{
  "schema": "tga.work.v1",
  "identifier": "dresden:vol-11:an-essay-on-christmas",
  "slug": "an-essay-on-christmas",
  "title": "An Essay on Christmas",
  "subtitle": "Essay.",
  "excerpt": "An essay on the Christmas festival — its pre-Christian roots, its family meaning, and what might be kept and what let go.",
  "year": 1892,
  "volume": 11,
  "category": "Essay",
  "author": {
    "name": "Robert G. Ingersoll",
    "wikidata": "Q360326",
    "viaf": "44331023"
  },
  "isPartOf": {
    "title": "The Works of Robert G. Ingersoll",
    "edition": "Dresden Edition",
    "publisher": "C. P. Farrell",
    "year": 1900
  },
  "license": "https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/",
  "url": "https://thegreatagnostic.com/works/an-essay-on-christmas/",
  "wordCount": 2325,
  "body": "MY family and I regard Christmas as a holiday—that is to say, a day\nof rest and pleasure—a day to get acquainted with each other, a day to\nrecall old memories, and for the cultivation of social amenities. The\nfestival now called Christmas is far older than Christianity. It was\nknown and celebrated for thousands of years before the establishment of\nwhat is known as our religion. It is a relic of sun-worship. It is the\nday on which the sun triumphs over the hosts of darkness, and thousands\nof years before the New Testament was written, thousands of years before\nthe republic of Rome existed, before one stone of Athens was laid,\nbefore the Pharaohs ruled in Egypt, before the religion of Brahma,\nbefore Sanscrit was spoken, men and women crawled out of their caves,\npushed the matted hair from their eyes, and greeted the triumph of the\nsun over the powers of the night.\n\nThere are many relics of this worship—among which is the shaving of the\npriest's head, leaving the spot shaven surrounded by hair, in imitation\nof the rays of the sun. There is still another relic—the ministers of\nour day close their eyes in prayer. When men worshiped the sun—when\nthey looked at that luminary and implored its assistance—they shut\ntheir eyes as a matter of necessity. Afterward the priests looking\nat their idols glittering with gems, shut their eyes in flattery,\npretending that they could not bear the effulgence of the presence; and\nto-day, thousands of years after the old ideas have passed away, the\nmodern parson, without knowing the origin of the custom, closes his eyes\nwhen he prays.\n\nThere are many other relics and souvenirs of the dead worship of the\nsun, and this festival was adopted by Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, and by\nChristians. As a matter of fact, Christianity furnished new steam for an\nold engine, infused a new spirit into an old religion, and, as a matter\nof course, the old festival remained.\n\nFor all of our festivals you will find corresponding pagan festivals.\nFor instance, take the eucharist, the communion, where persons partake\nof the body and blood of the Deity. This is an exceedingly old custom.\nAmong the ancients they ate cakes made of corn, in honor of Ceres and\nthey called these cakes the flesh of the goddess, and they drank wine in\nhonor of Bacchus, and called this the blood of their god. And so I could\ngo on giving the pagan origin of every Christian ceremony and custom.\nThe probability is that the worship of the sun was once substantially\nuniversal, and consequently the festival of Christ was equally wide\nspread.\n\nAs other religions have been produced, the old customs have been adopted\nand continued, so that the result is, this festival of Christmas is\nalmost world-wide. It is popular because it is a holiday. Overworked\npeople are glad of days that bring rest and recreation and allow them to\nmeet their families and their friends. They are glad of days when they\ngive and receive gifts—evidences of friendship, of remembrance and\nlove. It is popular because it is really human, and because it is\ninterwoven with our customs, habits, literature, and thought.\n\nFor my part I am willing to have two or three a year—the more holidays\nthe better. Many people have an idea that I am opposed to Sunday. I am\nperfectly willing to have two a week. All I insist on is that these days\nshall be for the benefit of the people, and that they shall be kept not\nin a way to make folks miserable or sad or hungry, but in a way to make\npeople happy, and to add a little to the joy of life. Of course, I am\nin favor of everybody keeping holidays to suit himself, provided he does\nnot interfere with others, and I am perfectly willing that everybody\nshould go to church on that day, provided he is willing that I should go\nsomewhere else.—The Tribune, New York, December, 1889.\n\nHas Freethought a Constructive Side\n\nTHE object of the Freethinker is to ascertain the truth—the conditions\nof well-being—to the end that this life will be made of value. This is\nthe affirmative, positive, and constructive side.