Jim Brock: Just enjoy the holiday, already

According to Fox News talking head Bill O’Reilly, some Americans have declared war on Christmas. Special interest groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union and the American Humanist Association are “seeking to diminish Christmas,” the no-spin doctor claimed in a Dec. 2, 2013, column.

“The most aggressive is the Freedom from Religion Foundation, which routinely threatens to sue small towns and school districts if they dare utter the word ‘Christmas’ or allow choirs to sing carols in public schools,” he wrote.

I am partially on O’Reilly’s side with this, because I think freaking out about the word “Christmas” is preposterous. Political correctness has its place, but don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater, people. As for the so-called war, I don’t think we can blame liberals entirely.

The free market has done a great job of taking “Christ” out of Christmas, as today’s commercialized Christmas would make St. Ronald Reagan proud. Gallup predicts that Americans will spend an average of $720 on Christmas gifts this year, up from last year’s $704 estimate.

According to the November 2014 poll, a quarter of Americans are expected to spend $1,000 or more, and another 21 percent will spend at least $500. On the other hand, 24 percent are expected to spend less than $250, and 15 percent will spend between $250 and $499.

Strangely enough, 9 percent say they won’t spend anything at all or don’t celebrate the holiday. Gift-giving is a big part of the American Christmas experience. In fact, I believe it trumps the story of the nativity for most of us, but you won’t see a conservative criticize the free market.

In fact, a number of conservative Christians believe free-market capitalism is in line with the will of God. Truth be told, I don’t think human beings are wise enough to fully understand the will of the Almighty, but that is another story for another day.

No matter how you spin it, that’s the beauty of America. We are not a nation of religious laws — we are a nation of religious freedom and tolerance, which sometimes requires us to tolerate people who ignorantly defy the very principles that guarantee our freedom of worship.

Do you know what I say to that?

Fantastic! God bless, America! At least we can keep our heads — literally — if our beliefs aren’t consistent with the majority. Instead of pointing the finger of damnation at our neighbors, maybe leading by example would be a more appropriate option.

The ill-conceived notion that force-feeding our beliefs to each other will eventually prove successful is nonsense. You may as well demand that someone fall in love with you.

I roll my eyes at those who have a canned diatribe ready for the cameras when kids sing Christmas carols at

school. But I am infuriated when so-called people of faith measure people’s value by where they go to church and how often. Faith is a personal journey. It is not a race, and contempt for “other sinners” only makes YOU look bad.

Trust that the creator of the universe knows what he is doing, and stop pretending that “keeping Christ in Christmas” excuses our excessive spending. Justifying said practices is a good way to clear the conscience, but it doesn’t manipulate an omniscient God. With that logic, you might as well stop praying for five days so he can’t find you.

Three gifts was enough for Jesus, so why do your kids need five or seven or even 10? Keeping up with the Joneses is hard work. And we wonder why so many people hate Christmas.

In 2014, this is my take on Christmas: I don’t remember many of my gifts last year, but I remember that it was our last Christmas with my grandmother. I am certain memories of Christmas Eves spent with the Brock bunch were more important to her than anything you can wrap and place under the tree.

So, whether you call it Christmas, the holiday season or December Decadence — a more apt title these days — why not just mind your own business and let bygones be bygones?

So slow it down, enjoy a nice holiday beverage, take a drive through your neighborhood and look at the Christmas decorations, listen to your favorite sounds of the season, and try to remember what makes the holiday important to you.

It is truly sad when many of us are so disillusioned with Christmas that we can’t enjoy it anymore. So, call it what you want, just don’t call it wasted, because if you haven’t noticed, we are running out of holidays.

So like Pink Floyd’s hit song “Time” says, “The sun is the same in a relative way but you’re older, shorter of breath, and one day closer to death.”

Ponder that!

Jim Brock is managing editor of the Nebraska City News-Press. He can be reached at jbrock@ncnewspress.com.