a person who researches society as a whole and performed a well established scientific approach to get results that are non biased about how one religious holiday display affects others of different faiths or no faiths at all is an idiot?!! you are the idiot and i bet you failed science too.

The U.S. is full of bigots, racists, violence, ignorance and intolerance. The prisons are full with all types of criminals and drug peddlers. Hypocrisy is everywhere. Yes, the U.S definitely meets all the criteria to be call "Christian" nation.

Happy Holidays!

I like you Dave. That was awsome.

Christmas trees are not Christian they are a pagan symbol that the Christian couldn't get rid of so they took it over.

I'm sorry, but is this about believing in God or being perfect people? It is the perception of the misinformed that calling oneself Christian equates to being suddenly sin-free when in fact it is those who acknowledge that they sin and that they are in need of the forgiveness of Christ. Certainly there are those who profess to know God who also try to give the impression that they are better than others, but as you would find in the proclamations of Christ that these people are woefully mistaken. In the Bible, those people would be the Pharisees, the people that Jesus pitied and reviled the most, thinking that they were getting somewhere on their own merit.

Josh, you desperately need to stop believing in a magic man on a special flying carpet and instead learn to think critically. When you do so, you'll understand why this study was necessary and what it says.

In the meantime, try not insulting others by stuffing your fantasies down other peoples throats, and that's hardly a "christian" concept.

No, been there is correct. Author of study is indeed an idiot based upon all observable evidence.

So, what this study is saying is that the Christians must tone down the celebration of Jesus' birth because it makes others feel...unworthy??...uncomfortable that a believer celebrates what he/she believes??

And if we are to be an inclusive society, wouldn't mean that those who do not celebrate Christmas or believe in Jesus must also be inclusive and accept those that do?? How one sided is this "research"??

And for your information, Jesus Christ is in EVERY religion. Whether He be a prophet, a teacher, or a Savior, every religion recognizes that Jesus is a significant individual in the Realm of the Almighty Father.

And if my decorations and celebrations of my Savior and Brother upset you, I will pray for you. BUT I will not be changing. I will invite you in and help you to understand why and how I believe the way I do.

And I agree with one of the posters...WE are definitely taking Christ out of Christmas all by ourselves. It has all become about greed and what am I going to get. Um, commercialized like Easter.

You all have a great day and a very blessed Christmas season and a NEW YEAR FULL OF GREAT JOY!!

I have found that the more fervent the belief in any religion, the more forceful, hostile and inconsiderate the believer seem towards those who happen to think a different way about things. Religion is the root of much of the violence and evil in the world. Of course they ALL are certain that their god is the right god -all the rest are in need of conversion or risk eternal damnation!

This is an amazing position considering that one's beliefs are usually an accident of birth.

With regards to Christians, they claim they follow the lead of the prince of peace as they support guns, war, xenophobia, rich pigs and various silk-tongued charlatans in robes who are only too happy to take the last nickel from poor widows in exchange for an empty and misleading promise of eternal life.

TOUGH CANDY CANES!

Psychologists would "study" a DIXIE CUP if you paid them and they would "find" moral, social, and geo-political ramifications of it AND a way to make money out of "treating" it with their friends in the pharma industry.

What a WASTE of time, effort AND MONEY.

#HERECOMESSANTACLAUSE

Jim, your opine and tirade against Christians sounds jsut as much as you describing the people who live in Dubai.

Christians are despised by many nonbelievers because Christians are prone to HURTING and INJURING nonbelievers. Tolerance to other faiths are not a Christian values.

How can Christians not expect ill feelings towards them with their constant persecution of gays today, minority races a generation ago

There are a lot of things in this world that some people cherish and other despise...people need to get over it already! If we all griped about everything we do not like...everything a person does would have to be restricted to the 4 walls of ones home..grow up already!!!

Merry Christmas.

TOO BAD if someone does not like a Christmas tree. They will just have to get over it.

