Pope Benedict XVI attacks Christmas consumerism at Mass - Polidicks

[quote]Pope Benedict XVI has attacked the commercialisation of Christmas as he held the traditional Christmas Eve Mass at St Peter's Basilica in Rome. In his homily, he urged worshippers to "see through the superficial glitter of this season and to discover behind it the child in the stable in Bethlehem". Benedict, 84, used a moving platform to cater for his mobility issues. The pontiff will deliver his annual Urbi et Orbi (To the City and the World) speech in a few hours. Meanwhile, Christian pilgrims and tourists from around the world last night converged on Bethlehem for Christmas. Celebrations culminated in Midnight Mass at the 1,700-year-old Church of the Nativity, built on the spot where it is believed Jesus was born. About 120,000 visitors were in the Palestinian West Bank town, 30% up on last year, officials said.[/quote] Read More: [url]http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16328318[/url] In my opinion Christmas is better of being a consumerism day that a religious day. In my view is about being with the family, relaxing and enjoying yourselfs no religion.

Poop Bendadick

yeah consumerism sucks we should replace it with religious dogma instead much better...

[QUOTE=-n3o-;33884699][b]In my opinion Christmas is better of being a consumerism day that a religious day.[/b] In my view is about being with the family, relaxing and enjoying yourselfs no religion.[/QUOTE] It's a lot more benign as the latter than as the former.

[url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yule]I thought Christmas was about Germanic paganism[/url] :v:

Whats wrong with consumerism. It works perfectly.

He is kind of right, even the gift giving has kind of disappeared and been replaced with "buy shit tons of stuff all at once rather than over a period of time"

Christmas is supposed to be religious, and that's it. You shouldn't be asking why Christmas should be more about religion, because you aren't even celebrating Christmas, just a traditional holiday that you derooted. And there's nothing wrong with that.

Christmas has sort of lost it's meaning and become a more secular holiday unfortunately.

Commercialization [I]made[/I] Christmas what it is today. Before that it was little more than a Christian adaptation of Yule. Easter was the most important holiday for Christians back then and most people don't do much for that holiday nowadays except look for eggs and maybe go to church. Would you prefer Christmas like that? Oh and the same thing goes for Halloween. The two most anticipated holidays of the year are both adapted pagan holidays that meant little more than a day off for most Christians until they got commercialized.

Stop protecting pedophiles and maybe I'll have some more respect for you.

[QUOTE=Aredbomb;33885112]Commercialization [I]made[/I] Christmas what it is today. Before that it was little more than a Christian adaptation of Yule. Easter was the most important holiday for Christians back then and most people don't do much for that holiday nowadays except look for eggs and maybe go to church. Would you prefer Christmas like that? Oh and the same thing goes for Halloween. The two most anticipated holidays of the year are both adapted pagan holidays that meant little more than a day off for most Christians until they got commercialized.[/QUOTE] No, just don't call it Christmas, because it isn't.

What the market needs more than anything right now to avoid dipping further is for people to [I]spend their money[/I], so in that sense I don't mind the commercialization at all.

[QUOTE=ripple3000;33884890]Whats wrong with consumerism. It works perfectly.[/QUOTE] No it does not

I'm sort-of with him on this one. Christmas isn't supposed to be about doubling your credit card debt buying shit people don't need and won't use beyond February, it's supposed to be about getting together with your family, feasting, and watching Die Hard on AMC.

[QUOTE=demoguy08;33885253]What the market needs more than anything right now to avoid dipping further is for people to [I]spend their money[/I], so in that sense I don't mind the commercialization at all.[/QUOTE]Exactly, consumerism at this time is what we need.

[QUOTE=TestECull;33885288]I'm sort-of with him on this one. Christmas isn't supposed to be about doubling your credit card debt buying shit people don't need and won't use beyond February, it's supposed to be about getting together with your family, feasting, and watching Die Hard on AMC.[/QUOTE] Tsar Bomba has spoken. But in all seriousness, he's right. Christmas has become one massive plan to rape wallets across the country.

