University of North Carolina banishes Christmas trees

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. a ' For as long as anyone can remember, Christmas trees adorned with lights and ornaments have greeted holiday season visitors to the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill's two main libraries.

[Doris]

Too bad! Our environment becomes more dull and bland. Should we banish the Pieta of Michaelangelo and Bach's B Minor Mass or Missa Solemnis?

[Rich]

Not only too bad, but misplaced and misunderstood. The "Christmas" tree is actually a pagan symbol of celebration for the season and has its origins far before Christianity. Instead of denying our culture and myths, why not keep the Christmas tree and make it an annual celebration for any religious or cultural event which is tied to the season, the end of the year, or the winter solstice? The whole point of all of these is to bring us together -- and here a decision was made to further tear us apart.

[Honestly]

I live and work among many Americans who are first generation immigrants from South Asia, some who are Russian Jews, and many who practice religions other than Christian. Almost all of those families have a Christmas Tree and exchange gifts on that day in the sake of our traditions and to be "Americans" and join us in arguably our biggest family holiday of the year. It is sad to see the symbols of our traditions taken away one at a time. The U could have banned them on an ecology basis and left it at that. Like it or not this country was based on religious freedom and we should have the uninhibited right to display symbols of the traditions that have been rote and were followed by the founding fathers of this nation - at the very least in their honor.

[Rich]

I should also have said that I'm a proud Tar Heel and UNC-Chapel Hill alumni along with my wife and daughter. I live nearby outside Chapel Hill and will make sure the UNC Library gets these comments.

[Dandapanda]

Maybe they should ban the stars & bars and leave the pretty trees & lights alone.

[PlacitasRoy]

Holiday decorations of any kind for any holiday on a public university campus is a waste of money. There is no need to motivate customers to enter. The vast majority of the population will not be on the campus anyway. There is no reason for a public insinuation to support religious traditions & practices.

Contrary to popular myth, the country was founded for commerce. It was speculators who funded the first settlements. It was merchants who sold passage on the merchant ship the Mayflower for the Pilgrims. There damn sure wasn't freedom of religion in Massachusetts!

[I am]

...so sick of this kind of crap. A manger scene is a display of Christianity, trees and lights are not. Surely the bible does not mention Santa Claus and Christmas trees.

[Dandapanda]

PlacitasRoy wrote:

Holiday decorations of any kind for any holiday on a public university campus is a waste of money. There is no need to motivate customers to enter. The vast majority of the population will not be on the campus anyway. There is no reason for a public insinuation to support religious traditions & practices.
Contrary to popular myth, the country was founded for commerce. It was speculators who funded the first settlements. It was merchants who sold passage on the merchant ship the Mayflower for the Pilgrims. There damn sure wasn't freedom of religion in Massachusetts!

Well there dam sure was in Philadelphia.

[PC Chavez]

PlacitasRoy wrote:

Holiday decorations of any kind for any holiday on a public university campus is a waste of money. There is no need to motivate customers to enter. The vast majority of the population will not be on the campus anyway. There is no reason for a public insinuation to support religious traditions & practices.
Contrary to popular myth, the country was founded for commerce. It was speculators who funded the first settlements. It was merchants who sold passage on the merchant ship the Mayflower for the Pilgrims. There damn sure wasn't freedom of religion in Massachusetts!

Listen, Scrooge, the more sparkles and farkles, the better. Pretty lights and shiny things brings happinness and joy to people, especially youngins.

We should be all farkled up year round.

[George Pomonis]

The problem is that the tree is named a "Christmas" tree (Christ's Mass.) For we Christians it is okay but the rest of the world sees it differently. If it had been named something more appropriate to its origins there would not be this idiotic squabble. Its like dressing up paper dolls or striping ones car or wearing a tie or a scarf. Think about it-- putting stuff on a tree. I appreciate all of those colorful lights in the dead of winter, especially up here where I used to go to work in the dark and come home in the dark. Viva las luminarias.

[Honestly]

This problem could be fixed quite easily by naming it the Global Happiness Tree or Holiday (wait that means Holy - scrap that), or just Happiness Tree. There has to be a grammatical solution that will disarm any religious intolerance once and for all.

[Judge Roy Bean]

PC Chavez wrote:

<quoted text>
Listen, Scrooge, the more sparkles and farkles, the better. Pretty lights and shiny things brings happinness and joy to people, especially youngins.
We should be all farkled up year round.

Amen,sister. My 5 year old asked me to keep the lights up on the house a "little longer". They are still there not because I'm lazy but it makes my kids happy to turn them on at special times year round. Me too and my neighbors as well.

[Honestly]

Do we have any suggestions about what the Christmas tree could be renamed to:

Western Civilization Solstice Conifer?

Coniferous Shelter of Childrens' Seasonal Gifts?

Coniferous reminder of combined Western Civilization Annual Observances?

Tree of Lights and Ornaments?

I can't think my way out of a paper bag so any suggestions would probably be a drastic improvement to my offensive sarcasm.

[Honestly]

All cultures other than Christian might want to disappoint their children by not giving them gifts during this special season as they are reminders that the symbolism in the gift giving is related to the gifts the three kings brought to the manger in Bethlehem. The Tree of Childrens' delight will also have to be explained away in the sake of pc-ness.

[Honestly]

And we might be painfully reminded that the kings that brought the gifts to the manger in Bethlehem were possibly Arabs, Berbers and/or Persians by the depiction of their garb and having traveled from far-away lands. We will have to get out some big erasers to fix this rampant heresy.

[PC Chavez]

Honestly wrote:

All cultures other than Christian might want to disappoint their children by not giving them gifts during this special season as they are reminders that the symbolism in the gift giving is related to the gifts the three kings brought to the manger in Bethlehem. The Tree of Childrens' delight will also have to be explained away in the sake of pc-ness.

Oh stop it, already. Yes, Christmas is a bunch of commercial bull sh it.

Can't stand all you Ebenezers. Ruin it for yourselves, but not the rest of us. I still believe in Santa Claus, you bunch of party poopers.

[PC Chavez]

Honestly wrote:

This problem could be fixed quite easily by naming it the Global Happiness Tree or Holiday (wait that means Holy - scrap that), or just Happiness Tree. There has to be a grammatical solution that will disarm any religious intolerance once and for all.

Yup, and it is called live and let live. Maybe it is called "tolerance" and shaduppathemouth.

It is a "Pagan Tree." But, it is commonly known for a zillion years as a Christmas Tree. Now, you want to change the name? it is what it is.

More important things to change and deal with than whinny complainers about nada.

[chatterbox87501]

This article was written in December of 2008.

I wonder where the issue stands for this 2009 holiday (Christmas) season.

[Honestly]

I agree, let the whiney little peefees figure out a way to enjoy life while trying to explain away the rich traditions that we will maintain despite the cynics.

[Yeah]

chatterbox87501 wrote:

This article was written in December of 2008.
I wonder where the issue stands for this 2009 holiday (Christmas) season.

...there's alot of old articles popping up lately. Makes you wonder where and why people go dig them up.