MERRY CHRISTMAS - HO - HO - HO

Josh, you desperately need to stop believing in a magic man on a special flying carpet and instead learn to think critically. When you do so, you'll understand why this study was necessary and what it says.

In the meantime, try not insulting others by stuffing your fantasies down other peoples throats, and that's hardly a "christian" concept.

This is a message to the poster of this comment. Do YOU realize how HYPOCRITCAL YOU are?

You are trying to shove YOUR beliefs down other's throats.

I would not characterize Jesus as a magic man flying on a carpet. What makes you an expert of who or what Jesus is? YOU'RE NOT.

SIGNED - a NON-CHRISTIAN who is tired of the persecution of Christians.

What the heck does Jesus have to do with Santa Claus and Rudolph???? Take your pseudo holy war somewhere else and leave Christmas alone!

justme

I AM NOT the person who originally brought it up had you read the entire seed.

Stop being such a Scrooge and Grinch.

You're a mean one, Mr. Grinch.....

Not to mention - why do you think it's called CHRISTmas? CHRIST is ANOTHER NAME for JESUS. Capiche?

Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas

Not to mention - why do you think it's called CHRISTmas? CHRIST is ANOTHER NAME for JESUS. Capiche?

Meh....Christmas has been pretty secular for a long time plus a lot of it is not of Christian origin anyhow. I'm a grinch? Lol!! You should see my house. Not nearly as much as those who want to lay sole claim on Christmas and those who apparently require a visit to their therapist every time they are exposed to the horrific site of a Christmas tree.

I like your attitude about respecting believers. Too bad that maturity level isn't more common! I just wish people would stop using Christmas as a religious pissing match. Between that and the very misguided efforts at being "tolerant" it'll be a miracle if we "adults" don't ruin it for the kids.

The origins of what we today call "Christmas" had nothing to do with Jesus or Christianity. Heck, the Protestants in America even managed to get Christmas outlawed in New England a mere 300 years ago. It was only recently that it was reinvented as the grand Christian holiday we see it as today.

Most people I know aren't Christian yet still celebrate Christmas. It's just another secular holiday like halloween. People just need to lighten up and just enjoy it. Stop trying to make it into something that it's not.

Bummed out by Christmas? Get a tree, give some presents and make some people happy, be extra nice to strangers for a week, take some joy in the children who still believe in Santa, whip up a special batch of holiday brew and get a good buzz on,..... in other words, get over yourself and stop wallowing in your misery! Bummed out by Christmas.... only a fool would allow him or herself to do that every year.

I agree. I'm agnostic, but I still have fun at Christmas with family and friends. I visit my mom's and she has 5 trees decorated (one big one, and 4 smaller ones spread out around the house), and I don't feel bummed out at all by it. ;)

I'm Pagan and Christmas doesn't bum me out. Maybe it's because they use our traditions. Or it could be I grew up in a Christian household, or have friends of different faith. All I know is I enjoy this time of year.

Who can possibly be bummed by decorated trees? The whole thing kind of gives me a chuckle as I see so many who profess one faith completely go nuts dressing their homes and yards in a variety of pagan faiths. Who knew there could be so much tolerance for others' beliefs?

I'm Christian and lvoe Christmas, but I'd get pissy if I went to work and a whole bunch of crusty ladies or f*gs made Christmas trees look tacky with bright red ribbons, snowmen, snowflakes and popcon strands. That and the real tree is scrawny, lopsided or already dried up.

This study clearly doesn't include "taste" in the realm of feelings around Christmas trees.

I'm Christian and lvoe Christmas, but I'd get pissy if I went to work and a whole bunch of crusty ladies or f*gs

Spoken like a true Christian.

My dog is terrified of our Christmas tree - she slinks past it as if she expects it to attack her. This is clearly because she's a Jewish/Atheist/Islamic mix who is offended by our benign Holiday symbology.

