There's no "X" in CHRISTMAS!

It's bad enough that we've managed to almost completely remove the true meaning of Christmas from the holiday, do we also have to change the name of it?!

How the hell did we come up with "XMAS"?! Are we that lazy, inconsiderate, and illiterate as a society that, for the sake of brevity, we completely remove the name of the person for whom the holiday was created? Now I know what you're thinking... but I'm not making this argument perched atop my religious high ground. I haven't been to church in years and I don't go around spewing Bible verses at folks. But I do believe that there once lived a man named Jesus Christ who many millions of people throughout history -and right up to current day- believe is the Son of God. This Jesus Christ dude had such a profound affect on folks that his teachings and stories of his life, death, and resurrection are the foundation of no less than a dozen different religions all over the world including the various denominations associated with Christianity. Even those who didn't believe he was the Son of God (the Jews for one), still don't refute the fact that he existed. He was a real person and his birth is celebrated all over the world during CHRISTMAS - the birth of Christ. Not the birth of "X".

Of course, there are many who will tell you that it's quite likely Christ was not born on December 25th. Fine. But December 25th has been designated as the day we celebrate his birth... the birth of CHRIST.... Christ's Mass... Christmas. There's no X in there, people. Not even close!

Even though Christmas is the biggest, most-celebrated holiday in the United States -and many other parts of the world- there's a sizable portion of the population that doesn't know or truly appreciate the REAL story and meaning behind Christmas. Instead of hearing about Jesus, kids are indoctrinated into the big myth of Santa Claus. A fat magical guy dressed in a red suit who brings you toys if you've been good. Wow. Not that I see anything wrong with Santa, I just think kids ought to also know about the guy for whom the holiday is named. It's not Santa Claus Day, it's CHRISTMAS. Again, no X in there.

Just for the sake of being objective, let's totally eliminate the religious point of view from this discussion. Let's instead approach it from an English language point of view. First of all, the fact is English is a trampled on language. Very few people these days have a firm grasp of the language and they continually bastardize it and misuse it. They get away with it because those of us who know better, don't or can't really do anything about it. This alarms and saddens me beyond words. It makes us (Americans) look stupid, lazy, and uneducated. Every day there are major print and visual media publications using bad English in their ads. Misspellings, mispronunciations, bad grammar, and made-up words. It's embarrassing to me. Really. And we're fooling ourselves if we think other countries and cultures aren't noticing. They are.

So, let's get back to the holiday... XMAS, pronounced as it is written, sounds nothing like "Christmas". Of course, folks will tell you the "X" is short for "Criss" -as in "Criss-Cross"- but even that doesn't hold much water for me. There are established signs for Railroad Crossings were "crossing" is abbreviated "Xing"; so if we apply that same logic to "XMAS", we'd have to pronounce it "CROSSMAS". Doesn't make sense!

You don't have to be an English professor to apply some basic logic to abbreviations. It's stupid. Doesn't make any sense! And why don't we do the same with other holidays if it's just a matter of saving letters and being lazy? Why isn't Valentine's Day just "VDay" or even "Love Day"? Why don't we just say "Happy Thanks Day" instead of spelling out that long word, "Thanksgiving"? Why isn't Halloween just "Boo Day"? Why don't we receive invitations for our nephew's "Xning" instead of spelling out "Christening"? Why? Because they were given those names/titles for a reason; to commemorate or honor someone or something. If you rename it or bastardize the spelling of a holiday, I believe you take something away from its significance. And no example is more prime than CHRISTMAS. Named after Jesus Christ; they guy who launched dozen of religions with millions of faithful followers. You take his name out of the holiday and you lose the significance. Unless, of course, you're like every retailer in the country who believes the significance is in SALES FIGURES.

I can remember the excitement of Christmas as a kid. Yes, I bought into that whole Santa Claus myth, but my mom also made sure I knew the reason behind the season. In addition to hearing "Twas the Night Before Christmas", I also heard the story of Mary and Joseph, the immaculate conception of their son, Jesus, and his birth in a lowly stable. And I heard about the wise men traveling from afar after being told by an angel that a very special person, the Son of God, had been born in the city of Bethlehem. It only added to the magic and awe of the season for me.

That magic fades a little as you get older - at least it has for me. Especially when you figure out there's no actual Santa Claus. But if you have a little faith and optimism, you can still let yourself believe that this Jesus guy was the real deal and everything about his life is true. If only during the holiday season, indulge yourself and maybe grow a little hope and love in your soul. Devout Christians would call it faith, but you can just refer to it as Christmas Spirit. Nothing wrong with that.

You don't have to be a Christian to take part in the magic of Christmas. Use it as a time to get closer to those you love and to go a little farther out of your way to help those less fortunate than you. In the process, you'll realize how lucky/blessed you are to be where you are and have what you have. And even if you're not a Christian, you should still respect the sanctity of the holiday and call it what it is; CHRISTMAS, not XMAS. Spread the word. There's no X in CHRISTMAS!

Best wishes for a happy and blessed holiday season and a very merry CHRISTMAS!