Recently, 55 area residents responded to the question, “When you hear the word ‘Christmas,’ what are the first five words that come to your mind?”
The words mentioned most often are listed below in the order of frequency along with the number of times each was cited in parentheses.
- Family (27)
- Jesus/Christ (24)
- Gifts/Presents (16)
- Christmas Tree (13)
- Snow (11)
- Santa (10)
- Peace/Peacefulness (9)
- Christmas Music/Carols (7)
“Family” not only beat out Jesus, but if you include words like “togetherness” and “grandparents,” the total jumps to 39.
“Midnight Mass” was mentioned only three times, but if you combine those two words with words like “church,” “pray,” “holy day of obligation,” “Christmas music,” and “Jesus,” the total soars to 54.
I was a little surprised that Santa was only referenced 10 times, and even when you add words like “presents,” “Christmas tree,” and “ornaments,” the gift-giving part of the holiday was mentioned 57 times, about the same as the religious side.
On the subject of gift-giving, words like “commercialism,” “materialism” and “overpriced” came up 10 times. Other negative terms included “stress,” “hectic” and “aggravation.”
Many people submitted “festive,” “celebration,” “parties,” “happiness” and “cheer” — not religious terms exactly but alluding to the spirit of the holidays.
Surprising to me, the following were mentioned only once: “loneliness,” “lost” and “sad,” because the combination of days without much sunlight (producing Seasonal Affective Disorder [SAD]) — and unrealistically high expectations for a holly jolly Christmas often send folks into an emotional tailspin. In Psychology Today, a North American survey reported that 45 percent of respondents dreaded the holidays.
One mystery word was “underwear.” Maybe that’s what the woman found under the tree when she was a child. Another was “Santa’s beard,” which mystified me until I remembered that the man, who has a great white beard and beautiful white hair, dresses up as the jolly old elf every Christmas.
So what are we to make of all this? The Pew Forum conducted a survey on religious life in America in 2012 and found that the percentage of atheists, agnostics and unaffiliated people has risen to about 20 percent of the population, but the U.S. overall is still a relatively religious nation. The report states, “This large and growing group of [non-religious] Americans is less religious than the public at large on many conventional measures, including frequency of attendance at religious services and the degree of importance they attach to religion in their lives.”
However, the report goes on to say, “A new survey finds that many of the country’s 46 million unaffiliated adults are religious or spiritual in some way. Two-thirds of them say they believe in God (68 percent). More than half say they often feel a deep connection with nature and the earth (58 percent), while more than a third classify themselves as ‘spiritual’ but not ‘religious’ (37 percent), and one in four (25 percent) say they pray every day.”
My unscientific survey confirms the Pew Foundation’s findings. If I were to create a profile of “average” residents’ attitudes toward the holidays, I’d say that
1) They look forward to being with family.
2) They want to include God in their celebration — many in traditional ways but a growing number in spiritual but not religious ways.
3) They enjoy the Santa and gift-giving part of the holidays but don’t like the creeping commercialism they see and feel.
Personally, I identify with many of the responses. I am saddened by the creeping commercialism and secularization I see, but at the same time admit to still putting up a Christmas tree and often sitting in the dark with only the tree lights on, trying to evoke that warmth of Christmas spirit. I try not to go overboard on spending for presents but do enjoy getting small gifts from friends.
Worship is still the highlight of the season for me, but I also know all the words to “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree.”
The complete tally can be found on Tom Holmes’ blog “Religion and Ethics” at OakPark.com.
