How to Opt Out of Christmas
Alright, the grinch of Thanksgiving is back as Christmas day closes in on us. Honestly though, how many of us wouldn’t simply opt out of the entire holiday if given the opportunity – the unnecessary gift giving, house parties for every affiliated company and group of friends, “All I Want for Christmas” blaring in every retail outlet. Seriously on the music – there are some catchy tunes but when I’m buying organic milk at Peacock?1
Someone posted this article to me this week and everyone should read it immediately. I also watched the timeless B-movie “They Live” which has some insightful underlying messages about our modern society. Needless to say I agree with both, and the Christmas holiday is simply an extension of all the other routine activities the majority of people in the “developed” world engage themselves in for the ultimate benefit of a handful of corporations. And while I haven’t managed to translate my ideas into action when it comes to Christmas (yet), here are some ways to go about filtering the holiday out so as to attend to more fulfilling tasks:
– stop giving gifts other than to charity – Mr. Money Mustache does a good job of explaining this here and here
– schedule as many personal projects and tasks as possible and fill your calendar with these well in advance – on that front I am committed to releasing a new Youtube tutorial on playing piano by ear by Christmas day
– remember that by definition it’s not wrong to opt out of Christmas – even if you hurt someone’s feelings you haven’t caused any real suffering
– in fact, as you are alleviating your own suffering by freeing up your time and resources, and potentially the suffering of others depending on how you decide to spend your additional time, it is morally right to opt out
Well, that wraps up my mini rant on Christmas. I still enjoyed the Christmas “do” I attended last night and am looking forward to the four more Christmas “do’s” with friends and colleagues coming up in the next two weeks! Just don’t expect any presents 😉
1 Yes they sell organic milk at Peacock Aoyama, just 488 yen per liter, the same one as at Nissin – go check it out!
Christmas is a regurgitation of Saturnalia, this is a pagan ritual celebrated long before the birth of Christ, if one believes in Jesus. The Emperor Constantine who supposedly converted to Christianity brought these pagan rituals into the Church and demanded that everyone celebrate them. If you study theology and ancient history you will begin to understand that there are many so called gods that were born on December 25th, of a virgin, that performed miracles, had 12 disciples, was crucified, rose from the dead….etc….etc.
We have been lied to and deceived on so many levels and for most, they don’t care to know the truth. It’s much easier to follow along in a herd mentality.
I let go of all holidays once I learned the truth, no longer willing to play their game.
Yes, according to my studies the Christian religion is derived from older religions centered around sun worship. The Sun (son) is “born” three days after the Winter solstice – i.e. after three days of standing still (solstice, literally stopped sun) at the southernmost point, it begins its rise into the north, bringing with it warmer days and new life. So the Dec 25 timing of the birth of Jesus is directly related to this. The 12 disciples are of course the 12 houses of the zodiac, the constellations through which the sun passes during the year. And on and on – but many Christians still believe the universe was created 6,000 years ago over the course of a week, so it may be difficult to convince them that their religion is simply the latest incarnation of a solar cult religion that dates back to antiquity.