S/O Atheist/Agnostic Question and Poll

squirrly · June 2010

We celebrate popular holidays with family and friends with no religious connotation attached. Easter bunny? Yes. Easter ham dinner? Yes. Church? Nope. Easter and Christmas are no more religious to us than Labor day and Memorial Day.

We do have family traditions tied to some holidays (specific menu for Christmas Eve dinner, etc.). And H decorates for every possible holiday in the biggest, baddest way possible.

waltzingmatilda13 · June 2010

We celebrate in more of a "it's a tradition" way than "it's a religious holiday" way. We go all out for Christmas with decorations and gift, but you won't catch me in a church any time soon.

We sort of celebrate Easter, but not so much since I was a kid. I'll keep the tradition alive for them (when we have them) because I remember it fondly from spending time with my grandpa before he died.

jasmineh7777 · June 2010

Like I said, I'm not bothered by it. I personally think that somewhere down the road the original religious meaning behind the holiday will be gone.
Yet I don't think this is/will happen with Judaism or Islam. I'm just wondering what the major differences are. My guess would be that we used to be a predominately Christian nation, but younger generations are moving towards agnosticism while maintaining what used to be religious traditions.

eastunder1 · June 2010

You sound bothered by it.

jasmineh7777 · June 2010

I'm not trying to come off that way. I go to a Catholic school and live in a largely Catholic community, so I like to hear some new perspectives.

BecW2be · June 2010

I think it's because we use a common work calendar centered around some holidays that were once pagan, then christian, now secular. If we had implemented a "take your holiday when it suits you" calendar way back in our history, we wouldn't all be celebrating these holidays at the same time. It's all about scheduling and how it's kind of blowing up in the Church's face now. I think the ancient pagans are giggling from above. Or below; whichever you believe.

jasmineh7777 · June 2010

The ancient pagans would have been in limbo, but the Church got rid of it. I miss liimbo.

andyandhillary · June 2010

I think it the title of this post keeps religious posters from answering the poll. This post doesn't necessarily give an accurate portrayal of our the younger population's feeling toward religion and holidays. I didn't answer the poll because I'm religious and therefore it doesn't apply to me.

Another thing to note is that a lot of people don't practice religion or are kind of "meh" about it until they have kids/get older. Of course there are posters here who aren't in their 20s and/or have kids so it's not a rule but it's what I've noticed.

ohwhynot · June 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_atheistagnostic-question-poll?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:9Discussion:dae04e66-42aa-4bf8-b09d-e8fb8df0294dPost:4f445b0b-60c8-4f5e-ad8e-a978a425a4cc">Re: S/O Atheist/Agnostic Question and Poll</a>:
[QUOTE]Like I said, I'm not bothered by it. I personally think that somewhere down the road <strong>the original religious meaning behind the holiday will be gone</strong>. Yet I don't think this is/will happen with Judaism or Islam. I'm just wondering what the major differences are. My guess would be that we used to be a predominately Christian nation, but younger generations are moving towards agnosticism while maintaining what used to be religious traditions.
Posted by jasmineh7777[/QUOTE]

I think you've missed the repeated point that the original meaning behind the celebrations weren't Christian in the first place.

wadingmoose · June 2010

If "celebrating" simply involves getting together with family and having a big meal, then in addition to Christmas and Easter, I celebrate some dead queen's birthday, Labour Day, Canada day, Civic Holiday (seriously), Family day and Rememberance day, NYE, NYD among many other random, unnamed days with my family.

In additon with my in-laws apparently we celebrate random days about once a month.

I guess to me getting together with family for a big meal is more about getting together with family for a big meal. It happens to fall on religious holidays often because that's when I get long weekends and travel to see my family.

If I want to celebrate the religious aspect of those holidays, I'd attend church services and celebrate the religious aspect. I don't. I celebrate my family, regardless of what the day is.

But I'm sure the dead queen appreciates our celebration of her birthday.

