Posted on December 17, 2011 by admin | in Nanny
It may seem strange to many of us, but there are some kids who don’t celebrate Christmas. If your child asks if kids around the world celebrate Christmas you can have some ideas of what to tell them. Check out 10 reasons some kids don’t celebrate Christmas.
- Greeks honor St. Nicholas: If you are a child that lives in Greece you will not celebrate Christmas. However, you will celebrate around the same time of year. St. Nicholas or St. Nick which Americans like to call him is the patron saint of sailors as well as other things. The Greeks burn fires from December 25- January 6 and a sprig of basil is wrapped around a wooden cross to ward off evil spirits called Killantzeroi. They do exchange gifts, but it’s not until Jan. 1 to celebrate St. Basil’s Day.
- Not religious: If someone isn’t religious at all they may not celebrate Christmas because Christmas stems again from the Christian faith. That’s not to say that people who aren’t religious don’t celebrate some sort of Santa based Christmas and just skip over all of the religious meaning. It may however be one reason that a child would not celebrate Christmas.
- No money: Some people are unable to celebrate Christmas because they just don’t have the means. People may feel like it’s easier to just say we don’t celebrate Christmas than to be unable to give their kids a good Christmas. Of course, it doesn‘t take money to celebrate Christmas, but in this day and age it seems like people spend a lot on presents and parties and such and forget the true meaning of Christmas.
- 4. Too commercial: Many people feel like Christmas has become too commercial and they’ve decided to stop celebrating it. The bible doesn’t mention anything about celebrating Christ’s birthday. The bible specifically says we should celebrate when he died on the cross and rose again, but nothing about when he was born.
- Based on a pagan holiday: The current way we celebrate Christmas is loosely based on a pagan holiday and people who are super religious may not celebrate Christmas because they are not to worship any pagan gods. Christmas is a combination of several customs around the world which stands to reason since America is known as the melting pot. Santa Clause comes from the Dutch’s Sinterklaas. Nicholas was a real man who was a Christian leader and wanted to give to the poor, but he was shy. He climbed up on the roof and dropped a bag of money down the chimney and it fell into a stocking that a girl had hanging by the fire to dry. This is where the Santa coming down through the chimney part comes from.
- They are from Puerto Rico: In Puerto Rico they celebrate Three Kings Day in January. The celebration resembles Christmas in that they exchange gifts and have celebrations during that time of year, but they do not celebrate Christmas on Dec. 25th.
- They are Chinese: The Chinese celebrate Winter Solstice on Dec. 21 or 22 where they honor their ancestors and feast. It is most closely compared to Thanksgiving for Americans. Chinese people do not celebrate Christmas even when they move to the U.S. Many times you will see businesses that are owned by Chinese people are the few that are open on Christmas day. Chinese New Year is another big celebration during this time of year.
- They celebrate Kwanzaa: Kwanzaa is a holiday that was created in 1966 as an alternative to Christmas for African Americans. The holiday was set up to celebrate African Americans and their culture. At first it was believed the African Americans should not practice Christianity because it was a “white religion” and something to be shunned. After many African Americans had a problem with that philosophy the creator of the holiday modified his position so as to not alienate the people who were both Christians and African American. Now it is a day to celebrate family.
- Hanukkah is celebrated instead: This Jewish holiday, also known as the Festival of Lights, lasts for 8 days. Candles are lit each day on a Menorah and prayers are sung in Hebrew. Special customs and food enter in to this very ritual based holiday. One of the foods commonly served are Latkes with Smetana. Latkes are a potato pancake.
- The festival of the sacrifice is observed: This holiday is celebrated in early December, but doesn’t have a specific date that it is observed. The date changes every year based on the lunar calendar. This holiday is also known as Eid Al Adha and is celebrated by Muslims. The festival remembers the willingness of Abraham to sacrifice his son to God. Part of the ritual is a sacrifice of a sheep or goat. Then the meat is cooked and shared with family, friends and the poor in the community.
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