So, why do so many Christians put up Christmas trees, when doing so is expressly forbidden by the Bible?

Because many people don’t take the bible literally. And I think that’s a good thing

Christmas has nothing to do with God or the bible. It’s a pagan holiday that commemorates the changing of seasons (fall to winter) that, in turn, is based on the phases of the moon.

The christians coopted (i.e. stole or usurped) the pagan holiday and invented the whole St. Nicholas folderol for their own purposes.

When people say “put the christ back in christmas” I laugh. Because historically, there NEVER was a connection between the winter festival and christ in the first place.

Because they are false christians.

@elbanditoroso: The other part of the irony expressed in your last sentence is that “X” in “Xmas” is the Greek referent for Christ.

What @elbanditoroso said, and also many people do things that are forbidden in the Bible, lie, cheat, steal, etc.

The question really is, how can they not see their hypocrisy?

The verse is gibberish to me; but even with my advanced gibberish translator in hand, I fail to see how this “expressly forbids” decorating a tree. It says the practices of cutting and decorating a tree are “heathen” and “vain,” but I’m not seeing where I’m forbidden. And I can’t believe I’m engaging in a discussion about Bible verse.

Exodus says it’s ok to sell your daughter into slavery.
Leviticus says you should burn a woman who wears cloth woven from two threads.
I don’t see a lot of Christians selling their children or burning their wives for wearing a poly cotton blend… So what’s your point.

That passage isn’t talking about anything like the Christmas tree. Jeremiah is making reference to wooden representations of gods; he uses the word “tree” to emphasize how ridiculous it is to expect something that used to be a tree to answer supplications. As far as I can see, pagans would bring evergreen branches into their houses as decoration, but the whole tree thing really does seem to have Christian origins.

I’m not trying to be an apologist for Christians (not one myself), but it doesn’t seem any more hypocritical for a Christian to set up a Christmas tree than for someone who isn’t religious to do so, and I know plenty who do.

@Dutchess_III – truly religious people don’t see their hypocrisy. Or they deny it. Or ignore it.

Can I assume then, @Dutchess_III, that this is why you don’t have a Christmas tree?

Because Jeremiah pertains to the Old Testament, and Christmas marks the start of the New Testament. Jeremiah knew nothing about Christmas.

Besides, Jeremiah was a bullfrog!

I don’t have a Christmas tree because I don’t have kids living at home any more and my Christmas decorating is slowly dwindling down. We haven’t put ANY thing up this year so far. Don’t know if we even will.

Also, I’m not a Christian.

If you’re not Christian, isn’t the question how can you not see your own hypocrisy?

@zenvelo – He was a good friend of mine!

It does forbid it @picante. It says “Learn not the way of the heathen….” It’s another way of saying “Don’t do what they do,” then goes on to specify that what they aren’t supposed to do is cut down trees and bring them inside and decorate them. Why not, is beyond me, but it says so, right there in the Bible!

@canidmajor That didn’t even make any sense! What are you trying to say?

You’re not Christian yet you celebrate Christmas. There’s your hypocrisy. Personally I don’t give a figgy pudding what you celebrate at this time, but your question: “how can they not see their own hypocrisy?” seems a bit pot and kettle-ish in this case.

Like most Bible verses, examining them out of context can result in all kinds of interpretations, many of which are invalidated once you look at the context.

Jeremiah 10 is a passage against idolatry, and points out how the idolatrous customs of the heathens are pointless and vain: they carry their gods with them, they worship pieces of wood, etc. Jeremiah is emphasizing the power of the Lord against these powerless pointless idols. It has nothing to do with Christmas trees. It’s about the futility of worshiping idols.

Unless the Christmas tree is being worshiped as an idol, I don’t see how this passage is “forbidding” Christmas trees.

Since Christmas trees did not even become the custom until the 1800s, it would have been a little prescient of Jeremiah – although a prophet – to have proscribed them.

But hey, there aren’t enough real issues facing the world to get upset about.

I think we all know now that the bible isn’t meant to be followed word for word, just like with any written “law” or text. The bible is a fossil still relevant in the modern world and it just wouldn’t be viable for people to follow it because it doesn’t line up with their best interests.

You’re just silly @canidmajor.