Now that the wandering digression is out of my system, I can't help but wonder about this study. I'm a Pagan with a Christmas tree whose house is covered in a blindingly tacky light display, both of which I think are positively awesome. We're a family with members partaking in three different religions, so it's what we do. If one of my kids goes off to college and comes back announcing they've converted to Judaism then we'll throw a menorah into the mix. Why the heck not?

I just can't honestly say that being around a religious display from a belief different from my own has damaged my self worth, certainty, or moral and intestinal fortitude.

I love Christmas trees and wreaths. I'm an atheist. So is there a sturdy about Menorahs or Kwanzaa displays making Christians uncomfortable? Or would that be racist? Get over it, people. It's a decoration.

Yeah, Christmas isn't really a religious holiday unless you want it to be. I don't really know why anyone would get less happy by seeing a Christmas tree. Maybe they're not from here or Europe and they miss whatever big end of year holiday took place in their home country and the tree just reminds them of that.

Well, Christmas is really a religious holy day. The problem, it has been materialized and commercialized and people have forgotten the true meaning of Christmas. For those who believe, Jesus is the reason for the season. True, we borrowed pagan traditions to attract more people to the Christian faith.

chibidraco, ONE FREAKING HILARIOUS DIGRESSION!!!!

I have a son who left our house going to church every Sunday and when he came back, "there is no such thing as God!" To this day, he is misguided in most areas of his life. But he is only 19 and his mother and I are praying for the day that he finally grows up. Evidence shows he is trying.

Kwanzaa is not a religious holiday. But none the less, it is a celebration of life. Has nothing to do with Christmas.

And menorahs do not bother me one bit!! I love the story behind the menorah!

Whether we be Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Pagan or Atheist, This is a time to celebrate life and giving and being human. However we choose to worship or not, may we all have a blessed time with our family and friends.

Well, Christmas is really a religious holy day

It is today but that's only because recently it's been made into such. If you're looking for the true meaning of Christmas and how it was celebrated, picture a winterized version of Mardi Gras on Bourbon Street. Of course if you want to make it into a religious holy day then more power to you, just don't kid yourself into thinking that's how it's always been.

I enjoyed your little rant. Poor you.

How dare those people that don't like the traditions of Christians say they don't like them. How dare those Indians not like being slaughter for being barbaric. How dare those women not enjoy being burnt at the stake for being witches. I deplore the idea that people are not allowed to beat their wives like the bible clearly allows, or that these liberal bastards took away my ability to sale my daughter. Yeah get out of our loving country you bastards.

I for one am sick and tired of religious people trying to push their views on every one else. This is a secular country. It has roots in Christianity but it also has deep roots in slavery. Times are a changing old timer.

The first religions on this land were native religions. I'm sure they are tired of political correctness too, which dictates they have to let you shove your religious lifestyle down their throats.

Love ya bonos - mean it. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. See ya on the flip side.

Yes, we're tired of all the PC - just show people no longer have ideals and desires and no backbone.

"This happens to be the United States of America. It has roots deep in the Christian faith."

And in the Freemasons, and in Deism, etc.

Most of the Founding Fathers disdained organized religion, although some had personal convictions of one sort or another. They were determined religion would not SOIL the pristine idea of freedom from religious tyranny.

Like so must else about history, today's rigid, single minded, implacable, myopics are determined to rewrite what they do not like, or what does not fit their self-serving agenda of getting into heaven with a better reward than their neighbor.

"This happens to be the United States of America. It has roots deep in the christian faith. Therefore if people are "bummed out" by the trappings of Christmas the please leave this country for good."

Wow. What an unchristian and historically incorrect rant. Historically incorrect in that it ignores the fact that Christians in the colonies BANNED Christmas because it was pagan. Unchristian in that Jesus taught, "If your enemy is hungry, feed him." Not, "Kick a man out of your country if he doesn't celebrate the winter solstice."

Interesting how a simple psychological experiment born out of scientific curiosity ignites such venom on the part of the Xtian posters...about that guilt thing, maybe?

