Putting the [Blank] Back In [Blank]mas 9
I'm happy to report that Christmas won out last night at the mall. Every single sales clerk -- and there were a lot of them -- concluded our transaction with a "Merry Christmas!" Not a single "Happy Holidays" to be heard.
Too bad our schools cannot be so open to the real reason for this holiday. The secularization of Christmas by schools made the front page of the LA Times today (here), in an article loaded with examples of "Jingle Bells" replacing "Silent Night," and outlines what educators call "the December Dilemma." Says Lucy Arajuo-Cook, spokeswoman for Santa Ana (CA) Unified School District, "People do get super-paranoid about this time of year, and, over the years, we have neutered the holidays. Schools are so fearful that they will be attacked … that they'd rather stick to singing 'Jingle Bells' than risk a problem."
The result: Religion becomes advocacy instead of belief (One official even renames Christmas carols: "What are we doing here if we load up our assemblies with Christian advocacy songs?")
The article lists the Anti-Defamation League as the leading fearmonger. As usual, the group sent letters to every school district in at least California if not the nation, warning them to keep Christ out of Christmas. ADA claims they're just looking for balance and inclusiveness, but that is hardly the result of their effort. Reports the Times:
Sometimes, however, efforts to strike that balance lead to unusual results. Two years ago, for example, the United States Justice Foundation sued McNear Elementary School in Petaluma on behalf of a parent who said students should not be allowed to celebrate "El Dia de los Muertos" — the Day of the Dead — because the holiday was religious.
Richard Ackerman, attorney for the foundation and president of the Pro-Family Law Center based in Temecula, said the woman he represented was upset because the school supported the Day of the Dead celebration even as it forbade Christmas programs.
A Sonoma County Superior Court judge ruled that Day of the Dead was acceptable to celebrate as a cultural event. "In the end," Ackerman said, "Christmas got banned, and Day of the Dead went forward."
Too bad our schools cannot be so open to the real reason for this holiday. The secularization of Christmas by schools made the front page of the LA Times today (here), in an article loaded with examples of "Jingle Bells" replacing "Silent Night," and outlines what educators call "the December Dilemma." Says Lucy Arajuo-Cook, spokeswoman for Santa Ana (CA) Unified School District, "People do get super-paranoid about this time of year, and, over the years, we have neutered the holidays. Schools are so fearful that they will be attacked … that they'd rather stick to singing 'Jingle Bells' than risk a problem."
The result: Religion becomes advocacy instead of belief (One official even renames Christmas carols: "What are we doing here if we load up our assemblies with Christian advocacy songs?")
The article lists the Anti-Defamation League as the leading fearmonger. As usual, the group sent letters to every school district in at least California if not the nation, warning them to keep Christ out of Christmas. ADA claims they're just looking for balance and inclusiveness, but that is hardly the result of their effort. Reports the Times:
Sometimes, however, efforts to strike that balance lead to unusual results. Two years ago, for example, the United States Justice Foundation sued McNear Elementary School in Petaluma on behalf of a parent who said students should not be allowed to celebrate "El Dia de los Muertos" — the Day of the Dead — because the holiday was religious.
Richard Ackerman, attorney for the foundation and president of the Pro-Family Law Center based in Temecula, said the woman he represented was upset because the school supported the Day of the Dead celebration even as it forbade Christmas programs.
A Sonoma County Superior Court judge ruled that Day of the Dead was acceptable to celebrate as a cultural event. "In the end," Ackerman said, "Christmas got banned, and Day of the Dead went forward."
posted by Laer at 8:14 AM
<< Home