Does religion feature in your christmas?

[Mindtrope]

I have some very religious members of my family.
I always think it odd that she sends me cards with pictures of camels and sand dunes at christmas time.The only thing we do is listen to Carols at Kings, sweet in a traditional way, but not for the religious aspect.
Is your house a jesus free zone?

Yes all my dc know that Christmas is baby jesus birthday.
We go to church on the day (they are still too young to stay up for midnight mass )
Actually we go to church on & off all year but try to make an extra effort during the advent season.
I think it's really important that they know the real meaning of Christmas and not that it's just about getting presents

All atheists in our house. We love Christmas though. 🍾🎄

I celebrate Christmas rather than Yuletide so Jesus features.

I'd say it features somewhat. Dd goes to a Christian preschool so will be doing carols and the nativity story there, which we're happy to continue at home. Dh was raised in a Christian family and if we're at home for Christmas we do tend to go to the Christmas day service at IL's church, this year we're spending it with my family a few hours away so we'll probably go to the christingle instead plus the nativity service at the preschool church.

I was raised in a non religious family (though quite a lot of Christian teaching at school) and would describe myself now as agnostic. With Christmas being an event in the Christian calendar I think it's important to mark it as such, however I'm also aware of the pagan roots of many of our traditions (as well as the blatantly commercial ones!) and will be teaching dd about these too as she grows.

No and yes. DH is atheist (vehemently), I am agnostic. But I feel that knowledge of Christian themes and stories is important for understanding so much culturally (art, literature as well as community) that I don't exclude Jesus from Christmas (DH would).

DS goes to a school that has a Christian ethos, so they do a great deal. And we help him learn his lines for the nativity and go to his carol concert.

I listen to nine lessons and Carols from Kings on the radio while icing the Christmas cake. Because that is what my Mum does.

And I accompany my Dad to midnight mass ever since my Grandparents died in honour of them. (I don't pray, but do sing). I didn't realise until my Grandfather 's funeral how important faith was to him and my Grandmother. So that is my time to honour them.

Hugely in our house. We are a Christian family and I work for a large church where Christmas Eve sees over 1500 people come through the doors, and we are massively involved in that.
I don't send any religious cards though!

Atheists here, so we worship at the church of santa. I see it as a time for celebrating family, for spending time together.

Dh is a practising Catholic so we have a nativity scene in our hall and go to church. I was also a regular churchgoer when we met but have lapsed and rarely go now except for at Christmas. We also go round to see all the nativity scenes in our town.

Santa = Saint Nicholas.

Surely if Atheist, you'd be celebrating the season with a bit of worship of the pagan Green Man, known as Father Christmas for Yule?

(sorry, don't know what his totally pre-Christian name was - can anyone help on the older version? And was that actually pagan, or rather folklore?)

We have a religious Christmas.

We read children's Christmas books based on the nativity, go to carols service, cribs service, we have a nativity scene that the children love to play with. We talk a lot about why we celebrate Christmas. We give out religious Christmas cards and make up Christmas boxes for the homeless. I also volunteer in a soup kitchen over December.

We have a non denomination winter festival, although not religious we do have a nativity, listen to carols and do midnight mass, on TV though

Weirdly, because I'm an atheist, yes.

We celebrate and discuss Christmas in all its contexts, and the Christian element is really important to me, but then so is the bit where we celebrate Yule and....

Midwinter is the earth's version of the dark night of the soul. Everyone has them, those nights where you feel alone and cold and barren. Then there's that amazing feeling of continuation/the sun will still come up, things will get better.

I think that's a really important and beautiful thing to celebrate, and I see that echoed in most religions /beliefs

So we celebrate Christmas in a hundred different ways. And despite the fact I don't believe in God, I believe in people. And for thousands of years, all that hope and kindness and feeling of salvation has been focused on that period of time in December. It's very powerful. Standing in our local church, hearing the choir singing Silent Night, I feel connected with humanity

I sound like a wanker.

