Question173

What 'religious' traditions (gifts, meals, decorations, etc.) do any of you continue for the sake of your kids, and why?

• We celebrate the secular sides of Christmas and Easter. While you can argue about teaching the kid about Santa and the Easter bunny all you want, the fact remains that his joy outweighs any downside to it.

  Also, we have a tooth fairy here. ;) We celebrate Halloween in grand style.

  And I as far as traditions, I had him baptized as a baby by his great-great grandfather. Made his grandfather happy, didn't harm the kid to get a little wet. ;) Dunno if I would do that today...five years ago I wasn't as strong an atheist as I am now, but I still don't see it did him any harm. (Grace #1752)

• We put the nativity and the xmas tree, not only for the sake of the our daughter, but because my wife likes those corny decorations. She's also somehow Catholic. Sara (she's 4 1/2) gets a lot of fun and introduces... let's say "strange" symbols in the nativity: Teletubbies, Pikachu and other Pok�mons, Disney figures... My wife doesn't like it much because she finds it a bit blasphemous (only a bit, she laughs at the results), but I encourage Sara. This way she gets more fun and I find a healthy exercise the mixing of mythologies. She puts all the fantasy worlds together on a single scenario.

  Other than that, we do a special meal on Epiphany day and divide Sara's gifts between the two dates. (Angel Arnal #1443)

• Since my wife is still a Christian, we still decorate for xmas, and I tolerate the religious decorations she wants put up. We exchange gifts on Dec. 25. If she were to deconvert, I'd urge the retirement of religion-based decorations and change the exchange of gifts to Dec.21, but that's about it... (Nemo #1331)

• Christmas, with a completely clear conscience. It's an ancient solstice festival, hijacked by Christianity, then by commercialism. There's very little religion left in it. The 'meaning of Christmas' is not diminished in the least by the removal of Jesus from the starring role. Ebenezer Scrooge is the central character of Christmas for me.

  I'm not sure I should have answered this though, I haven't got any kids... (Phobospi)

• I have no kids. I attend religious related meals with my family (such as a Passover meal (not a 'seder'), a New Years dinner, etc. But that is it.

  I have never given out christmas gifts, and I never plan to. I do not decorate, I do not celebrate, I do not stop going to work (or staying a home on weekends). (Arturo Magidin #257)

• Christmas trees. My wife and I have been trying for the last two years to talk the kids out of getting one. We've used every arguement we can think of including messy, pain in the ass to get rid of since we don't support boyscouts, we're not even xian so why do we need a tree? It's just an old pagan tradition stolen by the xians. But they just won't give it up. I think next year I'm going to buy a fake one.

  And gifts, but we give gifts because it makes us feel good, and we don't limit it to just the kids. (Roger Andrews aa#1477)

• Well, being that I am still married to an xtian, there are a lot of trappings still in place.

  We have bibles in the house, pictures of angles and such, a couple of crosses, no not the cathylick ones.

  Wife and son attend church, most Sundays. No praying over food, or when someone is sick. We know where the food comes from, and doctors do more then prayer ever did.

  That's about it. (Rev. Karl E. Taylor #1143)

• Well, I don't know how "religious" it is, but I'll definitely always put up a Xmas tree and other Yuletide decorations. I also decorate for Easter and both the kid and the hubby get Easter baskets. I really wouldn't label any of this as a "religious" tradition though. Pagan perhaps, but certainly not xian. (Robyn #1557)

• We celebrate a number of fine pagan religious holidays, such as Easter and Xmas. There is nothing religious about our celebrations, though. Just think about it: the Easter egg hunt is obviously a metaphor for fertility, which in turn is based on the idea that a lot of plants and animals come out of dormancy in Spring. Xmas is basically a recognition and celebration of the fact that we have just lived the shortest, darkest day of the year and what's ahead of us is longer, brighter days--cause for celebration, joy, and looking forward to a better future. Oh, we celebrate Thanksgiving too; notwithstanding the pathetic fundy attempts to hijack it and make it into a xian holiday, we treat it as a belated harvest festival. In fact, here in California, it's not even particularly belated. We have the last tomatoes, zucchini and peppers at that time, as well as winter squash, pomegranates, walnuts, apples, etc. That's about it. We celebrate these things partly for the kids' benefit, but there is *nothing* religious about them apart from some historical accidence. (Orhan Orgun #1867)

• Well I do not have any real kids, just a 15 year old foster daughter "A" over in Thailand. I wil be seeing her in April I hope, when I will nescessarily enjoy the Buddist New Year, called "Songkrang". According to A's Aunt, (living near Minneapolis), A's birthday was on januari 3, which is close enought to Christmas, not to worry whether a gift would arrive on one day or the other. So long before the Dutch feast of Sinterklaas (St. Nicholas), I sent enough money to A's cousin Santi(!), the eldest son of the aunt I mentioned before, to buy her a small motorbike. A received it as a Christmas present, being a Buddhist herself, A did not mind in the least.

  And neither did I.

  PS I also used the two days leave at Christmas, to prepair a lavish meal for my mother, sister and my sister's children. Those are all grown up now, but are very thankfull dinner guests. (Peter van Velzen #1107)