TREE REDUX. Do Atheists have trees in their living rooms

[madeline_con]

right now? I mean, that aren't in soil, and have decorations on them?

Am I asking a stoopid question here?

[Bluebear]

1. Oh, yes.

The lights that light up the darkest part of the year...memories with each ornament...I love December and the tree is part of it!

[KingFlorez]

2. I've heard of some atheists that do

[madeline_con]

3. So, it's not necessarily "Chrisitan", correct?

I thought the tree removal thing was a bit over the top.

[KingFlorez]

5. It's not really Christian

[valerief]

4. I have a Festivus pole. nt

[whoneedstickets]

6. Sure do...

I'm more of an agnostic, but this whole Christmas thing is a simple reworking of the winter solstice festivals humans have been celebrating since we figured out the whole sun/moon cycle. The Jews have Chanukah (a festival of lights -- and a happy holiday to all our Jewish members). My 'lighted' tree for me represents a celebration of the sun's observable rise a few days after solstice and the green tree itself is promise of spring renewal to come!

[madeline_con]

7. That's what I thought...

so the claim of it having to be "confronted" in Seatac by non-Christians was a little strange.

[whoneedstickets]

14. That's the funny thing about symbols...

there is no 'objective content' it's all in the mind of the beholder. I suppose some people could be offended if they came to believe the tree was a Christian symbol. No one was offended by the swastika (there's even a town in Ontario Canda named after it) before WWII. The meaning of symbols is pretty heady stuff.

[madeline_con]

15. What's funny to me is the way the "Family Values" types...

talk about the commercialization of Christmas, writing Xmas is shameful, yada yada yada, and then a bunch of yahoos say it somehow symbolizes a Christian holiday.

BTW, you can still find Indian products (embroibered goods, for instance) with swastikas on it.

[knitter4democracy]

34. It was a popular symbol before the Nazis.

It was considered a kind of cross in Latvian knitting, and you can find it in other cultures.

I'm just sayin' . . . Latvia hosted the latest NATO conference and hundreds of knitters made mittens (a cultural tradition) and had to be specifically told not to put the swastika on the mittens because they see the symbol differently.

[HughMoran]

8. Sure

lots of people like Christmas trees, why get caught up on a name. After all, Jesus was a human being with good lessons for all, unrelated to the idiotic trinity BS added to the story later...

[Union Thug]

9. Yes - and it's a Yule tree. I can't shake my love for my ancestors'

lore, myth and ritual.

Just because I'm an atheist, doesn't mean I can't take pleasure in my heritage - even if I don't believe in the 'ghost story' side of things.

[Cleita]

10. Druids do. Are they atheistic enough for you?n/t

[madeline_con]

16. I didn't know Druids were considered "atheist".

Isn't it a form of Animism?

[Cleita]

47. Nobody really knows what they worshipped but there is a hint

that trees were sacred to them. Perhaps I should have said non-Christians instead of atheists.

[TahitiNut]

11. Do Druids have living rooms in their trees?

:silly:

[madeline_con]

17. Some just might.

Treehouses rock.

[Wonk]

12. No tree, but I have some colored LED lights strung up outside.

Not for any religious significance, they just look nice.

[liberalEd]

13. No tree, but lights in the front windows

They're so pretty and festive!

My wife mused a bit about a tree, but I managed to talk her out of it. I hate the pine needles all over the place, and I suspect our Siberian husky would pee on it (hmm, it's indoors, but it's a TREE!)

[livvy]

19. Ha...good decision. I haven't put a tree up since I got my first male...

bouvier. He took one look at that tree and thought he'd died and gone to heaven. Not being much of an outdoor dog, it worked out perfectly with his agenda. Why go outside and get the feet wet and cold when there's a perfectly functional tree right in the corner of the room? I'm sure he thought I was the most considerate owner a dog could ever wish for.

[Vexatious Ape]

18. Sure. Xmass trees and gifts and getting together

with family is just part of our culture.

[Pastiche423]

20. 1 agnostic 0 trees

[Mabus]

21. No, but the number of animals in the living room make it look like a manger

All year long. :)

And when they're in shedding mode the whole house looks like a snow storm hit it.

[madeline_con]

22. That's pricelss...

:rofl:

laffing too hard to type

[malaise]

26. Perfect answer

I never have a tree - I do believe what I say about the environment and don't see the need to use more electricity. Still I purchase a few gifts, mostly books, DVDs and CDs and I made a peace wreath this year.

[ashling]

23. Stoopid question?

pretty much

[David__77]

24. I am getting a winter tree tomorrow.

It will be unadorned by a star. Perhaps a red star, but not for religious reasons.

[Warren DeMontague]

25. I think there are a lot of superficially "religious" people who are actually atheists.

In that, they adopt the trappings, they may go to church or synagogue, but in reality, they don't actually believe. They do it because they're expected to, because that's what they've always done, because they feel it provides them with culture or continuity, or because they feel obligated to "play the game" for their kids.

I know a lot of "Jewish Atheists", as oxymoronic as that may sound.

I grew up in a household with one parent nominally "Christian" and one parent nominally "Jewish" but neither of them were religious in the slightest. We celebrated Christmas because it was fun and nice, like the songs, the lights, the idea of taking a day and remembering to be decent to people. It seems that has gone out the window, now it's either about buying stuff, or, if you're the religious right, it's about bashing people over the head with a stick if they say "happy holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas".

