the "battle" for Christmas?

So, I took the month of November off from blogging, apparently. I like to have at least 3 blog posts per month, and by the time I realized it was November, the month was almost gone and I figured I'd just wait.

Anyways. Today I'm going to post about Christmas. I've been listening to Christmas radio on Pandora, and I've noticed a common theme in the lyrics. Here are some examples:
"Where are you Christmas, Why can't I find you, Why have you gone away" (Where are you Christmas)
"There is no peace on Earth, I said, for hate is strong and mocks the song" (I heard the Bells)
"Looks like another silent night as were sung to sleep by philosophies that save the trees and kill the children" (While You Were Sleeping)

Depressing, huh? The general theme seems to be something like this - "Oh, the world is hopeless and Christmas reminds us we're hopeless". I think a big part of this comes from the fact that so many Christians have taken to referring to this season as, "The battle for Christmas" (including my pastor in a recent email about upcoming events). I don't think we should think of it that way. Christmas shouldn't be a "battle". We shouldn't try to cure people of their holiday spirit. Now, I know that people talk about not liking the consumerism, but I really don't think that's what people who aren't Christians think about Christmas. Here's another lyrics example:

"Children laughing, people passing, Meeting smile after smile".
That's not a hymn. It's a Bing Crosby song (Silver Bells). But doesn't it show what everyone wants Christmas to be like? Everyone, not just Christians, want Christmas to be this way. Why do you think Santa is so popular?

My roommate loves the Christmas spirit. She gets excited for shopping, and decorating, and she likes that people are happy and she listens to Christmas music all the time. And you're telling me I'm supposed to tell her that the feelings she gets at Christmas are "not the true meaning"? How about this instead: "You know that feeling you get at Christmas? When people forgive one another and focus on hope for the new year and talk about being surrounded by love? What if I told you I knew a way you could feel that love and community all the time, and that it's called Jesus, and it's called the Church." Wouldn't that be better? Just a thought.