I’m pretty new to Christmas, but it seems to me that multiculturalism is transforming the religious holiday into a generic American holiday not that different from Thanksgiving. My gentile in-laws tell me that this is an old trend. Still I can’t help offering the following very impressionistic observations of 2007 Christmas.
–Most tasteful Christmas display in my little town was by one of my intermarried brethren. Hey we’re everywhere.
–I show up at a Christmas party and a kid shakes my hand and says, "Happy Eid."
–No grace at my wife’s family’s Christmas dinner. No talk of going to church. Both used to happen.
–The rising tide of "Happy Holidays" language, even from the President.
–My niece makes matzoh balls at her Christmas dinner (she loves them) and declares that she wants "a Jewish Christmas," i.e., let’s order takeout Chinese and then go to the movies.
That last comment especially tells me that as Jews and gentiles mingle in the ruling class, the old rituals are being transformed. This was my most comfortable Christmas in nearly 20 of them, I don’t know why, it didn’t feel quite as otherworldly to me. Jewish Christmas. It doesn’t matter how anti-assimilationist you are; it’s going to happen….