\n\nWithout liberty there is no such thing as real happiness. There may be\nthe contentment of the slave—of one who is glad that he has passed the\nday without a beating—one who is happy because he has had enough to\neat—but the highest possible idea of happiness is freedom.\n\nAll religious systems enslave the mind. Certain things are\ndemanded—certain things must be believed—certain things must\nbe done—and the man who becomes the subject or servant of this\nsuperstition must give up all idea of individuality or hope of\nintellectual growth and progress.\n\nThe religionist informs us that there is somewhere in the universe an\northodox God, who is endeavoring to govern the world, and who for this\npurpose resorts to famine and flood, to earthquake and pestilence—and\nwho, as a last resort, gets up a revival of religion. That is called\n\"affirmative and positive.\"\n\nThe man of sense knows that no such God exists, and thereupon he affirms\nthat the orthodox doctrine is infinitely absurd. This is called a\n\"negation.\" But to my mind it is an affirmation, and is a part of the\npositive side of Freethought.\n\nA man who compels this Deity to abdicate his throne renders a vast and\nsplendid service to the human race.\n\nAs long as men believe in tyranny in heaven they will practice tyranny\non earth. Most people are exceedingly imitative, and nothing is so\ngratifying to the average orthodox man as to be like his God.\n\nThese same Christians tell us that nearly everybody is to be punished\nforever, while a few fortunate Christians who were elected and selected\nbillions of ages before the world was created, are to be happy. This\nthey call the \"tidings of great joy.\" The Freethinker denounces this\ndoctrine as infamous beyond the power of words to express. He says, and\nsays clearly, that a God who would create a human being, knowing that\nthat being was to be eternally miserable, must of necessity be an\ninfinite fiend.\n\nThe free man, into whose brain the serpent of superstition has not\ncrept, knows that the dogma of eternal pain is an infinite falsehood. He\nalso knows—if the dogma be true—that every decent human being should\nhate, with every drop of his blood, the creator of the universe. He also\nknows—if he knows anything—that no decent human being could be happy\nin heaven with a majority of the human race in hell. He knows that\na mother could not enjoy the society of Christ with her children in\nperdition; and if she could, he knows that such a mother is simply\na wild beast. The free man knows that the angelic hosts, under such\ncircumstances, could not enjoy themselves unless they had the hearts of\nboa-constrictors.\n\nIt will thus be seen that there is an affirmative, a positive, a\nconstructive side to Freethought.\n\nWhat is the positive side?\n\nFirst: A denial of all orthodox falsehoods—an exposure of all\nsuperstitions. This is simply clearing the ground, to the end that seeds\nof value may be planted. It is necessary, first, to fell the trees, to\ndestroy the poisonous vines, to drive out the wild beasts. Then comes\nanother phase—another kind of work. The Freethinker knows that the\nuniverse is natural—that there is no room, even in infinite space, for\nthe miraculous, for the impossible. The Freethinker knows, or feels that\nhe knows, that there is no sovereign of the universe, who, like some\npetty king or tyrant, delights in showing his authority. He feels that\nall in the universe are conditioned beings, and that only those are\nhappy who live in accordance with the conditions of happiness, and this\nfact or truth or philosophy embraces all men and all gods—if there be\ngods.\n\nThe positive side is this: That every good action has good\nconsequences—that it bears good fruit forever—and that every bad\naction has evil consequences, and bears bad fruit. The Freethinker also\nasserts that every man must bear the consequences of his actions—that\nhe must reap what he sows, and that he cannot be justified by the\ngoodness of another, or damned for the wickedness of another.\n\nThere is still another side, and that is this: The Freethinker knows\nthat all the priests and cardinals and popes know nothing of the\nsupernatural—they know nothing about gods or angels or heavens or\nhells—nothing about inspired books or Holy Ghosts, or incarnations or\natonements. He knows that all this is superstition pure and simple.\nHe knows also that these people—from pope to priest, from bishop to\nparson, do not the slightest good in this world—that they live upon the\nlabor of others—that they earn nothing themselves—that they contribute\nnothing toward the happiness, or well-being, or the wealth of mankind.