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The comercialization of Christianity

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  • The comercialization of Christianity

    Do you feel that Christian holidays/festivals have become too commercialised?
    For example, with Christmas the birth of Christ has taken 2nd stage to Santa Claus, during easter the easter bunny has more precidence that the death of christ.

    Is it just me falling to the media marketting hype or is this just what has happened, do others feel this way? I don't know about festivals of other faiths but eid has become more commercial, it has a lot to do with buying things than it had in the past, but then again in the past marketting and media was never at this level within society.

  • #2
    Yes.

    But on the other hand, if we don't commercialize these holidays, no one will care or remember them since a large number of people are either not christians or non-practicing.

    Do you know what the 2 holiest holidays in islam is? I don't, nor do I care. I'm not a christian. The only reason I know what easter and christmas are about is because they are commercialized.
    "Only Nixon can go to China." -- Old Vulcan proverb.

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    • #3
      well being a practising muslim i do yeah....lol

      so for you whats christmas about? family? friends?

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      • #4
        Originally posted by platinum786
        well being a practising muslim i do yeah....lol

        so for you whats christmas about? family? friends?
        No, just a good reason to burn away the millions, if that makes you happy!


        "Some have learnt many Tricks of sly Evasion, Instead of Truth they use Equivocation, And eke it out with mental Reservation, Which is to good Men an Abomination."

        I don't have to attend every argument I'm invited to.

        HAKUNA MATATA

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        • #5
          Originally posted by platinum786
          well being a practising muslim i do yeah....lol

          so for you whats christmas about? family? friends?
          I don't care much for Christmas. My friends celebrate it so I guess it's a time for family and friends.

          OK, so you know the 2 holiest days in Islam. How about the 2 holiest days in Buddhism? Or Hindu? I don't know them because I really don't care. I might know them better if they're marketed better like Christmas and Easter. But they're not.
          "Only Nixon can go to China." -- Old Vulcan proverb.

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          • #6
            I know hindu people celebrate holi and diwali.

            I don't know about buddhist people, sikh people have Visakhi....

            jews have thier passover and hanukah....

            i went to school in a very multicultural part of the country, we learned a lot about the religions of others, i probably sound likea bigot a lot of the time, i'm not really i only say the things i say to offend people who hurt my feelings.

            i'd be ashamed ifmy friends of other faiths read some of the stuff i wrote.

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            • #7
              Easter probably comes from Eastre, the Anglo-Saxon name of a Teutonic goddess of spring and fertility, to whom was dedicated a month corresponding to April. Her festival was celebrated on the day of the vernal equinox; traditions associated with the festival survive in the Easter rabbit, a symbol of fertility, and in colored easter eggs, originally painted with bright colors to represent the sunlight of spring, and used in Easter-egg rolling contests or given as gifts.

              Christmas is of course the winter solstice in the northern hemisphere, a time for families to give thanks for being so clever as to lay by enough food for the winter and celebrate during the darkest months of the year.

              So while both dates have been taken over by Christianity, they are traditionally a time for families to give thanks and share. While commercialism has a strong part in both festivals, they are simply a measure of the wealth and abundance of families and tribes.
              In the realm of spirit, seek clarity; in the material world, seek utility.

              Leibniz

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              • #8
                Oh yeah that's right. Jesus was not born in December, or even in winter. Some scholars have found out, by reading the scripture's description of stars on the night Jesus was born, that he was most likely born in spring time, possibly in April.

                I believe Roman emporer Augustus (my roman history is fuzzy at best) wanted to spread Christianity throughout his empire to replace popular paganism at the time. He declared Jesus was born on winter solstice, which was the biggest pagan holiday at the time. After a while, winter solstice became Christmas. Now we associate Christmas with the birth of Jesus.
                "Only Nixon can go to China." -- Old Vulcan proverb.

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by gunnut
                  Oh yeah that's right. Jesus was not born in December, or even in winter. Some scholars have found out, by reading the scripture's description of stars on the night Jesus was born, that he was most likely born in spring time, possibly in April.
                  Another school of thought says that Jesus was born in September since the Feast of Immaculate Conception is celebrated on 8th December, counting 9 months of gestation - the birth of Jesus should be in September.
                  How about the 2 holiest days in Buddhism? Or Hindu? I don't know them because I really don't care. I might know them better if they're marketed better like Christmas and Easter. But they're not.
                  The festivals of each the religions are just as commercialised as other festivals. It depends on the population of the particular religious group in your area. The basic tenant of marketing and commerce is demand, so where ever the demand is more commercialisation is more.

                  Cheers!...on the rocks!!

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                  • #10
                    Originally posted by lemontree
                    The festivals of each the religions are just as commercialised as other festivals. It depends on the population of the particular religious group in your area. The basic tenant of marketing and commerce is demand, so where ever the demand is more commercialisation is more.
                    If they were not, how popular will they be? The devout will know. The lukewarm...maybe. The average joe, probably won't know anything.
                    "Only Nixon can go to China." -- Old Vulcan proverb.