My whole family is athiest and we've always had a tree and had Christmas. We've just seen it as a way to have the family around and get free shit. We always laugh at all the religous nutjobs and there christmas lawn decorations. Fun time if year :) Anytime i'm feeling down I just think of religious people and have a good laugh :0

Christmas isn't even a christian holiday, we're not completely sure when Jesus was born and those who have bothered to try and guess in the bible say around August. The church in ancient Rome moved the event to the 25th to rival the Roman pagan festival solstice celebrations and to culturally embed itself which quite clearly worked for a long time. Actually I'm happy we associate's Christmas now with family and gift giving, ignore the cynic when he whines on about consumerism - he's a Grinch.

[QUOTE=King of Limbs;33885399]My whole family is athiest and we've always had a tree and had Christmas. We've just seen it as a way to have the family around and get free shit. We always laugh at all the religous nutjobs and there christmas lawn decorations. Fun time if year :) Anytime i'm feeling down I just think of religious people and have a good laugh :0[/QUOTE] "Oh no, people believe what I don't believe! They're nutjobs! They even have lawn decorations!"

Santa is cooler anyway, he's sponsored by Coca-cola.

[QUOTE=SnowCanary;33885430]"Oh no, people believe what I don't believe! They're nutjobs! They even have lawn decorations!"[/QUOTE] You know, its fine for most theists to not trust atheists, but god forbid when atheists talk about the religious!

[QUOTE=toaster468;33885466]You know, its fine for most theists to not trust atheists, but god forbid when atheists talk about the religious![/QUOTE] How do most theists not trust atheists? Most, if not all of my friends are atheists and they aren't treated any different than other members of the community. Religious people who mindlessly bash atheists are idiots, atheists who mindlessly bash religious people are idiots as well. All this bashing does is promote the idea that the religious and the atheists/agnostics can't peacefully co-exist.

[QUOTE=King of Limbs;33885399]My whole family is athiest and we've always had a tree and had Christmas. We've just seen it as a way to have the family around and get free shit. We always laugh at all the religous nutjobs and there christmas lawn decorations. Fun time if year :) Anytime i'm feeling down I just think of religious people and have a good laugh :0[/QUOTE] People like you give atheism a bad name. [editline]24th December 2011[/editline] [QUOTE=toaster468;33885466]You know, its fine for most theists to not trust atheists, but god forbid when atheists talk about the religious![/QUOTE] He was calling them nut-jobs. You're taking it entirely out of context.

[QUOTE=SnowCanary;33885499]How do most theists not trust atheists? Most, if not all of my friends are atheists and they aren't treated any different than other members of the community. Religious people who mindlessly bash atheists are idiots, atheists who mindlessly bash religious people are idiots as well. All this bashing does is promote the idea that the religious and the atheists/agnostics can't peacefully co-exist.[/QUOTE] This is my Christmas present for you. [url]http://life.nationalpost.com/2011/11/30/religious-people-do-not-believe-in-atheists-study/[/url]

[QUOTE=Omali;33885546]This is my Christmas present for you. [url]http://life.nationalpost.com/2011/11/30/religious-people-do-not-believe-in-atheists-study/[/url][/QUOTE] [url]http://www.facepunch.com/threads/1145159[/url] EDIT:oh fuck me i clicked the wrong person.

[QUOTE=LegndNikko;33885533]People like you give atheism a bad name. [/QUOTE] to be fair the bible does warn its followers that they should be prepared to be mocked by the unbelievers.

[QUOTE=LegndNikko;33885533]People like you give atheism a bad name.[editline]24th December 2011[/editline] He was calling them nut-jobs. You're taking it entirely out of context.[/QUOTE] When a group gets too large, there's bound to be idiots in it.

I sense a religion vs atheism shit storm coming

They are nut-jobs. In an atheist perspective of view, tied with many different anthropological views i have come up with. Anyone who believes the son of the supposed creator of the world was born from a virgin mother in a barn is in every way a nut-job. You'd have to be brain washed or have no concept of human biology and geometric formations to even consider these ideas. Yet most human on this planet are simplistic specimen who see no need to change there lives from "everlasting" (aka. heaven and jesus, creationism, 4000 yr old earth) to "realistic" (ending and nothing, long form evolution). Im a realist who uses science and observation to clearly define my world. I spare no emotions for animals that live in a conceived dream world. It's what i do for a living. So yes, they are nut-jobs. Do i say this to their faces? NO. I have manners... online on a gaming forum which non of them go. YES, because i like to rage. SO live with it.