526SadieSadie · June 2010

We don't celebrate any holidays for their religious meanings since all of the days were stolen from other religions and don't mean anything anyway.
Christmas and Easter are the exact same as Thanksgiving to us in that they are days we get to spend with family and have a delicious meal...except (amercian) thanksgiving comemorates something that actually happened

Celles · June 2010

I

Canadians.

wadingmoose · June 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_atheistagnostic-question-poll?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:dae04e66-42aa-4bf8-b09d-e8fb8df0294dPost:9b1ea9a6-1577-4533-9419-39f2148725f5">Re: S/O Atheist/Agnostic Question and Poll</a>:
[QUOTE]I <3 Canadians.
Posted by Celles[/QUOTE]

You just like superfluous u's. :)

crfische · June 2010

I'm Christian. I celebrate the holidays, obviously.

Do I care that non-religious people celebrate it? Uhh...no. It doesn't effect me. I'm not gonna be all SHUUUNNNN THE NON BELIEVER, SANTA. SHHHUUUUNNNNN.

If you wanna tell your family that you love them and buy them gifts periodically and it HAPPENS to be on the same day that I'm celebrating Easter, well, I think that's terrific.

BecW2be · June 2010

Santa's going to be good to Fische this year!

EDIT: Unless you change your name to Kri$tee. Then I hope he shoves coal up your ass.

reddy123 · June 2010

I am Buddhist and was raised in a religiously mixed household, and I agree with everything East said, I celebrate Christmas, but not Easter.

I remember in grade school trying to speak up for kids that didn't celebrate Christmas/Hanukkah and that did not fly with my little peers at all. I gave up and pretended to be 'normal' until about age 14-16.

526SadieSadie · June 2010

Celles, my friend from Toronto just explained to me about Canadian Thanksgiving, I say "right on" I think America could do with a floating day of thanks, there are a lot of people suffering in this country, I think the whiners should take a look around and see how much worse they could have it.

FutureMrsTR · June 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_atheistagnostic-question-poll?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:9Discussion:dae04e66-42aa-4bf8-b09d-e8fb8df0294dPost:41719ce9-6a11-42fa-b034-cff888383eb4">Re: S/O Atheist/Agnostic Question and Poll</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: S/O Atheist/Agnostic Question and Poll : I think you've missed the repeated point that the original meaning behind the celebrations weren't Christian in the first place.
Posted by ohwhynot[/QUOTE]

I don't think it has to do with the original meaning of the celebrations. In many (most?) cases Christians just scheduled their own celebrations at the same time as the Pagan ones to encourage people to celebrate religious holidays instead of Pagan ones, but the Christian holidays still began with religious meaning. If that makes any sense.

MissLeahM · June 2010

East doesn't celebrate Easter.. And you're a bunnie..

(when I think of East, I think bunnie, I don't think of a person, sorry)

Anywho: I like how Moose worded it "I celebrate my family, regardless of what the day is."

We exchange gifts on Christmas day for the kids and individually. On occasion, I will go to church if my gramma asks me to, but only because she asked, and on Christmas eve they give out clementines so why not.

The other holidays, we will go to Fi's family gatherings but there is never religion involved.

ohwhynot · June 2010

That's a good point, FutureMrs.

A little funny: years ago, at my son's preschool, the teachers were explaining how some children's families celebrated Christmas, some celebrated Hannukah, etc., and little Abbie piped up: "Thane Henry (my son) can celebrate either one, because he's a vegetarian!"

jasmineh7777 · June 2010

TK ate my last post

OWN- What I meant was that for Christians like myself, I was brought up with the Catholic meanign behind the holiday. I knew of that meaning way before I heard anything about the pagan calander and meaning. Thus, I immeditaely idenitfy the holiday with the tradition I was brought up in rather than the pagan tradition. I didn't do a good job of articulating that.

Andy- I just assumed that religious people celebrate the religious aspect as well as the secular.

I wish we had a dead queen to celebrate.

salt78 · June 2010

I celebrate the sparkle light, ornaments on a tree, commercial side of Christmas. It has no religious connotation to me at all.

I do not personally celebrate Easter or any other religious holiday.

andyandhillary · June 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_atheistagnostic-question-poll?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:dae04e66-42aa-4bf8-b09d-e8fb8df0294dPost:b3e7760e-99e0-4042-b09d-59621c27542b">Re: S/O Atheist/Agnostic Question and Poll</a>:
[QUOTE]Andy- I just assumed that religious people celebrate the religious aspect as well as the secular.
Posted by jasmineh7777[/QUOTE]

Right, I was just worried you thought that no one was religious in the world anymore and that no one celebrated holidays as religious days anymore. <img src="http://cdn.cl9.vanillaforums.com/downloaded/ver1.0/content/scripts/tinymce/plugins/emotions/images/smiley-smile.gif" border="0" alt="Smile" title="Smile" />

Celles · June 2010

Sadie, FI's family celebrates American Thanksgiving and Canadian Thanksgiving on the grounds that you can never have too much turkey.

