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Holy Moses Smell The Roses, It’s Only A Little Tree

December 12, 2006 ⋅  E-Mail Article ⋅  Print Article ⋅ Post a comment

If I can’t have a Christmas Tree then I don’t want Rabbi Elazar Bogomilsky to have his kosher deli, or kosher dills, or kosher hot dogs. Matter of fact I may also want the Hebrew Nation moniker removed from my meats department and I better not see one more happy go lucky kosher butcher because they just make me feel downright oppressed. I am just kidding as you can tell but the Rabbis’ assault on a lil ol Christmas tree is downright stupid.

I thought the Grinch lived in Whoville but I guess he has relocated to the beautiful state of Washington and rather than steal humanities spirit on December 24 he is beginning now. We have so much trial and tribulation in the world that only an individual with the blackest of hearts would bother to stop and complain about a Christmas tree in the middle of a drab public area during the holiday weeks of winter. However, according to the AP a Jewish Rabbi has begun the yearly assault on Christmas by demanding that a Christmas tree be removed from the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.

It is being reported that Rabbi Elazar Bogomilsky has began a protest and a potential lawsuit because of the Christmas tree on display in the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Rather than hassle a symbol of hope and love couldn’t the Rabbi find something more constructive to do? The Christmas tree is not out there causing drug dependency, murder, rape, larceny, or molestation, it just sits there as a symbol of lighter times and holiday enjoyment. Why doesn’t the Rabbi address true crimes against humanity rather than the easy target of Christmas?

It appears that rather than acknowledge religious diversity and practice tolerance Rabbi Elazar Bogomilsky decided to engage the Christmas tree in an epic battle of civil rights and the Airport that hosted the Christmas tree has decided to take it down rather than defend the tree and their holiday policy. How many of us complain when we see the Star of David in our local delis? Or how about the kosher status on foods? If we can’t have holiday symbols in the winter why can we have religious titles on our hot dogs in the Summer? Take a break Rabbi, the Christmas tree is not the slippery slope that will lead all Jews to convert, Relax.

Why Christmas comes under attack every year is beyond me. The holiday is a time of cheer, hope, and forgiveness, its not like Christians run out on Christmas and slaughter people of other religions, what is the fear associated with Christmas popularity? I could see if the Christmas tree was rude, insulting, or demeaning but it is none of these. The Christmas tree actually celebrates the birth of a Jew, matter of fact he is referred to as the King of the Jews. So why is there so much hatred of Christmas from Jewish leaders in certain areas? I am unsure because many Jews I have known say they have no problem with Christmas; they actually enjoy the festive atmosphere of Christmas time. Is this problem more of an individualistic issue or is it really something that I just don’t understand?

I would like to ask for tolerance and understanding this year in regards to Christmas. I respect Jewish holidays, I respect Muslim holidays, what is the problem with them respecting Christian holidays? For most there is no problem, it’s the few who would find something to protest even if it was not religious. Some people have a deep rooted hatred for things different than themselves and it takes something like Christmas to bring this out of them. Racism, religious intolerance, chauvinism, we see it all during the holidays. Maybe when someone says do not say Happy Hanukkah, or Merry Christmas we should look twice at them and wonder if the problem is with the saying or the person hearing the saying.

It’s a shame that maintenance workers at the airport had to box up the Christmas trees during the graveyard shift this weekend so that one small minded maybe potentially bigoted individual could feel some satisfaction and justification for some deep rooted issue he has with other religions. Mel Gibson may have misspoken and sounded ignorant but at least he was open about what he said. I would really like to know why Rabbi Elazar Bogomilsky wanted the Christmas tree taken down. If all the Rabbi wanted was a menorah added next to the trees then I have no problem and the airport made a bad decision. However, if there was more to this than that I think we need to look a little closer at the man and not the policy.

Reportedly the Rabbi stated, “Everyone should have their spirit of the holiday. For many people the trees are the spirit of the holidays, and adding a menorah adds light to the season.” On this point I agree with the Rabbi. I believe Jesus himself would have liked to seen the Menorah side by side with the Christmas tree.

We should all remember that Jesus was a Jew and it is a Jew who is celebrated during Christmas. Can’t we utilize this as a way for understanding and tolerance and not division and bickering?

In the true Holiday Spirit I would like to say Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah to all.

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