@janbb and @guys…don’t get your undies in a wad. We have a serious lack of questions if you haven’t noticed. I’m just trying to help keep the ball rolling. If you think one of my questions is stupid or you don’t like it, just don’t don’t answer it!

Maybe so, @Dutchess_III, but I’m not the one grandly accusing millions and millions of people of hypocrisy on a public forum after misinterpreting a Bible passage.

Dutchess 12:15—Get thee not thy underraiments in a heathenly wadded fashion. ;-)

LOL!!

I don’t know why jellies are saying everyone knows the bible should not be taken word for word. Sure most of Fluther feels that way, even most Catholics, but there are plenty of Christians (not including Catholics for this) who say each word is the word of God. They say things like if one part of the bible is wrong then the whole book could be wrong and they just can’t think that.

I think people pick and choose and selectively ignore whatever they would not like in the good book. Plus, Christmas trees are pretty and most everyone is doing it.

@canidmajor My experience is Christians want everyone to celebrate Christmas and put up trees. When I say I don’t put up a tree because it is a CHRISTmas tree, they always say, “the tree is secular.” There is hypocrisy in it, I don’t know why you don’t see it. Christians using Pagan rituals? Worse to me is a bunny on the day Jesus was resurrected. WTH?!

If you think @Dutchess_III is a hypocrite that’s your prerogative, I don’t see it. Even if she is, it doesn’t take away the hypocrisy of celebrating a holiday like the Pagans. I can’t wrap my head around the whole gift giving thing to celebrate the birth of Christ. It never made sense to me. If I was trying to rev up the economy I would leave Christmas as a religious day and do gift giving for New Years. Then the whole country would be on the same page.

Don’t be dissin’ the Easter Bunny, @JLeslie!

I think @Dutchess_III was being pompous and judgemental based on her misinterpretation of a Bible passage.

She was just trying to get a conversation going. I had never heard that passage and I learned something new with how some jellies demonstrated the context in which the passage was meant to be. @Dutchess_III knows she celebrates the holidays for tradition, family, and I would assume because it’s so exciting to watch the young ones light up. That’s totally different than a self proclaimed religious Christian doing something hypocritical or ironic with no clue and at the same time some of them sit in judgement of others and other people’s religious beliefs.

I’m Jewish, atheist, celebrate some holidays. I expect to get Yom Kippur off from work if I ask for it, and I don’t care if people see hypocrisy in it. I’m right out there as the black kettle, but I freely admit why I do it and I’m sure so would Dutchess.

I’m afraid I disagree with your assessment, @canidmajor about @Dutchess_III. To me, she is neither pompous nor judgemental in posing this original question

It is puzzling to me how so many Christians treat the Old Testament as absolute authority even though it is the Hebrew Bible, not the Christian Bible. Still, it is a great question: how can Christians who rely on the Old Testament for guidance reconcile decorating for Christmas in light of the above passage?

@sahID Actually, it seems like it’s more atheists who keep holding up the Old Testament as an authority that Christians ought to take seriously. Most Christians I know consider the OT to be perhaps an accurate record of the origins of the universe, but don’t place much stock in its prohibitions.

@thorninmud Agree. You don’t see too many Christians keeping kosher.

@thorninmud Well, sometimes it is a response to Christians citing passages like Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13 to prohibit homosexuality, but then ignoring all the other prohibitions. Interesting how the prohibitions are often only relevant when they already support one’s pre-existing prejudices.

@DominicY Yes, but they feel justified in doing that because the same prohibition is echoed in the New Testament (e.g. 1 Cor 6:9, Romans 1:27).

@thorninmud Right, but it’s not exactly the same thing. On one hand, they solely use the authority of the OT to prohibit something (they probably choose Leviticus because the prohibitions are so explicit and violent). I’ve heard some Christians claim that “moral laws” in the OT still apply, but as to where they get that idea from, I’m not entirely sure.

@DominicY I wonder what constitutes a “moral law”? As opposed to what other kind of law? I would have thought that “God said so” would have been enough to qualify a law as “moral” in a Christian scheme

I have an artificial tree, so I guess I’m okay.

I should mention that the quotation from the Bible was referring to those the worship the tree. Christians don’t do that.

There are so many different takes on everything in the Bible!