Lately, I have heard a lot of news stories on the elimination of the word "God" from multiple school- or public office-related documents or traditions. For example, recently a child in a North Carolina school wrote a poem about her two grandfathers who faught during the Vietnam War, and, because it included the line "He prayed to God for peace, he prayed to God for strength," she was required to remove that line prior to delivering the poem outloud at a school Veteran's Day event (see this link for more info: http://www.theblaze.com/stories/school-forces-child-to-remove-god-from-veterans-day-poem-separation-of-church-state/). Need another example? A federal judge ruled that reciting the Pledge of Allegiance in school was unconstitutional (Sept 14, 2005; http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Judge-rules-Pledge-of-Allegiance-unconstitutional-2609382.php) because of the phrase "under God" (added to the Pledge in 1954 by the US legislature).
This country was founded under Judaeo-Christian beliefs of our forefathers. The country has morphed into a tolerant body of people with multiple religions or lack thereof. However, the tolerance seems to have burned out when it comes to Christian beliefs. Why is it more respectful to call a "Christmas tree" a "Holiday tree?" The word change actually may be more offensive to Christians who believe the tree is a symbol representative of their religious holiday of Christmas. While I personally lean more towards "Jesus is the reason for the season" versus the symbolism of the tree itself, I do agree that if there is a link between the Christmas tree and the Christmas holiday for some Christians, then the "Christmas tree" terminology should be just as venerable (look it up if you don't know it's meaning) as calling a Menorah just that and not a "Holiday candle stick holder."
Perhaps the people who celebrate "Holidays" should put up a "Holiday tree" next to the Christian "Christmas tree."
Me and my family? We say "Merry Christmas."
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