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Hello all,
Thought you might be interested in this information from the White House. This isn't a rumor; this is a fact.
We have a friend at church who is a very talented artist. For several years she, among many others, has painted ornaments to be hung on the various White House Christmas trees. The WH sends out an invitation to send an ornament and informs the artists of the theme for the year.
She got her letter from the WH recently. It said that they would not be called Christmas trees this year. They will be called Holiday trees. And, to please not send any ornaments painted with a religious theme.
She was very upset at this development and sent back a reply telling them that she painted the ornaments for Christmas trees and would not be sending any for display that left Christ out of Christmas.
Just thought you should know what the new residents in the WH plan for the future of America. If you missed his statement that "we do not consider ourselves a Christian Nation" this should confirm that he plans to take us away from our religious foundation as quickly as possible.
Urbanlegend
http://urbanlegends.about.com/od/barackobama/a/white_house_christmas_ornaments.htm
Analysis: Baseless rumor. Apart from the announcement last August that an 18- to 19-foot Fraser fir from Shepherdstown, West Virginia will serve as the official 2009 White House Christmas Tree, there have been no revelations to date as to First Lady Michelle Obama's plans for decorating the Executive Mansion for the holidays. All speculation in that regard is premature.
Moreover, we have only this one anonymous, secondhand account to support the claim that artists who have contributed White House Christmas ornaments in the past were invited to contribute again this year with the stipulation that submissions be limited to non-religious-themed designs. Its veracity is dubious, if for no other reason than that it does not appear to be the case that the same artists are asked to participate year after year. In 2008, for example, Laura Bush asked each member of Congress to select an artist from their home district; in 2007, each National Park site was asked to designate an artist; in 2006, submissions were restricted to craft artisans; and so on.
White House sources say that as yet no such invitations have been sent out for 2009.
White House Christmas Tree vs. Capitol Christmas Tree
It's possible the rumor was sparked by a controversy surrounding decorative guidelines for a different tree, the Capitol Christmas Tree (aka National Christmas Tree), which is displayed every holiday season on the West Front lawn of the U.S. Capitol. Each year, the federal government selects a different state to supply a 50- to 85-foot-tall National Tree and 75 smaller specimens for distribution around the Capitol, and citizens of that state are invited to contribute handmade ornaments.
Objections were raised this year when it was noted that the program guidelines stipulated that ornaments contributed by citizens "may not reflect religious or political themes." Threatening a first-amendment lawsuit, Christian and conservative groups called on the U.S. Forest Service, which sponsors the program, to rescind the ban. A Forest Service spokesman said the language prohibiting religious themes came from "old information" posted on the Capitol Tree website, an ABC News report says. It has since been revised.
Religious-themed ornaments were banned during the previous administration
In point of fact, online documents show that a ban on religious-themed ornaments was in effect in 2007 and 2008, though no one objected at the time.
My Thoughts:
I don't understand what the problem is if it is true? It seems to me that the more absurd fact is what Christmas has been for so many years. the token celebration of the birth of Jesus has been hoard-out to commercialism and materialism at the worlds worst year after year, which is saying a lot-- approx. $450 billion dollars. To give just a pinch of perspective to that number: conservative estimates say that approx. 3.4 million people die each year from unclean water related diseases; it is also estimated that it would only require approx. $10 billion dollars to make clean water available to everyone in the world. Moreover, it is also a rather widely held understanding that if just all Christians living in the United States tithed 10% it would eradicate poverty.
World issues aside for a moment, what do we see if we step back and ask ourselves how much of the Christmas' past have even just been more about the birth of Christ in word and deed rather than just ideologically vs busyness, materialism, stress and excessive amounts of food? I know that at least in my life the evidence doesn't fall in favor of Christ.
We can even isolate from the world issues how these practices and the attitudes that it brings out in many of us fall against the teachings of Christ on Materialism, selflessness, worry and love?
Moreover, if we couple all of these issues together with the world issues of water-sourced disease, starvation abroad and next door, as well as those without clothing and shelter or toys, how does it seem Christ would have us spend our time and money in remembrance of him? What traditions of remembering Christ are we teaching our kids?
Christmas is Changing? I say thank God. It seems that one of the best things that could happen for the name of Christ so far as Christmas is concerned is to take his name out of the "holiday season" altogether. At least that way maybe his name will quit being sold and raped as a commercialism mockery.
need help deciding how to change your spending habits this holiday season? check out
http://www.adventconspiracy.
and
http://www.heifer.org/site/c.
