You know, I truly hate the holiday season, the thirty days between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Now before anyone goes and calls me a party pooper, let me at least explain why.

If you turn on your TV, what do you see? I see ads for yearned holiday clearance sales, savings here and there, and of course, the 24 hour shopping networks trying to get people to buy gifts they don’t really need.

Then, when you drive through town, what do you see? I see stores with holiday decorations; painted snow, candles, mistletoe and all the other usual holiday images.

Then there are the traditional holiday movies, The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, The Miracle on 34th Street, A Christmas Carol, and more recently Elf and The Christmas Clause.

So, you may be asking, what is wrong with that isn’t that what Christmas is all about? No, in fact, it is not.

In all the decorations you see, do you notice any nativity scenes? When you go to the mall is there a place where you can bow your head in prayer instead of waiting in line to sit on some guy’s lap who is impersonating a fictional character named Santa Claus? When you turn on your TV do you see any shows about the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ?

No, you don’t, and that is why I truly hate the holiday season. I hate it because it has become all about gift giving, turning it into something instead of a time when we worship the birth of Jesus Christ.

Look at the madness that Christmas has become. People line up for hours the night before Black Friday, hoping to get a deal on discounted items. People trample each other as the doors open, rushing to be the first to get that $100 laptop or video game console.

Where is these people’s self respect, or their respect for their fellow human beings? I hate Christmas because it shows what people really worship, the almighty dollar and possessions.

Did not Christ tell us, “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”

And that, my friends, is why I hate this time of year. It is the time of year when we show that we have forsaken our Lord and the true purpose of the holiday that bears His name.

~ The Author ~
Neal Ross can be reached for comments at bonsai@syix.com. Visit Neal’s Blog at http://www.zombie-slayer.com/neal