As for die-hard "I'm an atheist" atheists? I've categorized myself as an atheist for political purposes for quite some time (other times I'm a taoist, a discordian, a free agent who resists easy categorization, etc.) but I'm not above having a tree. I think they're nice, but kind of a pain in the ass. My wife is Jewish, so this year we'll do both Hannukah and Christmas, which also doubles as Saturnalia, Kwanzaa and Festivus. No doubt as has been pointed out already, the tree is a pagan emblem, and it's pretty possible to celebrate 99% of what consists of American "Christmas" without a whole lot of Jesus or "God" involvement at all.

[BamaGirl]

27. I do

and lights outside my house. Because imo, it's more a commercial, national holiday than religious. My kids (10,9, and 5) don't have a relgious reason for Santa NOT to show up, so I don't have issues with much of hte holiday season. Now, one day next week my kids won't go to school because there will be a religous service done that day. I have issues with that. The rest of it? Not so much.

[byronius]

28. 1 agnostic 1 fake tree.

Tree-hugger that I am, and a vast supporter and purchaser of fake lumber -- no poor tree shall suffer my blade.

But -- Christmas, without the Christ bit, is something I grew up with. Care not that it is illogical. I consider it a stolen pagan holiday anyway. Plus -- two kids -- whaddyagonnado?

Santa brought me a Dem Majority. Thank you, Santa!

[magellan]

29. Still deciding if it's worth the effort to drag out the tree this year

If I procrastinate long enough I might not have to bother. I hate stringing and unstringing the lights.

For us having a tree is purely cultural. It also reminds us how beautiful and innocent this time of year used to be before the Christian Right hijacked it.

[Zookeeper]

30. If the Atheist has three children....

and a half-Jewish, Atheist husband who insists on having all the trappings of x-mas...then, yes.

*Sigh.*

[sweetheart]

31. Did Jesus have a tree in his living room?

Seems like pagans, polytheists and corporate science worshippers are the ones with the trees.

[JNelson6563]

32. Did Jesus have a living room?

:shrug:

[sweetheart]

35. good point

I was evisioning the living room of the radical judean people's front. (life of brian!)

As he did wander a bit, one could say his living room is omnipresent, and
that i'm dead wrong, there were plenty of trees gelded in snow in his living room. :-)

[gollygee]

33. Yes - I even have an angel at the top!

And for some odd reason my favorite Christmas carol is O Holy Night!

[toddaa]

36. Christmas tree w/o the Jesus crap

Mostly to appease the wife and kids so I can watch hours and hours of football the following weeks without being hassled.

[Roland99]

37. Former Catholic, now Atheist. I'll always have a tree. It's fun decorating w/my daughters.

[Stuckinthebush]

38. Agnostics (atheists on good days) here...we have a tree

We like to celebrate the old pagan way because the pagans were lots of fun!

:D

[FlaGranny]

39. I have a tree of the

Christmas type and a palm tree in my living room, both still waiting for decorations. I've done Christmas shopping and will have Christmas dinner. I'm an atheist. I am NOT warring against Christmas. I'm contributing to its existence. I love Christmas because it's an excuse for the family to get together and have fun.

[dkofos]

40. Yes to both questions

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

41. Not this year, but only because we're in the middle of a move.

Otherwise, yes, we do celebrate the pagan solstice holiday with a family get-together and the symbol of nature and fertility you mention.

[demgurl]

42. I do!

We actually have three Christmas trees. Two are in the living room - one for reach child, and one is in their bedroom to look at as they go to sleep each night. I am not sure why Christians even have Christmas trees since it was part of a pagan ritual but c'est la vie. I think we should all live and let live. If they want a Christmas tree then more power to them. Here is one Atheist who has a Christmas trees.

[bridgit]

43. yes they do, at least one does...

our friend is a gay atheist, believes that everyone is gay, and is quite militant about his gay-ness & finds that organized religion including Judaism, is antithetical to free human expression but *he* has a christmas tree in his living room, it is white flocked has 600 lights w/ornaments, presents under the tree the whole nine so i'm here to confirm...no-less than one atheist has a tree in his house, a christmas tree with decorations cause i've seen it

[obreaslan]

44. I do...

:hi:

[donsu]

45. NO

decades ago when raising my boys I had to do xmas or fight two familys and one husband. but I did demand that the trees were live trees and were planted on our property.

they should be huge, big trees now, unless the new owners of the property cut them down. hope not.

[PassingFair]

46. Atheist with atheist husband and two little atheist kiddies

....have a tree, for the kiddies,
surrounded with presents.

When kiddies move out,
probably no more tree.

It's ALL about the GIVING.

IMO

[Manifestor_of_Light]

48. Yes, love my plastic tree

Yes, love my plastic tree, doesn't give me a headache and lasts for years.

The celebration is an ancient remedy for lack of natural light (Seasonal Affective Disorder) which causes depression in some people, at least up north.

[watercolors]

49. I have a palm tree with lights and red coconut balls!

Don't know what that makes me , but it makes me smile. My family is going to get a real laugh too!
I told everyone I was tired of putting up a tree, such a waste of my time, it usually took me a better part of the day. I only did it for the children, now everyone is grown, so surprise for them.
Oh and I have pink flamingos hanging on it too!