Canadians are an accommodating lot, but there are times I find that we take that obliging nature too far.
I’m not sure if you came across the story earlier this month, but there was controversy in Kelowna over a ‘Keep Christ in Christmas’ sign erected as part of a nativity scene in a park in the Okanagan city. Complaints over the overtly religious messaging prompted the sign to come down.
Technically, the sign was removed because it wasn’t part of what the city permit allowed, but the reason the situation even got to that point is because some people complained that such a message wasn’t inclusive or that it ‘privileged’ Christianity.
If I’m understanding the arguments correctly, there are concerns that non-Christians who celebrate Christmas would be offended and that the sign advocates for a specific religious interpretation of the holiday. What that line of reasoning seems to completely ignore is the fact that Christmas is a religious holiday that celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ.
If people choose to celebrate a Christian holiday in their own way, fair enough, but that doesn’t mean you downplay its origins because some might be offended.
And the argument that ‘Keeping Christ in Christmas’ is endorsing one religion over others is laughable. Of course Christmas is going to favour one religion because at its roots, it's a Christian holiday. There would be no Christmas without Christianity.
There’s no doubt it’s been co-opted over the years with Santa Claus now clearly the star of the show, which has broadened the holiday to include many non-Christians, but that doesn’t mean we should diminish its genesis.
Maybe I’m just getting old and crochety, but it seems more and more that Canadians are quick to back down, so worried about offending others that we’re willing to move on from traditions that many hold dear. This compulsion not to offend seems to be stripping away pieces of our fabric, creating a country with which we are less familiar.
I read where one complainant in Kelowna argued that ‘endorsing’ one religion so overtly negatively impacts people of other faiths and those with no religious beliefs, even making them feel less Canadian. Given this country was founded on Christian beliefs and values, I would offer the counter argument that minimizing the religious aspect of Christmas would make many Canadians feel less connected to their country.
Inclusivity cuts both ways.
I wonder what's next in the name of political correctness? Are we to stop referring to it as Christmas altogether because Christ is too prominent in the name? Absurd, I know, but I wouldn’t be surprised if some deeply offended soul is already cooking up a campaign to do just that.
What I find ironic with the Kelowna situation is that lost in all the controversy over whether the sign was too religious is the fact the nativity scene, complete with depictions of Mary, Joseph and the Baby Jesus, among others, remains in the park, as per the permit, for all to see.
So, the sign may be gone, but in this instance, they didn't end up taking Christ out of Christmas.
