Clayton News Daily

The holidays make some people stark raving mad.

For years, secularists -- those want to remove all hints of religion from many societal and governmental activities -- have been trying to remove Christ from Christmas, and replace him with Santa Claus.

But, now that Santa Claus is being associated with Christmas through the patriarch Saint Nicholas, schools and public sectors are being threatened with lawsuits, if Santa Claus is displayed.

Who are these people, who have nothing better to do than threaten schools and government?

Christmas and Santa Claus have been American traditions since colonial times. They are as American as Chevy, Coke, baseball and Apple pie. When I look at the grandeur of the Christmas celebration, it is embedded in media, music, decorations, lights and the giving of the season.

A perfect image of this is Barbara Streisand singing on her Christmas album, "I Wonder as I Wander."

It amazes me how offensive Christmas has become to some in America. Around the world, Christmas is celebrated with no concern about religious connotations.

Christmas takes on a different cultural flavor in almost every nation of the world.

But in America, the atheists and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) have shaken every ornament off the "holiday tree."

The degree of attempted censorship has become absurd.

I have always felt that the celebration of Christmas was a global idea. Christmas is to be celebrated in America in sync with the rest of the world. Children and adults shouldn't be confused by the "politically incorrect" crowd, who disbelieve.

Decorate, celebrate and sing in harmony with the rest of the world.

If you have any comments on this column, please contact me at chaplain@airportchapel.org.