I author did not say he was for banning Xmas decorations or Xmas...he was just trying to see what effect these things have on non-Christians. Big deal. Psychologists do these kinds of research studies every day of the week (and twice on Sundays?!) and have found out many interesting facts about our human condition. They ask: Why is this so? and go after the answers. Science.

I participate in the holidays with friends, coworkers, and enjoy the lights for what they represent--staving off the darkness in the depths of winter. But I'm not a Christian and I do have a moment of --I'm not sure what to call it--disengagement? when people automatically say Merry Christmas. I respond with Happy Holidays to you, too.

The assumption that the ubiquitous "everyone" celebrates Xmas is just ignorant. I think the experiment is worthwhile: look how it points out the overblown sense of outrage among the Xtians!

The study was done at Simon Fraser University.......that is in British Columbia, CANADA......it was reported by NBC.......

OhJoy, Christmas was banned in a FEW colongies, namely Massachusetts and in others where Puritans rules. Otherwise, your historical comment is hyperbole.

JVSimp, you remind me of an under-educated black. Slavery was the product of white men and ethnicities who settled the SOUTH. It's amazing how much anamosity and stereotypes blacks can throw at white across the board in the US. What about northern settlers who never backed slavery, or fought against it or sheltered feelign blacks int he Underground Railroad? What about white settlers that moved into America into northern states and territories in the early 1800s, never a part of slavery (nor subsequent generations), yet the Protestant Anglo South stinks it up for all the other whites and white European lineages in the US.

What's wrong with Christmas and it's trappings? While the rest of the non-Christians (especially recent immigrants, legal or otherwise) are busy trying to change this country into something it's not, the rest of us are busy trying to keep it the way we enjoy it. Christmas is part of that. If you don't like it, you don't need to stay. The majority of Americans are very happy with Christmas (especially the retailers I'm sure - even the non-Christian ones!) and we're tired of the attack on American culture and traditions by the minorities. America is supposed to be the rule of the majority isn't it? I don't see that Christmas infringes on anyone else's rights, so just leave us alone, or go somewhere else if it bothers you that much.

Must suck to be you, low self esteem, no self worth.

All I hear is a bunch of sanctimony. (It sounds like fingernails on a chalkboard)

That and Santa Claus, aka Saint Nicholas, who is reallity was Thor, going through the world taking old people with him and leaving presents for the living. In this advocation, curiouly, Thor was a red god.

Most of the "Christian" symbols are not Christian at all.

Many christians and probably all fundamentalists don't believe in research. They have faith so they don't need facts.

Catzenjammer,

What Christians believe is not the point of the article. You are pointing fingers the wrong direction here. This is about those who don't believe in Christ crying about Christmas lights and trees, not about Christians.

My real thought is get over it if you don't like it. Those who do this are guilty of doing what they are saying they don't like. They are trying to enforce their will on those who do not believe what they do. It is the ultimate of hypocrisy and it shows a degree of narcissism that is beyond the pale

Sorry Rose

I read your post after I posted mine, we say the same thing!

These ancient (pagan) symbols have been Xmas symbols for so many years that they are indeed Xmas symbols. To say otherwise is just being ingenuous. Of course they are Xmas symbols and therefore indirectly Xtian. It's like arguing how many Angels can dance on the head of a pin.

The argument is sophistry.

Blue Rose, your strive for orginality and legitimacy is moot. The modern context is that all the old rituals by pagans become relevant as their symbolism and use is used to honor and represent the One, True, God-- not the naturalism, ungoldly worship of things other than Him.

Arguably, if you knew what many of the modern idioms used today USED to acutally mean back in history or other parts of the world, I dont' think you'd still use them. The fact is, the context and meaning of things 300 or 1000 years ago are irrelevant today when they clearly hold different meaning or usage.

OldGal reread the article because I am not sure how your statement even matters. I came from texas, I am an atheist, your holidays are not christian, don't like it, tough. Easter sunday is a pagan holiday it wasn't when chris rose from the grave like some super zombie. Christmas isn't a christian holiday either. Santa Clause wasn't in the bible was he.

