NEWS: Jesus to be Lonely on Christmas

POLITICS: Jesus to be Lonely on Christmas

Marine Toys for Tots Foundation is an organization which distributes toys to needy children at Christmas. The charity collects toys from October to December 22nd every year, as well as cash donations to purchase toys. Campaigns are organized locally and the last two years have been the most successful in the charity's history. New toys are donated by the public, as well as by toy manufacturers, but one toy-maker found its donation unwelcome.

Fair enough, I suppose. The toys are definitely intended for a religious market and in this increasingly multi-cultural society, we must be careful to be sensitive towards others. Bill Grein, vice president the foundation, put it this way:

Wise words, Bill. There's just one little problem with your politically correct position: Why would a Jewish or Muslim family be getting Christmas gifts? Perhaps I'm taking the statement too literally, as I've never been Christian myself, yet I celebrate Christmas every year. My Christmas might concentrate more on Santa and the Grinch than God or Jesus, but it's still Christmas. The foundation's website states clearly that the gifts are intended as Christmas gifts, not the generic Holiday Season that is spoken of around the water cooler at the office.

I'm all for being aware of and sensitive to the cultures and religions in my community, but this situation does seem a little preposterous. On the one hand, Christians should be allowed to celebrate their holiday in the way they see fit. On the other hand, a government organization cannot promote one faith over another, despite all evidence to the contrary over the last few years. It's an interesting dilemma.

Personally, I'm asking Santa for a toy Cthulhu for Christmas this year.

Is it just me or does that doll look like Will Ferrell?

Jesus looks top heavy. . .is his head too big for his body?!?

This company needs to come out with a Jesus action figure for little boys. After all, they wouldn't want to convert the heathens only to go and have them catch teh ghey by playing with dolls.

GI Jesus:

Crucify this, mutha fuckas!!!

I vote for Cthulhu..why choose the lesser evil ?

You might be able to get a Muslim friendly version, he is their number 2 prophet. Lets face it though, handing out any religious toys would be a mine field. It's flirting with idolatry for a start.

4,000 plush Cthulhu on the other hand would be a great idea. Owners of Cthulhu idols are granted the honor of being devoured first when the Great Old One rises (this special feature is not guaranteed and no refund will be available should you in fact experience the whole of the cataclysm).

I get a Val Kilmer look feeling from him.

Bwahahahahah!!!!

Check out this amusing parody of Chick Tracts for seme Cthulhu fun!!

PS Santa Cthulhu looks so cute and cuddly its hard to imagine him rising up and eating anyone.

I totally dig the Jesus Kung Foo grip but I'm sure they'll totally make you wait until next year for the Jesus Dream Crucifix. Bastards.

meh, they might not celebrate christmas but when there's free stuff being handed out for christmas or sinterklaas (similar dutch holiday in december) muslim people are generally up front and very aggresive in making sure they get their share.

This reminds me of all the "holiday" concerts we used to have in elementary school. The ones where we'd sing half a dozen christmas carols, one Channukah song and then maybe something that was supposed to be "interfaith" (like 'God is watching us' with the words changed to 'are we watching out.') Even as a kid I found that shit patronizing- although back then I probably would have pronounced it PAYtronize. If you're going to celebrate christmas go for it. That's your perogative. But don't try to sell it as anything other than Christian.

Are you kidding me? Do you have any idea how many non-Christians celebrate Christmas?

In today's society, the almighty dollar factors into the holiday just as much as, if not more than, the Almighty.

Man, you can't have Christmas without the Christ. IT"S THE BIRTH OF JESUS. So tell me, how many non-Christians celebrate Christmas? And then tell me how a song celebrating the nativity isn't really Christian. I want to hear this.

Get outta my head!

This "Holiday Season" you speak of is something I've only ever seen on TV. Christmas is ALSO a secular holiday, and I've never really noticed anyone trying to skirt around it to be PC. Maybe it's just where I live.

If I got this toy as a kid, though, I'd probably be pretty disapointed, and feel really creeped out. The dude kind of scared me a bit as a child.

