Thoughts About Christmas on this Christmas Eve - Happy Holidays to All of my Readers

Happy Christmas Eve, everyone. Now, I'm not Christian, but I appreciate the general feeling of goodwill and joy that permeates this season. I 'm not very Jewish either, although that's a bit closer to the way I was raised. My parents turned their backs on Gods and Goddesses after WWII, stating that any Deity that would allow that abomination was not one they could or would follow. They were possibly agnostic, but more atheist, I suspect. Dad was good, and if I wanted to experience what a church service was like, he would accompany me to whatever Church or Synagogue or whatever I wanted to attend, but Mom flat out refused. She never forgave God for allowing Hitler, and probably let him have "what for" if she met Him after she died. 

There are many, MANY religions throughout the 
world - the above is just a few of them. Mankind 
has always felt the need to acknowledge something 
greater than himself, but has never managed to 
come to an agreement of who/what that something 
actually is and how to communicate with it/him/her. 

I experimented with religion, actually studied it quite intensively for many years. Although there were many aspects of Christianity that I really liked, there was too much that had become warped - too much of that original "Love Thy Neighbors" that had been added to with exceptions and rules. That basic message of Christianity, as explained by Christ, was pretty damned good, and massively inclusive. It spoke to the downtrodden and the slaves of the Romans in Judea, and it spoke clearly, like a bell. And that bell has continued to sound through the centuries and the nations until it still rings today. 

The difficulty with religion is that there are always 
people out there who do NOT share your beliefs. 
That means they are less than you, or that you simply 
MUST try your best to make them see the "truth" as 
you see it. Nope. Not going to happen. Mankind is 
nothing if not stubborn. 

But mankind is a warlike species. We're territorial. We take land and beliefs and ideals expect everyone else to see how correct we are and how incorrect everyone else is. And, my friends near and far, that simply doesn't work on a broad scale. Religion can be warped to justify murder in too many cases. I prefer to keep my religion to myself - to walk the pathway that has been set out for me, to act with kindness when possible, to strike out to protect those I love when kindness fails. Will I be judged for my deeds? That's very hard to say. I am one part of cosmic dust that will return to this infinite Universe and if I'll be judged, I'll hope that I'll have those willing to sit in my corner while the scales are balanced and the forward road is opened for my passage. 

Even celebrating on Christmas Day is different, depending 
on your particular brand of Christianity. There simply is no 
agreement among all of us about who/what/where/when, etc 
for any specific deity, and really, it's the overall message 
that's more important, not the entity delivering the message. 
That message? PEACE ON EARTH, GOODWILL TO ALL. 

Tomorrow is Christmas Day. Many of you will be joyfully exchanging gifts and celebrating the birth of Christ. I wish you all a blessed day and one filled with happiness and family. I'll be cooking a "Roast Beast" and relaxing. I've got DH's chair filled with a variety of gifts, and a few more are on their way (late? a give can never truly be late). DH's birthday is tomorrow, so we get to celebrate a second day, even though we have to work on Thursday. I wish all of you a Blessed and Peace-filled Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, and I'll be back on Thursday. Slava Ukraini.