OldGal, this seems like a good time to point out that a Bible text usually misquoted as, "Peace on earth and goodwill to men," actually states, "Peace on earth among men of goodwill.'"

I'm sending you goodwill. Peace out.

You sound just like the guy who, after trying to take my staff parking place, pulling into it in front of my (I had my signal on...) because there was a(Xmas) play at the library where I work. I went up to him and pointed out that this was staff parking and I was staff, so could he please move his vehicle...

He flipped my off, and backing out, yelled Merry Christmas (more like hurled) in as sarcastic voice he could muster. His kid was in the car.

Wow, the new expletive: Merry Christmas.

I just smiled, waved and parked in my spot. I know, how selfish of me.

Not sure where you folks are from or who you are trying to belittle, but it really is funny! For the past 60+ years we had joyous celebrations and anyone could attend and be welcome. We called them Christmas parties. No one was offended by the tree in the corner with bright decorations on it, or Perry Como singing Silent Night. If you didn't want to attend...you didn't have to, but you knew you were welcome. Now it seems people think it's their right (?) to say NO, you can't have that tree in the corner, NO you can't sing Silent Night because I might see it or hear it!!!! Then go where you want, do what you want, but don't tell me I can't say Merry Christmas because you are offended. This year I've noticed more people in my little hick town are saying Merry Christmas - they are also putting it up in their store windows, playing traditional Christmas music for all to hear.

And, no, I don't park where I'm not supposed to park ;) nor have I flipped any one off...lately.

No one said that the non-christians were muslim. In fact, the article specifically stated the religious backgrounds of the participants, and there were a wide-ranging groop. Was reading the article too much for you?

And please, don't insult the intelligence of the people reading this article and the intelligence of some of those commenting on this article by trying to compare a 5x/day practice with a once yearly extravaganza of conspicuous consumption, which is how an extremely pagan but so-called religious holiday is "celebrated" in most of the world these days.

This is a pro-muslim article disguised as a athiest vs Christian article!

rpearlston, you need to get out more or become more of a reader...clearly Josh's comment was a metaphor...illustrative.

maybe you''re not familiar with the saying "When in Rome, do as the Romans" and what it means and how it's context can be written and relayed in different manners.

"I am not certain where someone should live that finds the major 3 religions to be the worst plauge mankind has ever suffered?"

I have an idea for your relocation, but you will be there soon enough.

Hardly. In fact, polls done in the US have repeatedly said that well under half of the people in that country who referred to themselves as "christian" attended church services or did anything else to mark themselves as such. AKA, the majority of Americans don't worship "christianized" version of the ancient Egyptian man-god myth.

And please remember that wiki is notoriously inaccurate, because anyone can add or remove whatever they wish to add or remove, without anyone verifying the results. Why anyone in their right mind would ever quote wiki is beyond my comprehension.

Josh, it wouldn't matter if 90% of the population were practicing Christians, Muslims or Hindus. America is 100% a SECULAR nation because we have NO, that's right ZERO, recognized state religion.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkHNNPM7pJA&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Enjoy!

During Desert Storm I was invited to partake in a Ramadan Feast. It didn't bum me out. My hosts did their very best to include me and my colleagues in the festivities. I enjoyed it very much.

I wonder if you read the section of this article which indicated that the symbols of minority religions aren't as upsetting to anyone because they are less frequently seen and not necessarily understood. AKA, they are not equally powerful symbols to people in the majority.

Doesn't that explain your non-reaction to the menorah?

"Celebrating the holiday openly does not mean shoving it down someone's throat." - unless you are in the minority and the subject is the majorty celebrations.

While I personally have no issue with Christmas ( I'll take the secularized version and you can keep the Jesus aspect ), I'd love to see what the "tough @!$%# if you're not the religious majority" bunch, as exemplified by Brendan, have to say about the possibility that people of some faiths very different from their own might decide to be as open about their particular religion.