FutureMrsTR · June 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_atheistagnostic-question-poll?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:9Discussion:dae04e66-42aa-4bf8-b09d-e8fb8df0294dPost:db1ddeee-bbb1-4953-8a58-55ce6f8778bb">Re: S/O Atheist/Agnostic Question and Poll</a>:
[QUOTE]That's a good point, FutureMrs. A little funny: years ago, at my son's preschool, the teachers were explaining how some children's families celebrated Christmas, some celebrated Hannukah, etc., and little Abbie piped up: "Thane Henry (my son) can celebrate either one, because he's a vegetarian!"
Posted by ohwhynot[/QUOTE]

Awesome :)

jasmineh7777 · June 2010

Oh no Andy, I am surrounded by religious people. My Fi is agnostic, but no one else around me really is. That's why I like to hear from people with totally different views, because I'm not exposed to it much right now.

danieliza1127 · June 2010

I find it interesting that so many people on this board feel the need to put a label on themselves, like agnostic or atheist. I don't call myself anything and neither does my H, and neither do our friends IRL who aren't religious. I guess I just always figured you're either a religion (Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, etc) or you're not. I don't see why everything has to be labeled. Anyway, just an observation.

louisvillebride21 · June 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_atheistagnostic-question-poll?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:dae04e66-42aa-4bf8-b09d-e8fb8df0294dPost:18c65e51-6a5e-4b2b-b526-4d1d4e4c325d">Re: S/O Atheist/Agnostic Question and Poll</a>:
[QUOTE]<strong>We don't celebrate any holidays for their religious meanings since all of the days were stolen from other religions and don't mean anything anyway</strong>. Christmas and Easter are the exact same as Thanksgiving to us in that they are days we get to spend with family and have a delicious meal...except (amercian) thanksgiving comemorates something that actually happened :)
Posted by 526SadieSadie[/QUOTE]
They mean something to some of us. I totally understand that they were 'stolen' and have pagen roots. However, that's not why my family and I celebrate them. They mean something to us as the religious meanings that they <em>represent</em>.

reddy123 · June 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_atheistagnostic-question-poll?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:dae04e66-42aa-4bf8-b09d-e8fb8df0294dPost:9d060f6b-40d7-4177-b90e-f4ccf908119b">Re: S/O Atheist/Agnostic Question and Poll</a>:
[QUOTE]I find it interesting that so many people on this board feel the need to put a label on themselves, like agnostic or atheist. I don't call myself anything and neither does my H, and neither do our friends IRL who aren't religious. I guess I just always figured you're either a religion (Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, etc) or you're not. I don't see why everything has to be labeled. Anyway, just an observation.
Posted by danieliza1127[/QUOTE]

<div>I also think it's funny when filling out a form or survey and they have Athiest, Agnostic, and non-religious all on the form. I've had an athiest explain to me Athiests believe in NOTHING which is very different than just not knowing/caring/ being neutral to religion.</div>

wadingmoose · June 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_atheistagnostic-question-poll?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:dae04e66-42aa-4bf8-b09d-e8fb8df0294dPost:9d060f6b-40d7-4177-b90e-f4ccf908119b">Re: S/O Atheist/Agnostic Question and Poll</a>:
[QUOTE]I find it interesting that so many people on this board feel the need to put a label on themselves, like agnostic or atheist. I don't call myself anything and neither does my H, and neither do our friends IRL who aren't religious. I guess I just always figured you're either a religion (Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, etc) or you're not. I don't see why everything has to be labeled. Anyway, just an observation.
Posted by danieliza1127[/QUOTE]

I don't really identify as atheist or agnostic. And I don't belong to any particular religion. I'm the church of moose, I guess.

S/O Atheist/Agnostic Question and Poll

Re: S/O Atheist/Agnostic Question and Poll

Choose Another Board

Search Boards