The War of the Words
Sermon, December 9, 2005
Rabbi Bruce Kadden

There is a new war going on, a new battle being fought.  It is not being fought with weapons, at least not traditional weapons.  And, fortunately no one is dying.  But it is a war being waged throughout our country. 

It is the war of the words, the words that cashiers and clerks say to customers at this time of year, the words that stores use in their advertisements.  And if it were not for the fact that those fighting the war are so fanatical, it would be comical.

The war of the words is the war being fought by conservative pundits and leaders of the religious right against those who would dare to wish someone “Happy Holidays” at this time of year rather than “Merry Christmas” or those who advertise “Holiday” sales rather than “Christmas” sales. 

The use of the more generic greeting and terms reflects an effort to be sensitive to the fact that many Americans do not celebrate Christmas.  I personally appreciate it when someone says to me Happy Holidays.  It reflects thoughtfulness and awareness that not everyone celebrates Christmas.  Even President and Mrs. Bush, in the cards that they send out to more than one million of their closest friends, use the greeting “Happy Holidays” rather than “Merry Christmas.”

Most people get it.  The Federal Way School District, for example, immediately recalled its monthly lunch menus for December when it was discovered that they were printed with the greeting “Merry Christmas.”  This error was apparently the result of a new employee who was not aware of the district’s policy of using the phrase “Happy Holidays,” which was designed to reflect the diversity of people in the district.

To say “Merry Christmas” to everyone attempts to deny that diversity and represents self-centeredness, as if to say that everyone celebrates Christmas, or at least should.  I have often been tempted to respond “Happy Chanukah,” just to see what the reaction would be.  It is no more appropriate to wish everyone Merry Christmas than it would be to wish everyone Happy Birthday on your birthday.

What is all the fuss?  Why all of a sudden in the last couple of years has this become such an important issue, at least for some?

First of all, it is clearly part of the efforts of those on the religious right to bring religion into the public square.  Upset because the Supreme Court has forbidden the display of manger scenes on public property and limited the display of the Ten Commandments, they have responded with a no-holds-barred effort to bring religious symbols and language into every aspect of public life. 

This effort includes, by the way, a revisionist view of American history, which claims that the Founding Fathers saw this country as a Christian nation, and although they may have tolerated other religions, they expected the public square to reflect the country’s Christian values and practices.

That is why we must take this effort seriously, and not ignore it.  For although the rhetoric will end after the holiday season, the effort to Christianize the country will continue.

I have a theory about all this hysteria.  Those who are secure in their religious faith do not feel threatened by other religious traditions; they are not as concerned about whether their religion is affirmed in the public square.  But those who are insecure, who have doubts and questions, feel the most threatened and have to shout the loudest when anything is done that even remotely questions or challenges their faith.  (It is like the rabbi who wrote in the margin of his sermon:  weak point – shout loudly.)

It is no secret that we live in an increasingly secular society.  Professor Patricia Killen of PLU has written a book entitled The None [N-O-N-E] Zone, about the low religious affiliation rate of the Pacific Northwest in particular.  Those who are insecure in their religious faith cannot help but notice this secularization, and feel quite threatened by it.  They therefore feel forced to respond vociferously to every perceived threat to religion.

Now saying “Happy Holidays” rather than “Merry Christmas” is no more a threat to Christianity than not allowing the Ten Commandments to be posted in a courtroom.  But to those who are insecure in their religious faith, and to those of the political and religious right who have their agenda of spreading religion throughout society, anything can be used as a pretext to support their efforts.

There is an irony in this conservative effort to control what people say and do.  For Conservatives traditionally favor free enterprise and oppose efforts to interfere with how someone runs a business.  But that is exactly what they are doing in insisting that merchants say “Merry Christmas” rather than “Happy Holidays.” 

Conservatives traditionally favor local control of the schools and oppose efforts to impose standards from afar.  But that is exactly what they are doing in insisting that schools bring Christmas into the classrooms.

Such efforts reveal the true efforts of the political and religious right:  to impose their agenda on everyone.  The effort to promote Christmas is just the tip of the iceberg.  This is a well-planned, well-financed effort to destroy the separation between church and state and to bring Christianity into public life. 

So how should we respond?  I am not sure that we should.  The issue has already received far too much attention than it is worth; and before we know it the holiday season will be over.  We should commend the Federal Way School District, as well as stores and organizations that use the term “Happy Holidays,” and encourage them not to give into pressure from the religious right.

Rather than fighting this battle, we should save our energy for the more important task of working to preserve the separation of church and state that has helped protect us as a religious minority.  Much more important than winning the battle of the “war of the words” is assuring that the First Amendment’s protection of religious liberty remains strong.

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