Erm, I was raised in an atheist household and we "celebrated" Christmas. We were also seriously into caroling. To this day God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen brings tears to my eyes. I also never miss the 1951 version of A Chrismas Carol with Alastair Sim.

I suppose that it is possible to enjoy some aspects of the holiday without taking it seriously.

It's a bit like enjoying Greek mythology.

I can't think of a less religious festival, without being a totally secular affair. A lot of what Christmas is came straight from the various pagan mid-winter festivals. People bring trees into their homes, hang holly , ivy and mistletoe, feast 'til they explode with consumerism. When it's over they go shopping in a frenzy, just how it was in the good old days.

It's completely the wrong time of year for the birth of Jesus anyway.

strikes me more as a "cock fu" grip to be used with the "my lil' alter boy" dolls, sold seperately...

christmas has little to do with christ anymore, we are assaulted starting before Halloween with the ads telling us to buy early, spend freely; those christmas gifts. lots and lots of Santa images, but not a one about jesus except at your local church. I'm not christian, but I celebrate christmas. I give gifts, we put up a tree, I go to the parties. I'm sure some christian council somewhere thought "damn, giving gifts is a SWELL idea! we'll convert millions!!!", but sorry, no crying foul now that christ has been mostly pushed aside on this holiday. happy holidays!

Fair enough, but what were your parents' parents. What I mean to suggest is that if your parents grew up in a Christian household they were raised with certain Christian customs, specifically in this case singing songs about the birth of Jesus. Celebration of Christmas doesn't have to be an expression of the Christian religion to be an expression of Christian culture. It's just that since the overwhelming majority of Americans have a Christian background they have the option of assuming that their culture is the default.

I don't know anything about your background, so this isn't aimed at you so much as it is theoretical, and I don't know if I'm explaining this well, but it's a little like the "flesh" colored crayon being obviously caucasian.

And I'm not trying to argue that for most people Christmas isn't more about the birth of Jesus than it is about getting presents. I'm just saying that there's a lot more to it than just getting presents.

That's really all I have to say, so I'm gonna step off my angry Jew soap box and let y'all go back to talking about Cthulhu and Jesus-with-machineguns. Just wanted to put my two cents in.

Chris tucker: "YOu know you Crazy, jesus. You CRAZY!!!!"
Jesus: "yeah Thats what my Ex-wife said!"

I totally get you! I can be seriously resentful of the presumptuousness and in-your-face proselytizing of many religions, especially Christianity.

By the way, on my father's side of the family, atheism goes back a number of generations. On my mother's side there are some crazy Holiness people.

Well, since the Catholic Church appropriated the dates both for Christ's birth and death from ancient pagan solstice and fertility celebrations the better question would be what are you Christians doing celebrating the pagan gods?

Christmas was originally a Pagan festival celebrating the birth of the Sun God.

The Christian Church co-opted Christmas as they did with so many other aspects of Paganism such as identifying Christian saints with Pagan deties, celebrating Easter on a date with coincided with the festival of the Pagan Goddess Eostre/Ostara, building churches on Pagan shrines, including Pagan symbols in church architecture such as the Green Man.

The feasting, giving of presents etc all pre-date the Christian festival of Christmas.

Ask yourself, what has the Christmas Tree got to do with Jesus? What has Father Christmas and his team of flying reindeers got to do with Jesus? Father Christmas is derived from a range of Northern European Pagan traditions pre-dating Christianity with a veneer of Christianisation thrown in.

I think by far the most interesting account of the origins of Father Christmas can be found at the end of this Wkipedia article...

I say its time we reclaimed this Pagan festival from Christianity!!

I actually have a plush cthulhu sitting on my monitor as I type this.

You've got to be shitting me. I'll be getting and giving christmas presents to and from some of the most hardcore athiests you would ever want to meet. I can think of few things less religious than christmas in America. It's just a cultural celebration now.

On an added note, how much would it suck to be a really poor kid and then get really excited about getting a toys for tots present and then have it be a fucking talking Jesus doll?

"You're rejecting our Christmas presents because they're religious?!?"
"No sir, because they suck."