same approach with Easter - getting eggs for the kids or whatever?

I have a very clear sense of how my family does a Christmas x Hannukah mashup, but when I try to explain it to others it's clear as mud.

Or, simpler even, they were sending Easter wishes to however many WhatsApp friends at the same time and including you on autopilot?

This makes no sense.

You’re okay with your kids “feeling left out” of Easter but not Xmas.

You don’t believe in Jesus but celebrate Xmas.

You think Xmas is unrelated to Jesus and all about (fictional) Santa even though it very clearly involves Jesus?

By this logic, why not say “Easter to us is all about the (fictional) Easter bunny, so we get our kids chocolate eggs so they don’t miss out”? At least this way, your confusions would be consistent.

Intent is everything. They were being nice. Take it as such.

I get wished happy Eid, Divali, Easter, etc etc all festivals I have no belief in. Am I upset / offended? Of course not, it’s just a pleasantry, something nice. I think you need to unclench.

🎯

It's a cultural event with its roots in a pagan tradition that was then appropriated by a Christian tradition.