About The Pope Saving Christmas . . .

From the NYTnoids:

Pope John Paul II defended Nativity scenes in public places after
several Italian schools changed Christmas ceremonies to avoid offending
Muslim pupils. "It is an element of our culture and of art, but above
all a sign of faith," the pope said at an annual ceremony at the
Vatican blessing figures of the baby Jesus to be used in crèches around
Italy. "Big or small, simple or elaborate, the Nativity scene
constitutes a familiar and, moreover, an expressive representation of
Christmas." Some teachers have said that they would not allow Nativity
pageants, to reflect growing multiculturalism in Italy, while one
school replaced the word "Jesus" with "virtue" in a Christmas carol and
another said it would substitute "Little Red Riding Hood" for its
Nativity play.

[Cowboy hat tip: Kerry Spot.]

Author: Jimmy Akin

Jimmy was born in Texas, grew up nominally Protestant, but at age 20 experienced a profound conversion to Christ. Planning on becoming a Protestant seminary professor, he started an intensive study of the Bible. But the more he immersed himself in Scripture the more he found to support the Catholic faith, and in 1992 he entered the Catholic Church. His conversion story, "A Triumph and a Tragedy," is published in Surprised by Truth. Besides being an author, Jimmy is the Senior Apologist at Catholic Answers, a contributing editor to Catholic Answers Magazine, and a weekly guest on "Catholic Answers Live."

6 thoughts on “About The Pope Saving Christmas . . .”

  1. When will we destruct our churches in order to not offend people of other religions?
    Thank to the pope to remind the basics not only on religion, but on human identity.

  2. Funny, I thought that Moslem immigration to Europe was going to result in an “ecumenical jihad” against secularism.

  3. I’m copying and pasting this here since no one responded in the movie thread: I have a question about some of the comments from the program (less about movies, more about Christmas). I certainly understand why we would want to protect Christmas and see that it is treated equally with Hanukkah and any other valid religious traditions that might occur at this time of year. But I can also see why places like Macy’s would want to avoid offending people from those other traditions and would want to use a more politically correct phrase. When you speak out against changing Merry Christmas to Happy Holidays on the show, I’m confused. Would you prefer it to say, “Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Cheerful Kwanzaa?” Obviously, that’s not practical. But, there are people during the month of December celebrating other things (no matter how few). For that matter, would it make sense for me to send an explicit Christmas card to someone that I know to be Jewish? By requiring businesses to say “Merry Christmas,” aren’t we basically saying that we’re not going to give you our money unless you support Christianity over and above everything else? Jimmy, I love your work and would like to hear your more detailed comments, as well as those of other site visitors. I want to understand this better. Thanks so much!!!

  4. For that matter, would it make sense for me to send an explicit Christmas card to someone that I know to be Jewish?
    I do. I get my Christmas cards from the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter and each recipient is enrolled in a Novena of Masses offered from Dec. 17 to Dec. 25. Why should I deny my Jewish friends the graces that they would otherwise receive from these Masses? 😉

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