Something about this Christmas season feels a bit off. The carols are playing and the shops are bustling, but the airwaves are silent. Something is missing …
The war on Christmas!
Remember the big deal it was every year when a war on Christmas was called out? Debates about the placements of Nativity scenes were considered a part of that war; a television host declared that Santa Claus could only be white. The stockings were stuffed with books like “The War on Christmas,” and countless hours were devoted to fake outrage that people said “Happy holidays” and not “Merry Christmas.”
Remember the big deal it was every year when a war on Christmas was called out?
What were the complaints that there was a war on Christmas in America about?
They were just another part of the culture wars deployed by conservative Republicans and conservative Christians (Protestant and Catholic) to complain that Christianity was getting short shrift from the public, from merchants and especially in schools. Much like the holiday Festivus — which these conservatives would hate in principle because it is secular but agree with in practice — complaints about a war on Christmas were an annual end-of-year airing of grievances. It was a time amid holiday celebrations to advocate for the primacy of Christianity over other religious traditions and to rail against the perceived (and sometimes real) threats to take down religious displays of the holiday.
This year, Republicans and conservative Christians have dispensed with whining about a war on Christmas in anticipation of the second coming of their political savior, Donald Trump, into the White House. According to a YouGov poll, the percentage of Americans who believe there is a war on Christmas has fallen since December 2022, from 39% to 23%. Among Republicans, that percentage has dropped from 59% to 36%.
While that is a picture of America overall, that doesn’t mean that local skirmishes aren’t happening in the Christmas wars. For the first time, a group called Minnesota Satanists has a holiday display at the State Capitol in St. Paul, and Republicans have criticized Gov. Tim Walz for its existence. Walz doesn’t sign off on such displays, and his office released a statement that reads: “The Governor does not agree with the display and did not approve it. But the First Amendment means that he does not police speech in the State Capitol. That’s true whether it’s a religious display, a political protest, or a Minnesotan advocating for a policy.”
The percentage of Americans who believe there is a war on Christmas has fallen since December 2022, from 39% to 23%.
The Star Tribune newspaper reports that the display was knocked over one day last week and temporarily removed but was put back in place the next day. Earlier this month, a Satanic Temple holiday display of Baphomet was vandalized at the New Hampshire State House.
Fights about Nativity scenes at state capitols and other public places have a long history in America, and they are often used to promote Christianity in the public sphere. But when people who aren’t Christian, including satanists, demand equal time, well, things don’t usually turn out too well. This year’s Vatican Nativity scene, designed by two artists from Dar al-Kalima University in Bethlehem, was criticized because it shows the baby Jesus lying on a Palestinian keffiyeh. Usually, the baby Jesus isn’t placed into the Vatican Nativity scene until Christmas Eve, but it was put there early to show donors and others what the finished product looked like. The baby was returned on Christmas Eve, as is the custom, but the keffiyeh was gone. The debate at the Vatican is a reminder that there are real wars going on around the world this Christmas season. The debate at the Vatican is a reminder that there are real wars going on around the world this Christmas season: in Ukraine, Gaza, Sudan and many other places. This isn’t a peaceful time, by any estimation. Pope Francis is expected to stand on a balcony on Dec. 25 to give his “Urbi et Orbi” (to the city of Rome and the world) message. No doubt it will include references to the wars around the world and especially the one between Israel and Hamas. After all, that is in a region where Christian pilgrims from around the world go to celebrate Christmas. The Latin patriarch of Jerusalem is encouraging Christians to come despite the war, but it remains to be seen how they get there with so many airline carriers canceling flights. Declarations that there’s a war on Christmas can be political or philosophical, but most of all they’re a utilitarian means of control. They are a soft, uncivil but nonviolent way of airing grievances. But this Christmas season, it’s time to focus on the real wars around us and work for peace.
Anthea Butler is a professor of religious studies and Africana studies at the University of Pennsylvania. 
