Last week I learned that Christmas was banned in Massachusetts in 1659. Even though the ban did not last long, Christmas did not become a public Holiday in Massachusetts for nearly 200 years! I was shocked. Coming from a cultural background that for hundreds of years not only honored but gave birth to many of our Christmas songs and traditions, I couldn’t imagine a world without Christmas. Then my mind started to journey around the globe and I realized that everything that I took for granted regarding Christmas, was a gift!
My “Gratitude for Christmas “ journey started by googling “where is Christmas banned?” Here is what I learned.
Celebrating Christmas is currently a crime punishable by either death or imprisonment in North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Tajikistan, and Brunei. In addition, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), despite their state sanctioned propaganda that claims “no restrictions”, on December 20, 2021 banned Christmas as “a forbidden Western celebration.” Additionally, from 1917-1991, the Soviet Union under the Marxist-Leninist doctrine of state atheism, banned the Celebration of Christmas.
Allowing for my imperfect math, it appears that during my lifetime almost one in four people have been threatened by death or imprisoned for celebrating not just the religious but also the secular aspects of Christmas.
And so during this Season of Christmas, I applaud with gratitude and appreciation the work of our forefathers in establishing religious freedom. Never before have I reflected on what it would be like to be banned from celebrating Christmas.
I share this with you not to teach history and not to be pessimistic, but rather as a reminder of how important it is to be grateful for our religious freedom.