Widgetized Section
Go to Admin » Appearance » Widgets » and move Gabfire Widget: Social into that MastheadOverlay zone
Say What? Bill O’Reilly Claims Celebrating Jesus Doesn’t Have To Be Religious
The War on Christmas is back and Bill O’Reilly is here to tell America that the mixing of religion and state is fine because celebrating Jesus doesn’t have to be religious.
Here is the audio from Media Matters:
When a viewer emailed Bill-O to ask how he can defend the congressional establishment of a religious holiday like Christmas, he answered, “Because it doesn’t have to be religious, Sean. The philosophy of Jesus the man heavily shaped the founding of this nation.”
Ah, so O’Reilly is going with the old the constitution is based on teachings of Jesus excuse. How does the Fox News host explain this part of the First Amendment, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievance.”
How about Thomas Jefferson’s 1802 letter to the Danbury Baptists? Jefferson wrote, “Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between Man & his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legitimate powers of government reach actions only, & not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should “make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,” thus building a wall of separation between Church & State.”
How exactly does one go about celebrating a religious holiday that marks the birth of Jesus Christ in a non-religious way? There is no way around it. Christmas is a religious holiday. More importantly, if you take the religion out of celebrating Jesus, then aren’t you taking the Christ out of Christmas? If you take the Christ out of Christmas, then you might as well say Happy Holidays, which means that the War on Christmas is lost.
Way to go, Bill O’Reilly. You just lost your own war on Christmas.
Related Posts :
If it is the holiday season it is time for Fox News’ Bill O’Reilly to revive his charge that secular progres ...
In a stunning turn of events, Fox News has been running a holiday greeting commercial that does not say Merr ...
The holiday season is upon us once more, a time of fellowship, peace and love...Oh, and the snarling Christo ...
To any Christians who ask why I do not wish them a “Merry Christmas” I can only say this: “Why should I? ...
On his MSNBC program Countdown, Keith Olbermann exposed how Rupert Murdoch and his New York Post have be ...
18 Responses to Say What? Bill O’Reilly Claims Celebrating Jesus Doesn’t Have To Be Religious
Public Service Advertisements
J
Nov. 18th, 2011 at 11:11 pm
Bill O’Reilly was correct in saying that the celebration of X-mas doesn’t have to be religious. Many people nowadays celebrate Christmas whether or not they are Christians. And people who are non Christians celebrate it for the heck of the festivities. Look at the world where Christmas is also celebrated in many countries where Christians only constitute a small minority.
There is nothing wrong with having Congress declaring a day off for something that has been celebrated just like Thanksgiving. And it has already been decided by the courts that its ok for Christmas to remain a federal holiday because there are many secular aspects of it.
Fyi, I’m Buddhist, but my family has always celebrated Christmas. And for us its just about getting together to eat, put up decorations, and exchange gifts. We didn’t celebrate it with any religious connotation in mind and I’m presume that’s how many other people celebrate it too.
Reynardine
Nov. 18th, 2011 at 11:25 pm
Yep. Happy Solstice!!
Brown cow
Nov. 19th, 2011 at 3:09 am
My neighbor likes to celebrate Jesus (Morales) on his birthday and it’s definely not a religious celebration. ;)
Eric
Nov. 19th, 2011 at 3:28 am
Well, what Bill said is true from another perspective as well. If you leave aside all the supernatural mythicism and religious mumbo-jumbo, one incontrovertible fact is clear. Jesus was an actual person of which there is non-religious evidence and historical record. Historians generally say he was a Jew who was just trying to be a better Jew, and get people to treat each other better, with a message of peace, love, and understanding. And you can celebrate such a person perfectly well without being Christian. Many people do just that every year on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Robert Chapman
Nov. 19th, 2011 at 12:29 pm
Yes, Bill O’Reilly may well be saying that if we can celebrate MLK’s birthday and declare is a legal holiday, why not JC’s birthday on 12/25?
But there is a historical significance to JC’s birthday that MLK’s just doesn’t have.
How many businesses are open on MLK that are closed on JC? How many of us are there that can plan on the third week of January as a time that we will meet all our old friends at our homes of origin.
The last week of the calendar gives a chance to connect with the past, to see everyone, to offer tokens of appreciation and affection. That is why there was a Saturnalia before there was a Christmas and that is why Santa Claus is such a ubiquitous symbol.
Maybe Reilly wants to keep this tradition going, maybe he just making controversy for money as he does.
Let’s just ignore Reilly and continue to meet friends and exchange gifts and dedicate ourselves to the joys of family, children, hearth and home and universal love that Christmas has come to symbolize in our society.
