Whitts not afraid to say "Merry Christmas"

One of the performers at the Grand Ole Opry performed a spoken word piece with the song "Silent Night, Holy Night" in the background; he talked about the importance of spelling Christmas with Christ in it rather than an X, as in Xmas. He said, "I would never dare tell anyone else how to observe their religious holiday." I can see his point. I celebrate Chanukah, but I also love and enjoy the warmth and light of Christmas, the solstice, the holiday season, wintertime -- whatever you want to call it. I am a bit skeptical when Christians see their religion and way of life as "under attack" and I am resistant to their efforts to characterize themselves as victims or martyrs. However, I do agree with them that sometimes secularism goes too far and puts pressure upon people of all faiths to restrain the expression of their faith and take the religion out of everything. Religion has its place in public life, I believe. What exactly that place is, and how much prominence it should have is a debate I like to see taking place. The sign in this photo is a reaction to the social pressure some people perceive to whitewash or homogenize Christmas by spelling it Xmas or saying "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas." I say, say "Merry Christmas" all you want; just don't assume everyone will take it as a wish that applies to them.

UPDATE: In response to this sign, I've posted a greeting of my own.