Christmas Carols Banned, Do you think they should be? Options

[iheartjohn]

The phrase "Merry Christmas" is removed from the songs in most public schools. Christmas carols banned at school events. A religious-themed float denied entry in a local parade.

Do you think this is right?

I guess this stands with the debate of having religion with schools. May I add, I don't understand why they would, since we seem to have God on everything else. (i.e., on our dollar bills it even says, In God We Trust).

[ComradeRed]

We need to bring back El Inquisition.

[miss barnes]

i think thats soo dumb. enough said

[sadolakced acid]

you think it's dumb, but what if someone wanted to have a "allah is great" float? or a "heil hitler" float?

[ComradeRed]

Or one of these babies.

You should be allowed to have whatever float you want, as long as it doesn't physically hurt anyone (like a Heil Hitler float that knocks people over when it does its salute).

---


Here's one of my favorite Holiday Seasons Carols, that is bound to bring a lighter air to this somber discussion:

VIOLENT NIGHT
BY MICHAEL O'RILEY

It was the last night of Hanukkah,
and all was a strife,
not a creature was sleeping,
not even my wife.
She ran around screaming,
throwing dishes and pans.
The menorah tipped over,
setting flame to her hands.
The burning spread upward,
soon reaching her hair,
and before we had noticed,
she was no longer there.
But the fire didn't stop,
it kept growing and growing.
We were watching TV,
without even knowing.
Timmy Jr. smelled it first.
He went to check it out.
I sat still, unworried,
regretfully, no doubt.
The kitchen ceiling gave way,
with a snap and a crack.
Soon after I noticed,
Timmy hadn't come back.
By now all was dark,
and the house was a blaze.
The true challenge now
was to flee this flame maze.
I jumped through the window,
glass flew through the sky.
I tell you this now
with a tear in my eye.
The crisp snow stained red,
my hands bruised and bleeding,
A firetruck could be heard,
police sirens leading.
Hanukkah was ruined,
now a sad time of year.
But my heart was soon blooming,
with a new Christmas cheer.
Oh Santa, my savior,
I hand my holidays to you.
Not even eight days of happiness,
was worth being a Jew.

[gelionie]

Eh... I've never heard that Christmas carols are banned... well at least in where I live.

It's so ironic that there are loads of non-Christians in my city, yet it seems like EVERYONE celebrates Christmas.

Ooops going off topic.

[sporadic]

Well, according to my American History teacher, it's okay to sing about God as long as it fits the curriculum (i.e. being in a choir, it's okay to sing)

Let's add some "Praise Allah/Jehovah/Buddha"'s on our dollar bills, eh?

[Sumiaki]

I think that this is just stupid. We try to let religion and state stay seperate. They especially try to seperate public schools from religion. What I don't get is why do people in schools get to wear those muslim caps for religious purposes yet we can't wear necklaces with crosses or anything to do with Jesus? Just food for thought.

[picaso_smile]

It definitly not right. It's CHRISTMAS. The whole thing is a celebration of Jesus's birth. Why would they ban the subject of a holiday from being celebrated? Also, if I student doesn't want to sing a song mentioning christmas they don't have to... But that's not to say other songs mentioning things such as Hannakah or Kwanza can't be mentioned.

[sadolakced acid]

crosses are allowed. students can express themselves however they wish, it's called the first ammendment.

however, schools cannot have, say, the choir required to sing christmas songs, nor can they have anything promoting christmas as it's a 'religous' holiday.

and how is it wrong to ban religon from schools?

[pandamonium]

to me its schocking, i saw that in the news today and i was like woah thats taking it over board. but then again i wouldnt like praying to allah on my knees we still have to respect other religions...

[waccoon]

eleeza,Dec 8 2004, 8:13 PM] The phrase "Merry Christmas" is removed from the songs in most public schools. Christmas carols banned at school events. A religious-themed float denied entry in a local parade.

Do you think this is right?

I guess this stands with the debate of having religion with schools. May I add, I don't understand why they would, since we seem to have God on everything else. (i.e., on our dollar bills it even says, In God We Trust).