This is one time which Christians should be able to share generously and without demands.
Andrew Carvin
Nov. 19th, 2011 at 7:17 am
Religion is evil, and Bill O Riley is a Republican tool.
If Bill O Riley is talking he’s either lying, saying something incredibly evil, or both.
Danger Of Religion
A hypothetical person has an X that they believe tells him/her to do things, and a part of their belief in X is an afterlife where everything is so much better than this. To get there they have to do everything that X tells them to which includes incredibly violent acts of evil.
Replace X with Barney The Purple Dinosaur.
Now replace X with (insert deity’s name here).
Do you really want people like this in our society driving our buses, taking care of our children, making decisions about national defense, roaming our streets armed with guns, etc.
X is an invention of the human mind with no basis in fact/science/reality beyond what any particular person prefers to believe. What if a person’s preference changes to something evil?
Do you see how this could be a problem?
Religious people have no moral responsibility whatsoever.
That’s why they can say they value life one moment, and then call for the death of people who don’t accept their imaginary friend the next.
Religions are fundamentally death cults that portray life as a miserable thing to be endured, and after you die you will get sky pie in the sky pie kingdom, and sit next to the pie god.
It does not surprise me at all that religious people don’t care about conservation, saving endangered species, preserving the natural world, or really doing anything constructive/positive. In their eyes all is filth and evil if it doesn’t come from a book that a bunch of uneducated sand jockeys who thought the world was flat wrote over 2000 years ago.
Andrew Carvin
Nov. 19th, 2011 at 7:20 am
Religion must die so that humanity can live.
This “attack on Christmas” nonsense is just a thinly veiled attempt for Christians to force their imaginary sky pie god nonsense on everyone by claiming to be the victim when they have, are, and will be the perpetrator until everyone abandons their mind destroying garbage.
Religion is Preferential Thinking.
Preferential Thinking
Reality is not a preference, but is simply what is even if we do not know what that is at the time.
Science is the only one true way of knowing reality because science is non-biased in it’s discovery of facts which are pieces of reality that were once unknown, but now made known via scientific methods.
All the technology you enjoy today came about because of the scientific mindset of actively seeking answers to how reality works (FACTS), and using that information to solve problems. You cannot enjoy any form of modern technology, and object to scientifically proven FACTS like evolution without being a hypocrite.
Hypocrisy runs rampant with Preferential Thinkers because they only acknowledge and support the existence of pieces of reality (FACTS) that they prefer, invent delusions to explain knowledge gaps, and ignore and vilify the existence of anything outside of their preferences. Preferential Thinking is a delusional mindset that ignores reality as it truly is, it is highly resistant to facts, logic, and reason, and inspires rampant stupidity, ignorance, and laziness.
Morals cannot be based on Preferential Thinking because in order for morals to work they have to be based on something real that falls outside of a person’s individual preferences.
Preferential Thinking is intrinsically evil, and Preferential Thinkers are dangerous because they have no moral responsibility whatsoever because they base their morals upon their own preferences instead of reality.
Religion is presently the most overt form of Preferential Thinking in society today.
Example: I wake up stupid one day, and embrace (insert religion here) despite the scientifically proven fact that all Religion is mind destroying garbage invented by Preferential Thinkers. I want to worship X as best I can, and I prefer to do so by killing anyone who doesn’t worship X. Since X is an invention of my Preferentially Thinking mind X approves of my bloodlust. I go kill a bunch of people in the name of X who have committed no crime greater than not holding the same Preferential Thoughts that I do. Since X is an invention of my Preferentially Thinking mind this makes X very happy, and because X is my moral guide I think my killing spree is wonderful.
Murder is not good for society, and there are scientific facts that support that assertion, but as I demonstrated a Preferential Thinker would ignore those scientific facts in preference of their preferences.
Preferential Thinking is very widespread, and it is not hard to find examples of it on the world stage. Aside from Religion, another relevant example of Preferential Thinking is stupid peoples’ attitude towards the middle and poor classes (99%), and their glorification of the rich (1%).
99% of America’s economy rest on the buying shoulders of the middle and poor classes, and yet the Republicans want to murder them with destructive social policies. The end result of their plans would be total economic collapse, and their rich overlords would lose everything. Without an economy all money and investments become worthless.
The Republicans prefer that their actions benefit their rich masters without negative consequence (Preferential Thinking), and thus behave in accordance to their preferences even though scientific facts (reality) shows how destructive that will be if they are allowed to get away with it.