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                    • #11
                      Originally posted by gunnut
                      How about the 2 holiest days in Buddhism?
                      December 8th - Rohatsu - The day Buddha achieved enlightenment. Every year monks go through a rigorous, intense meditation session from December 1 - 8 to mark this day. During this time they meditate for roughly 16-18 hours a day, stopping only for short breaks during that day, and then to sleep at night.

                      Buddhas Birthday - celebrated on the 8th day of the 4th moon (not always April 8th however, I believe.)


                      Now you know these too. ;)
                      Last edited by THL; 19 Apr 06,, 00:24.
                      "To dream of the person you would like to be is to waste the person you are."-Sholem Asch

                      "I always turn to the sports page first, which records people's accomplishments. The front page has nothing but man's failures."-Earl Warren

                      "I didn't intend for this to take on a political tone. I'm just here for the drugs."-Nancy Reagan, when asked a political question at a "Just Say No" rally

                      "He no play-a da game, he no make-a da rules."-Earl Butz, on the Pope's attitude toward birth control

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                      • #12
                        Originally posted by platinum786
                        well being a practising muslim i do yeah....lol

                        so for you whats christmas about? family? friends?
                        Quality liquors and fine Spirits.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          If athiests and agnostics want holidays they need to make there own up.

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                          • #14
                            Originally posted by EricTheRed
                            If athiests and agnostics want holidays they need to make there own up.
                            Ancient Origins
                            Halloween's origins date back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced sow-in).

                            The Celts, who lived 2,000 years ago in the area that is now Ireland, the United Kingdom, and northern France, celebrated their new year on November 1. This day marked the end of summer and the harvest and the beginning of the dark, cold winter, a time of year that was often associated with human death. Celts believed that on the night before the new year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred. On the night of October 31, they celebrated Samhain, when it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to earth. In addition to causing trouble and damaging crops, Celts thought that the presence of the otherworldly spirits made it easier for the Druids, or Celtic priests, to make predictions about the future. For a people entirely dependent on the volatile natural world, these prophecies were an important source of comfort and direction during the long, dark winter.

                            To commemorate the event, Druids built huge sacred bonfires, where the people gathered to burn crops and animals as sacrifices to the Celtic deities.

                            During the celebration, the Celts wore costumes, typically consisting of animal heads and skins, and attempted to tell each other's fortunes. When the celebration was over, they re-lit their hearth fires, which they had extinguished earlier that evening, from the sacred bonfire to help protect them during the coming winter.

                            By A.D. 43, Romans had conquered the majority of Celtic territory. In the course of the four hundred years that they ruled the Celtic lands, two festivals of Roman origin were combined with the traditional Celtic celebration of Samhain.

                            The first was Feralia, a day in late October when the Romans traditionally commemorated the passing of the dead. The second was a day to honor Pomona, the Roman goddess of fruit and trees. The symbol of Pomona is the apple and the incorporation of this celebration into Samhain probably explains the tradition of "bobbing" for apples that is practiced today on Halloween.

                            By the 800s, the influence of Christianity had spread into Celtic lands. In the seventh century, Pope Boniface IV designated November 1 All Saints' Day, a time to honor saints and martyrs. It is widely believed today that the pope was attempting to replace the Celtic festival of the dead with a related, but church-sanctioned holiday. The celebration was also called All-hallows or All-hallowmas (from Middle English Alholowmesse meaning All Saints' Day) and the night before it, the night of Samhain, began to be called All-hallows Eve and, eventually, Halloween. Even later, in A.D. 1000, the church would make November 2 All Souls' Day, a day to honor the dead. It was celebrated similarly to Samhain, with big bonfires, parades, and dressing up in costumes as saints, angels, and devils. Together, the three celebrations, the eve of All Saints', All Saints', and All Souls', were called Hallowmas.
                            http://www.historychannel.com/exhibi.../?page=origins

                            So anyone who is not an Irish Celt should not be celebrating Halloween? Bummer! I LOVE Halloween!!
                            "To dream of the person you would like to be is to waste the person you are."-Sholem Asch

                            "I always turn to the sports page first, which records people's accomplishments. The front page has nothing but man's failures."-Earl Warren

                            "I didn't intend for this to take on a political tone. I'm just here for the drugs."-Nancy Reagan, when asked a political question at a "Just Say No" rally

                            "He no play-a da game, he no make-a da rules."-Earl Butz, on the Pope's attitude toward birth control

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                            • #15
                              Originally posted by platinum786
                              well being a practising muslim i do yeah....lol

                              so for you whats christmas about? family? friends?
                              For me, it's all the lovely traditions. I think dalem would say the same. We're neither of us Christians, but we both really like the season.

                              Seasonal foods and drinks and activities and shopping and candy and music and decorations and ALL of it...

                              It's a lot of fun, and if everybody else is in the spirit of the thing, it really DOES foster a sense of goodwill and fellow-feeling.

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