Our dollar bills say In God We Trust and the like because everybody, and everybody was Christian/Catholic at the time the bills were designed and printed. To change billions and billions of dollar bills now would cost a massive amount of money.

[ComradeRed]

Not everyone was Christian/Catholic. If they were, why did Maryland write religious toleration for Jews into it's first law?

If you read the writings of Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, or Thomas Paine, they were NOT Catholic Christians. They were Deists, which is a sort of Christianity that's close to Unitarianism today, but not entirely the same.

In fact, very few people then WERE Catholics (except in Maryland and Delaware). America was a Protestatn country.

[picaso_smile]

Not everyone was Christian/Catholic. If they were, why did Maryland write religious toleration for Jews into it's first law?

If you read the writings of Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, or Thomas Paine, they were NOT Catholic Christians. They were Deists, which is a sort of Christianity that's close to Unitarianism today, but not entirely the same.

In fact, very few people then WERE Catholics (except in Maryland and Delaware). America was a Protestatn country.

But I believe the point is that they believed in God....

[miss barnes]

you think it's dumb, but what if someone wanted to have a "allah is great" float? or a "heil hitler" float?

oh i didnt read the part about a float being denied, but i still think its dumb...and there isnt anything wrong w/ Allah...just another word for God, but Hitler....

[azn_r4pf4n]

hmmm... well, some ppl in my school arent christian/catholic and they celebrate it anywayz.. Christmas celebrates the birth of Christ, and those who arent christian/catholic may have heard it b4. But they just go think about the gift-giving, etc..

I dont really know though... its been about 2004 years since the birth of Christ, and many ppl have gotten so much used to Christmas and Christmas carols that they sing along, no matter what religion, and most ppl r used to it.

I'll reply back later when i get some thinking. For now, im outz.

[lovescream]

not debating.
just adding.
i heard that on the news and our school totally got freaked out and went balistic.
O_O It's really stupid.
I say it's not right.

[sammi rules you]

they don't have to ban christmas carols..just don't make the people who don't practice that religion sing it.

me, my friend taylor, and this girl i'm not really friends with and kinda hate brittanie are all half jewish (though i don't practice it) and we go around singing "dreidl dreidl" all day when other people are singing christmas carols. =P

(yes dreidl is spelled right, i even looked it up before i posted this to make sure..)

[HelloSunshine]

Last night, my school had a Christmas Program. Our school's Catholic...well...at schools that aren't a specific religion, I don't think it's too appropriate to say Merry Christmas..but rather Happy Holidays...only because not everyone will be a certain religion!

[Kriegsgefangene]

To most people now, christmas carols are sung outside peoples' houses, while hoping for some pudding or maybe a couple bucks.

I never really cared what they had said. I didn't care to learn them.

I just said the words absentmindedly. And maybe opened my presents, because presents are pretty cool.

[waccoon]

they don't have to ban christmas carols..just don't make the people who don't practice that religion sing it.

me, my friend taylor, and this girl i'm not really friends with and kinda hate brittanie are all half jewish (though i don't practice it) and we go around singing "dreidl dreidl" all day when other people are singing christmas carols. =P

(yes dreidl is spelled right, i even looked it up before i posted this to make sure..)

Why should the people who don't celebrate Christmas be deprived of singing?

[sammi rules you]

Why should the people who don't celebrate Christmas be deprived of singing?

they can sing, just don't make em sing christmas songs if they don't wanna sing them.

[waccoon]

they can sing, just don't make em sing christmas songs if they don't wanna sing them.

That's the point, you're depriving them of a chance to sing as much as the other children.

[sammi rules you]

i'm saying it should be equal, and they should be allowed to sing songs of their religion as well. if they wanna sing christmas songs, they can go right ahead. it wouldn't be depriving them, it would just be not MAKING them sing songs they don't want to sing.

[waccoon]

i'm saying it should be equal, and they should be allowed to sing songs of their religion as well. if they wanna sing christmas songs, they can go right ahead. it wouldn't be depriving them, it would just be not MAKING them sing songs they don't want to sing.

But when you see all your friends and all your peers singing, and you're the only one sitting down - that's not a very nice feeling, is it? It marks you as different, and you want to repress your religion because it's not what everyone else is into.