Charles Shiflett Column December 4, 2005

Merry Dec. 25th & Happy Change Of Calendar Day

I enjoy getting together with family and swapping gifts, but I just don't get into the whole decorating
extravaganza and crass commercialization of Christmas. So I started to just let this “assault on
Christmas” problem go by as I really don't have a dog in the fight… but I'm too sick of political
correctness gone wild to be silent.

The attack on Christmas started garnering public attention when Target banned Salvation Army kettles
from the front of its stores last year. There were howls of protest from the public, but Target held firm
and the outrage faded from the collective short-term memory that Americans are cursed with.

On Black Friday morning, the day after Thanksgiving this year, there were several hundred shoppers
lined up at 6 AM… all eagerly waiting to enter Target's doors here in Cartersville. There were no
Salvation Army kettles or bell ringers and no one seemed to care. Score one for the anti-Christmas
crowd.

I saw this year's outrage against Lowe's coming several weeks ago when I received the
November/December issue of Lowe's “Creative Ideas” magazine, which was dedicated to the upcoming
“holiday”.

There was a section on creating a Hanukkah table runner complete with Star of David. There was also
a segment highlighting how to use grasscloth wallpaper to wrap Kwanza gifts. There were pictures and
articles about holiday trees; holiday wreaths; holiday garlands; holiday lights; holiday decorations;
holiday gifts; holiday stockings; holiday plants; and holiday snowmen.

One thing was missing… after searching all 64 pages of this Lowe's publication I could not find the
word Christmas one time. Excuse me, but which holiday are we celebrating December 25th? After all
Christmas is a national holiday.

When I first received the Lowe's magazine I thought that maybe it was just a rogue leftwing editor who
stripped Christmas out. Then the story broke about the large banners at Lowe's stores advertising
“holiday trees”. I firmly believe this was not an oversight on Lowe's part, but was an intentional attempt
to remove Christmas from the public discourse.

Since Lowe's opened in Cartersville in 1996 I have spent tens of thousands of dollars there, but they
won't see my face this Christmas season… and neither will Target.

Some other retailers who want you to do your Christmas shopping at their stores, but who don't want
to acknowledge Christmas are KB Toys, BJ's Wholesale Club, Wal-Mart, Sears, and K-Mart. It'll be
hard to avoid Wal-Mart, but I'm going to do my best.

One merchant who I have great admiration for is Hobby Lobby. For several years they have run large
ads specifically acknowledging not just Christmas, but Jesus. Wow, a retailer with the guts to actually
mention Jesus.

Many scholars and theologians believe that Yeshua (Jesus) was probably born around September, so
December 25 doesn't come close. Also, the Bible doesn't instruct us to celebrate Christmas, so this
is really a manmade holiday with religious underpinnings.

There's nothing holy or religious about Christmas trees, lights, wreaths or many of the other
decorations some adorn their houses with. Off course much of what we call Christmas is filled with
Santa, reindeer, the North Pole, Charlie Brown, and the Grinch.

However, there's just something sinister about how the politically correct crowd has decided to strip
what little religiosity remains in Christmas. Yes… Target, Lowe's and other retailers have a
Constitutional right to use or avoid the word Christmas in their advertising and displays as they wish.

Consequently, we as shoppers have the right to decide which retailers we will spend our money with.
The fact that the politically correct types running corporate America are running away from anything
connected to Christianity is not surprising.

What is surprising is how nonchalantly some Christians act when confronted with a direct assault on
their beliefs. For too many it's mammon over principle.

I've never been one to advocate boycotts of specific retailers over issues of concern and I'm not going
to start today, though I do avoid certain companies of my own volition because of their corporate
policies.

Unless Americans develop a little backbone, it'll only be a few more years until December 25th is just
another day on the winter holiday calendar. So it might behoove us all to practice our new holiday
greeting:

“Merry December 25th and Happy Change of Calendar Day!”