Secularization of Holidays

[Semiremis]

CalledTheRaven

Semiremis

I have no problem with the secularization of religious holidays since they tend to bring families together at least once or twice every year which is good unless you have one of those families who can't be together without raising everyone's blood pressure. The commercialization of holidays is what's up for question in my mind.

I have to agree with this. My huge family gathers for the holidays and for most of us, there's nothing religious about it but they are warm and loving and wonderful. No, it's not the secularization but the commercialization that gets to me. When I was a kid, Easter was about coloring and playing hide and seek with eggs, a basket of candy in the morning, and dinner at Grandma's. But now...My boyfriend's nephews get more presents then we got for Christmas.

In bold is my childhood easter experience only throw in going to mass in the morning and having a big celebratory breakfast as well as the dinner. I'm glad someone else did the hide and seek with eggs thing. It was a fun holiday when I was a kid. Our whole street would get together during the day and celebrate biggrin  

[CH1YO]

Secularise holidays and you get holidays, surely we've got enough of those most mundane stretches already?  

[alteregoivy]

CH1YO

Secularise holidays and you get holidays, surely we've got enough of those most mundane stretches already?

Maybe holidays originally came from "holy" somehow, but language evolves and the word certainly doesn't mean a religious holy day anymore. Not in the common vernacular. How about Labor Day or Memorial Day or Independence Day? Those are all holidays that have nothing to do with religion (and some of us get off of work for yay!).  

[CH1YO]

alteregoivy

CH1YO

Secularise holidays and you get holidays, surely we've got enough of those most mundane stretches already?

Maybe holidays originally came from "holy" somehow, but language evolves and the word certainly doesn't mean a religious holy day anymore. Not in the common vernacular. How about Labor Day or Memorial Day or Independence Day? Those are all holidays that have nothing to do with religion (and some of us get off of work for yay!).

I have none of those, the colonial system is truly ghastly.  

[CalledTheRaven]

What about the use of the word for going on vacation or break, like summer holiday or going on holiday? That usage has no connection to any religious holy days that I'm aware of. Alteregiovy is right. The language evolves.  

[PrometheanSet]

Is it wrong for me to think "poetic justice"?