Let's say you have neighbors who are Pagan. If they're not shoving it down anyone's throat, just acting on their First Amendment rights with a different type of holiday display ( as opposed to the running to another country when this one supposedly has freedom of religion ), will you be OK with it, or would you be one of those who gossips and grumbles with the neighbors about the wierd Pagan decorations in someone's front yard?

If a Pagan neighbor's displays got vandalized ( presumably not by fine, upstanding, Christian you, but some unknown person ), with no other displays in the area suffering the same fate indicating the non-Christian theme was the motive for the vandals, would you be as offended as if your Christian neighbor's nativity scene were damaged, or would your response be more along the lines of "Well, that's what you get for being different"?

Given some of what I've seen when people try to be more inclusive ( demanding "Merry Christmas" instead of allowing stores to be more inclusive with "Happy Holidays" with threat of boycotts, the local business who listed all holidays they knew their employees participated in on the poster for the seasonal office party only to have a Christian employee cross out the names of the holidays she deemed not to be from "real" religions ), I doubt many honest Christans are out there who'd be equally supportive of others faiths' seasonal celebrations being expressed per the First Amendment.

That's OK, Yosho, except for the fact that the traditions associated with the Roman Saturnalia and winter solstice are ALREADY yard displays.

Evergreen trees, often brought inside, decorated with gold and silver tinsel and candles, followed up by drunken merriment and gift giving are descriptions of the Roman Saturnalia. Mistletoe was hung above door posts by Germanic pagans to protect the inhabitants from demons. For thousands of years Yule (In Norse, Yul or Jul) Logs were burnt in Europe during the Winter Solstice to usher in the power of the sun. The Druids decorated theirs with holly and pinecones. And of course reindeer aren't exactly endemic in Israel.

Good point Navy Doc. I would like a little more information regarding how the study was performed. I have a feeling that there might have been a few confounding variables that might make the results invalid. Just the fact that the participants were all college students means that you can't apply these results to the general public.

First things first. Muslims and athiests are entirely different people, neither of whom care about christmans or the pagan symbols that chrisitians have adopted. In that, they are the same as are jews, hindus, taoists, confiscianists, buddhists, animists or nature-worshippers anywhere. The sole exceptions there are druids and wiccans, since, for the most part, it was their symbols that were stolen.

Nor does this have anything whatsoever to do with "american culture", since the country's Founding Fathers were deists and not chrisiitans - they believed that a diety existed, but not that it was necessarily a christian one. That's one of the many reasons that they insisted in freedom of religion and in freedom of religious practices, rather than in having a state religion of any type.

Your acute ignorance of both comparitive relgion and of the history of your won country is showing, big-time, and you're not even embarrassed by it. How disgusting!!!

"American" Cultural? You need to back-up and redefine American Cultural? Are you including North, South and Central Americia? Is Canada, where the study took place, part of American Cultural? And if it is, why are you taking your supposed understanding of the United States of America's History and placing it on Canada, another country?

Just thought I'd ask.

How about you should care because this study tells you something about people other than those in your own group. It tells you how others think and feel, and should, if you stop to think about it all, help you to understand that not all people are a part of your group or believe as you believe.

The world is a far more complicated and complex place that you understand it to be, and it's high time that you changed that about yourself. It's high time that you understood that others have feelings and have places of their own, and they, too, belong on this planet, in your country, and even in the house next door. It's high time that you accepted their customs as you want yours to be accepted by them. It's high time that you respected their customs as you want yours to be respected by them. It's high time, in other words, that you stopped acting like a child and began to act like the adult that you post certainly claim to be.

You care because you OUGHT to care.

That's rather presumptuous of you to claim that I am incapable of understanding this complicated and complex world. I'm assuming you, however, do understand. How very clever of you. Are you Oprah?

This is a Christian country. I don't care if you're green, yellow, or bllue, and live next door, this is America and it's not going to change.

Why exactly should I respect their customs when they come to MY country? If they, I'm assuming we're talking about immigrants, want their customs, they should stay home and fix their own country. We want our traditions and customs to be prevalent and rightly so.