Holidays evolve. I noticed this Thanksgiving that protests against the origins of the holiday have grown. The same is true concerning the “Christmas Wars” every single year. Some holidays (of which we have relatively few in this country) are disappearing altogether. What seems to have been overlooked, or forgotten here, is that holidays change over time. Public analysts and early holiday promoters encouraged government recognition of holidays as a means of bringing the nation together. It’s easier to do this if we recognize that holidays evolve and the general trajectory is toward becoming more and more inclusive. There will always be those who protest the “secularization” of holidays, but they share a large part of the Venn diagram with those that believe the Bible is a science book. Things change. Evolution is real.
I’m not just writing this because Thanksgiving and Christmas represent holidays from my tradition. It’s true that they represent what was the majority religion (Christianity) at the time they were established here, but I would be glad for holidays from other traditions to be added as well. Americans need more time to rest and recharge. Anyone who’s studied the history of Christmas, say, realizes that its origins aren’t really Christian. It’s a combination of a Christian alternative to Saturnalia, the recognition of St. Nicholas (December 6), Germanic Yule, and the festival of Roman Calends to start the new year. Among other things. Early Christians didn’t celebrate Jesus’ birthday. Nobody had any idea when it was, but a tradition grew and as it grew from diverse roots it became more and more inclusive. Why should we protest a day when we can acknowledge its troubled past and look for ways to make it better? Something for everyone.
Holidays bring people together. I’ve been researching them for years and I’m amazed to see how those that survive eventually catch on and bring people together for a common purpose. Think of Halloween. Masking disguises who we are. It’s a day when everyone is welcome. There are those who protest it, of course. But holidays need not be seen as triumphal celebrations of some past misdeed. (Here’s a hint from history: almost no historical event is seen as positive from everyone’s point of view.) Instead, why not embrace those few red letter days that we have and use them to seek a common purpose? Why not encourage those in positions to make decisions to consider the good of a few more holidays? Trouble can always be found, but holidays, if done right, may help heal. It’s the way of evolution.