No, it doesn't.

We're all atheists and while we use the name 'Christmas' because that's become the general way of referring to the holiday, the festival was already there before the Christians came along and renamed it.

For us, it's a fun, mid-winter festival that's about family and friends.

I do enjoy some of the religious traditions, such as choirs singing carols in beautiful buildings, but only as some of the many different traditions that make up our celebrations.

Yeah. But I'm Catholic and DS1 goes to a Catholic school. (Children haven't been christened)

Saying that we don't do church. Can't be arsed with that shit. We do have nativity scenes and whatnot though.

Catholic household here: we go to Mass (almost) weekly and so naturally go at Christmas. And, like at Easter, we prepare for Christmas through Advent services and confession and extra volunteering etc. We have a nativity scene at home, send out (largely) religious cards (humorous ones to people I know are not religious) and I'm the horrible mother who only lets dd have a religious Advent calendar, not a chocolate or Play Mobil one I'm afraid. We often invite someone to Christmas lunch who has no family (don't have to be religious to do that though). I really really enjoy Christmas, especially family being together, and love all the decorations, grub, presents etc but all of that would seem pretty empty to me without the religious aspects tbh. Happily I live in a country where the consumerism isn't yet rampant.

Not as much as I would like in our house. DH and DD are both atheist but I consider myself Christian, I go to a few services across Christmas on my own (sometimes accompanied by my mum and sister in law) and I have been discussing the nativity with my youngest but at just 2 he is a little too young to understand.

Jesus IS the reason for the season.

Christmas relates to the birth of Jesus.

Urgent history lessons required here.

The "season" is natural, scientific even. It happens because of our position in the solar system and the tilt of the planet.

Most of the things associated with Christmas - food, trees,lights, presents - were stolen from the Pagan midwinter solstice festivities, along with the date. There's no evidence to suggest Jesus was born at this time of year (or that he was anything other than a lunatic).

Yes, our faith is extremely important to us as a family.

the bible does warn against decorating christmas trees as being heathen
Does that come just after the bit about killing a women if her husband has an affair, or the bit where Lot 'offers' his daughters up for sex, I get confused?

Atheist parents here.

We love Christmas and actually the Christmas story does feature in our celebration. We have a wooden nativity set that comes out each year, we always go to the carol service (in fact I sing in the choir). Christmas eve, Carols from King's is always on.

I see the religious aspect as part of our cultural heritage and some of the history of Christmas. I'm fascinated by religion though, I'd love to read an atheist explanation of the Bible explaining how these beliefs grew up and the historical context they fit in. Anyone recommend one?

It all comes from Mithras, doesn't it?

Older than Paganism too.

Like fakenemefornow I'd also be interested in books/explanations on Mithraicism, its duration and its spread. I've a vague recollection of a link to The ancient Egyptian gods, but might be completely confuddled about that.

Atheists but culturally Christian here too. DH and I grew up with carols, nativity plays, Jesus born in a manger, three wise men etc. I used to go to midnight mass with my mum too.

We don't have a nativity scene or anything religious at home, though, except maybe a carol CD.

We celebrate because it's part of our culture, and also because it's miserable, dark and cold this time of year. We all need a party to get us through to Spring 🎉

Jesus IS the reason for the season.

People complain about the commercialisation of Christmas, actually I think without commercialisation Christmas would barely exist, it would be a very minor religious festival acknowledged by small percentage of the population and ignored by most. Christmas celebration (the non religious aspect) is creeping into other non Christian cultures as well. I think this is great, Christmas is so much fun, everyone should join in.

Atheists but culturally Christian here too.

That's like being a vegetarian that eats steak.

You sound lovely and not remotely like a wanker, Badnaughtyzoot

Religion in our house tends to be a sort of Christian/Pagan hybrid, so I'm off to an advent service today, but we also celebrate Yule.