\nHe knows that they trade and traffic in ignorance and fear, that they\nmake merchandise of hope and grief—and he also knows that in every\nreligion the priest insists on five things—First: There is a God.\nSecond: He has made known his will. Third: He has selected me to explain\nthis message. Fourth: We will now take up a collection; and Fifth: Those\nwho fail to subscribe will certainly be damned.\n\nThe positive side of Freethought is to find out the truth—the facts of\nnature—to the end that we may take advantage of those truths, of those\nfacts—for the purpose of feeding and clothing and educating mankind.\n\nIn the first place, we wish to find that which will lengthen human\nlife—that which will prevent or kill disease—that which will do away\nwith pain—that which will preserve or give us health.\n\nWe also want to go in partnership with these forces of nature, to the\nend that we may be well fed and clothed—that we may have good houses\nthat protect us from heat and cold. And beyond this—beyond these simple\nnecessities—there are still wants and aspirations, and free-thought\nwill give us the highest possible in art—the most wonderful and\nthrilling in music—the greatest paintings, the most marvelous\nsculpture—in other words, free-thought will develop the brain to\nits utmost capacity. Freethought is the mother of art and science, of\nmorality and happiness.\n\nIt is charged by the worshipers of the Jewish myth, that we destroy,\nthat we do not build.\n\nWhat have we destroyed? We have destroyed the idea that a monster\ncreated and governs this world—the declaration that a God of infinite\nmercy and compassion upheld slavery and polygamy and commanded the\ndestruction of men, women, and babes. We have destroyed the idea that\nthis monster created a few of his children for eternal joy, and the vast\nmajority for everlasting pain. We have destroyed the infinite absurdity\nthat salvation depends upon belief, that investigation is dangerous, and\nthat the torch of reason lights only the way to hell. We have taken a\ngrinning devil from every grave, and the curse from death—and in the\nplace of these dogmas, of these infamies, we have put that which is\nnatural and that which commends itself to the heart and brain.\n\nInstead of loving God, we love each other. Instead of the religion of\nthe sky—the religion of this world—the religion of the family—the\nlove of husband for wife, of wife for husband—the love of all for\nchildren. So that now the real religion is: Let us live for each other;\nlet us live for this world, without regard for the past and without fear\nfor the future. Let us use our faculties and our powers for the benefit\nof ourselves and others, knowing that if there be another world, the\nsame philosophy that gives us joy here will make us happy there.\n\nNothing can be more absurd than the idea that we can do something to\nplease or displease an infinite Being. If our thoughts and actions can\nlessen or increase the happiness of God, then to that extent God is the\nslave and victim of man.\n\nThe energies of the world have been wasted in the service of a\nphantom—millions of priests have lived on the industry of others and no\neffort has been spared to prevent the intellectual freedom of mankind.\n\nWe know, if we know anything, that supernatural religion has no\nfoundation except falsehood and mistake. To expose these falsehoods—to\ncorrect these mistakes—to build the fabric of civilization on the\nfoundation of demonstrated truth—is the task of the Freethinker. To\ndestroy guide-boards that point in the wrong direction—to correct\ncharts that lure to reef and wreck—to drive the fiend of fear from the\nmind—to protect the cradle from the serpent of superstition and dispel\nthe darkness of ignorance with the sun of science—is the task of the\nFreethinker.\n\nWhat constructive work has been done by the church? Christianity gave us\na flat world a few thousand years ago—a heaven above it where Jehovah\ndwells and a hell below it where most people will dwell. Christianity\ntook the ground that a certain belief was necessary to salvation and\nthat this belief was far better and of more importance than the practice\nof all the virtues. It became the enemy of investigation—the bitter and\nrelentless foe of reason and the liberty of thought. It committed every\ncrime and practiced every cruelty in the propagation of its creed. It\ndrew the sword against the freedom of the world. It established schools\nand universities for the preservation of ignorance. It claimed to have\nwithin its keeping the source and standard of all truth. If the church\nhad succeeded the sciences could not have existed.\n\nFreethought has given us all we have of value. It has been the great\nconstructive force. It is the only discoverer, and every science is its\nchild.—The Truth Seeker, New York 1890.\n"
}