How NOT to
Talk to Your Atheist Uncle at Christmas
by Willie Herath, Co-Chapter Director Ratio Christi UCLA
How not to talk to your atheist uncle at Christmas!
If you are like me, you probably have people in your life that are not excited about Jesus. We love these people and we want them to come to Christ, but how do we share God’s love without turning them away?
I’ve written a little something to help you remember what not to say to your atheist uncle at Christmas, or any random non-believer with whom you happen to find yourself celebrating the Holidays. Jesus is the reason for the season!
Unless you’re living under a rock…
Although Jesus is, in fact, the reason for the season; I am sure your Atheist uncle is fully aware that Christmas is about the birth of Christ. Yes, this statement is a fun little rhyme, but perhaps not the best thing to repeat. Unless, of course, your uncle was recently in a horrible accident, acquired amnesia, and now doesn’t remember anything before pop-culture switched our textbooks from B.C. to B.C.E. & A.D. to C.E. Of which, he just thinks he is living in the “Common Era,” and has had no curiosity into what took place that caused the “Before Common Era” to move into our now, “Common Era.” And if that is the case, perhaps telling him that Jesus is the reason for the season could be seen as educational and informative. Which then could turn out to be a nice opportunity to share the Gospel.
We don’t celebrate Santa Clause.
If your Atheist uncle says something along the lines of having a trunk load of presence for the kids and he wants to hide the gifts under the tree once the kids are off to bed, just roll with it. Although it may be true that you and your family do not celebrate Santa Clause, it seems like your uncle is trying to be generous
Yes, rearranging the letters that make up the name SANTA can be made to look like SATAN… and Satan is bad, bad, bad. I do not suggest celebrating Satan anytime, especially at Christmas. But don’t worry, the word santa actually means saint. It’s true. Santa Claus is a morphed Dutch version