According to some, it’s not okay to throw a Christmas party at SMU. Instead, you have to throw a Holiday Party to make sure you are being respectful of people of all religious backgrounds. And that’s why it’s called Winter Break and not Christmas Break, stupid. As a matter of fact, you can’t even say “Merry Christmas “to someone for fear of offending them. So, when did wishing someone a “Merry Christmas” become taboo, synonymous with bigotry and disrespect?
The idea of separation of church and state, more formally known as the Establishment Clause found in the First Amendment has been taken too far. Today, people clamor to remove “one Nation, under God” from the Pledge of Allegiance and prayer from schools and government proceedings. Things tend to get especially crazy around the holiday season when activists proclaim that churches displaying nativity scenes are offensively attempting to force Judeo Christian faith on the masses.
According to Mark DeForrest, assistant professor of Legal Research and Writing at Gonzaga University School of Law, “The history of the Establishment Clause and the practices of the Founders indicate that religion was never meant to be banished from the public square of the American experiment in democracy… While the Establishment Clause was meant to prohibit the institutional alliance of religion and the government, there is no evidence that it was designed to prevent religious believers from taking an active role in public life consistent with their religious principles.”
We cannot continue to force people to separate themselves from their religious beliefs. If I say to someone, “Merry Christmas,” I am not thrusting my religion upon them, but transmitting a generally accepted message of good tidings in a widely acknowledged holiday season. Even President-Elect Barack Obama has taken a stance on the exasperated division between church and state.
“Not every mention of God in public is a breach to the wall of separation – context matters” said Obama in his Call to Renewal Key Note Address. “It is doubtful that children reciting the Pledge of Allegiance feel oppressed or brainwashed as a consequence of muttering the phrase ‘under God.’ I didn’t. Having voluntary student prayer groups use school property to meet should not be a threat, any more than its use by the High School Republicans should threaten Democrats.”
So, how do we begin to lessen the drama that has separated church and state? We must stop viewing religious rhetoric as an agent of oppression. Like it or not, America’s history is strongly tied to religious beliefs. Thus, religion, in general, is a large part of American discourse. The good news is America is a place where differing religious discourses thrive and can be respected. Therefore, we must shed our defensive natures when it comes to religious rhetoric and accept all forms of religious dialogue at face value.
For example, when someone wishes me a “Happy Hanukkah,” I should understand and accept it as a sentiment of well wishes, not as an attempt to make me a Jew or to disregard my Christianity.
If things keep going the way they are now, soon “Happy Holidays” will be just as inappropriate as every other saying and we’ll all be wishing one another “Happy Chrismahanaquanzika.” In an effort to avoid diminishing the identity of individual religious holidays in an attempt to keep a distinct line between church and state, let’s embrace one another as fellow Americans, not as religious enemies? So, throw your Christmas parties and invite your Muslim friends and vice versa. It’s time we get back to enjoying one another’s company instead of fretting over the headings on our invitations.
Bailey Holyfield is a junior CCPA and English double major. She can be reached for comment at [email protected].
