Tinsel on trees and lighted evergreen branches, gifts galore under this tree? Are you Jewish and asked to participate in this gift giving? Are there items you receive as gifts that are rituals of other religions as Christian Christmas gifts to you? Can we turn down these gifts? Should we make a simitz (a big deal) about this and call it disrespect? Each year, year after year, you receive Christmas gifts, so what to do? We need to work with those people who do not understand The Laws of Judaism, that Jews do not celebrate Christmas, instead we celebrate Hanukkah.
So, we can indeed keep these gifts if you want the neutral ones, and see them as Hanukkah gifts, not to observe them as Christmas gifts. You cannot yell and scream and jump up and down because the gift giver each year uses Christmas time as a time to proselyte Christianity to you when you are a committed religious Jew. Each year take it as another year to heal from disrespect and to realize the gift giver is in darkness, cause as much as you try to work with him/her the same occurrence happens, and what can we do?
Ask our Holy God to see us through another winter season, a time to be warm and well fed. To be in prayers for those who do not have a relationship with Adonai our true God. They instead worship the rebel Jesus when what they have is a choice not to worship him but to love the true God, the same God of Jesus, our Father Hashem. To try to understand they come from a lack of the knowledge base that teaches people true lovingkindness.
Can we give a gift back in this situation? Jacob the Torah Prophet did, he met his brother Esau's armies with loads of beautiful gifts!! He is our example to follow.
Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas, Feliz Navidad, Happy Kwanza!
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