Merry Christmas (to those who celebrate it)
And to those who don’t, my best non-Christmas wishes to you too!
Though Christmas is not an “official” holiday in China, there are increasing amounts of participation and unofficial recognition of it, albeit in ways that do not necessarily resemble American Christmas traditions. Here’s a video montage on Danwei of Christmas in Beijing.
Also, though I hope this won’t make me seem like a negative Nelly, among the lovely gifts I received was one that I did not particularly appreciate: a donation in my name to an evangelical Christian charity whose primary purpose is to spread Christianity to impoverished parts of the world. Ugh. Maybe next time I come to B’s family’s Christmas celebrations, B and I should wear a T-shirt disclaimer: “We are not Christians. We do not want to hear about Christ saving the world (because non-Christian earthlings do exist, thanks). We do not want to go to church. We do not support or look favorably upon any attempts at proselytizing, towards ourselves or any others.”
Or alternatively, maybe our charitable donations in their names should be to Planned Parenthood, Gay Marriage advocacy groups, and various neo-Pagan organizations. Also Satan.
But of course, I say nothing and smile politely. And try to put it aside quickly before my anger is too visable. I am ever the pacifist.
Atheist-Friendly Prayer « The Swallow Alights said,
December 25, 2008 at 6:16 pm
[...] 25, 2008 I am annoyed that B’s family assumes everyone is or should be a Christian. I’m annoyed that I will spend the rest of my life at their family holidays bowing in [...]
Josiah said,
December 28, 2008 at 8:52 pm
WOW. That is a horrible present on two counts. Count number one for the reasons you already mentioned. But count number two because it shows that they don’t know you or, worse, don’t care about your own values at ALL. Ick!
Little Swallow said,
December 29, 2008 at 9:58 am
Yeah, pretty sucky! But it did start some conversations between B and I about how we are going to handle Christian holidays (Christmas and Easter) with our kids and extended family, which is good. Also, I am now refusing to put out or keep any card that we get that specifically mentions the baby Jesus. Baby Jesus is getting the boot!
krystalmage said,
December 31, 2008 at 8:49 am
ouch…I can imagine how uncomfortable that must’ve made you feel. I go through something similar each time I’m with my husband’s extended family…invariably talk turns to “the importance of making proper, baptised Sikhs out of all the future progeny of the Family.” Yes Family with a capital ‘F’.
There are days when I dream of my future children coming into my reading room and telling me, “Hey Mom, I’ve decided to become Buddhist.” haha.
Little Swallow said,
December 31, 2008 at 8:58 am
Haha, which is funny, because that’s pretty much what B did to his family! Actually, he’s not Buddhist, rather he studied Zen Buddhist philosophy in college, but the end result from his family’s point of view is the same: they still occasionally asks if he’s still Buddhist.
Though my side of the family is generally more accepting of other religious and spiritual beliefs, every so often something nasty comes out, like my dad expressing disappointment in my choice of boyfriend because he wanted (wants?) me to settle down with a nice Christian boy. Leave it to something as (supposedly) soul-feeding as spirituality and religion to make people be jerks to each other.
Thanks for commenting — it’s always good to hear from new people!
krystalmage said,
January 7, 2009 at 2:13 am
You’re welcome. I didn’t know that this line of thinking existed outside India…it’s a generalization I know and I’m sorry for it. It’s just that I’m so used to religious bias because I see it every day here, that I keep telling myself that outside in some other land, this problem does not exist.
One of my friends had to take a lot of flak from her parents when she was dating her boyfriend…(He’s a Muslim) ….the whole situation was very uncomfortable. Our best wishes with her because she intends to marry him and that’s going to cause an earthquake in her family.
Little Swallow said,
January 8, 2009 at 9:39 am
I myself honestly hadn’t considered it happening too much outside of the US, but it makes sense! I think whenever there are cultural norms for any majority of people, including religion, this sort of thing is going to happen. Prejudice and assumption can really be ugly — and from someone who’s seen and heard a lot of terrible things said about Muslims by Americans, my best wishes to your friend!