Robert Chapman
Nov. 19th, 2011 at 12:22 pm
Morals cannot be based on Preferential Thinking because in order for morals to work they have to be based on something real that falls outside of a person’s individual preferences.
This is a very profound and thoughtful observation from Andrew Carvin and as a devout Christian I agree entirely.
One of my sons has often made the comment to me that a lot of people who want to go to heaven are going to be surprised to find God there.
The point I am making here is that Christians are not the only moral and upright people in our society and that without believing in truthful and sure, ie, absolute, standards of moral conduct we cannot claim any sort of authority.
If may well be that Mr. Carvin would oppose any assertion I may make that behavior should be based on God’s commandments. He has every right to do so, I will actively defend his rights and I will applaud him for his forthrightness and candor in expressing what he believes.
But I think that I can find common ground with Mr. Carvin in asserting that society should actively care for widows and orphans, should succor the poor, educate children, suppress crime, see to the medical needs of the suffering, support the aged and generally look after the vulnerable and needy.
In addition to that long laundry list of good works, I hope that Mr. Carvin would join in asserting everyone’s rights of conscience and expression within the bounds of law.
While he and I and others may disagree on many, many, many things, I hope we can all agree on freedom under law.
Sarah Jones
Nov. 19th, 2011 at 1:31 pm
That was a beautiful post, and demonstrates your faith in a way that is inspiring. IMO: This is what spiritual faith looks like in action.
Shiva (Moderator)
Nov. 19th, 2011 at 8:44 am
I find it easier to ignore Bill “the tides?” O’Leily.
BTW Bill, you don’t have to be religious to not celebrate religion either
Howard Brazee
Nov. 19th, 2011 at 9:44 am
How many right wing Christians actually pay attention to what Jesus taught? If they don’t live by What Would Jesus Do, then he’s absolutely correct – his religion is not about Christianity.
Robert Chapman
Nov. 19th, 2011 at 12:12 pm
Why single right wing Christians? But there is a bit more, Europe and America are making slow progress in public morality. A large part of this comes from the interplay of Christianity, humanism, Judaism and other highly moral and ethical standards.
I think it is better that we give each other credit and acknowledge the common striving for better morality and social responsibility.
Christmas with its messages of joy over children and universal love is a great time to rededicate and extend goodwill and peace toward all.
Paul
Nov. 19th, 2011 at 9:56 am
Uh huh.
Are these the same people who claim celebtating Halloween is tantamount to devil worship?
Yeah. Whatever.
Shawn
Nov. 19th, 2011 at 11:05 am
I’ll accept it if christians acknowledge that people have been celebrating Yulë for tens of thousands of years before there was christianity and they acknowledge that they stole it to prevent non-christians for celebrating it.
Robert Chapman
Nov. 19th, 2011 at 12:07 pm
It wasn’t a matter of stealing Yule- if it exists- or even Saturnalia. It was a matter of adapting Christianity to the dominant culture. Roman religion celebrated December 25th because it is the first date after the solstice that the period of daylight stops shortening.
For ancient people’s who didn’t understand astrophysics the visible increase in daylight was a confirmation that winter was coming and would end.
The pagans met the phenomenon with orgiastic revelry. Christians were able to impart messages of the joy of child-birth and universal love on it.
This is not theft and no I am entirely unwilling to trade the Christmas message for orgies.
Robert Chapman
Nov. 19th, 2011 at 12:02 pm
if you take the religion out of celebrating Jesus, then aren’t you taking the Christ out of Christmas? If you take the Christ out of Christmas, then you might as well say Happy Holidays, which means that the War on Christmas is lost.
This is very well stated, but isn’t that the point? Hasn’t a country that has “In God We Trust,” already sold out and established Mammon as its God and greed as its religion.
Let’s please try and limit the implication that everyone seeking a righteous, god-fearing life and reconciliation with the Creator is a hypocrite and keep GOVERNMENT as far from religion as we possibly can.
la Zingaro
Nov. 19th, 2011 at 12:13 pm
If you take the Christ out of Christmas, I imagine the Pagans would be glad to have their solstice back. And for the record, Locke, Hobbes, Plato, Machiavelli, Aristotle, Rousseau and Montesquieu had a far more profound impact on the shaping of this nation than Jesus ever did. If this nation were founded on Jesus’ principles, #OWS wouldn’t need to exist.
Oh yeah, and I hate Bill O’Reilly.
matt
Nov. 20th, 2011 at 11:43 am
“How exactly does one go about celebrating a religious holiday that marks the birth of Jesus Christ in a non-religious way?” Haha, ask the tens of millions of people around the nation that do it every year. It looks something like this: flourishonline.org/wp-con...