Texas Gov. Perry Signs “Merry Christmas” Bill

[kilodelta]

At last! Finally! Students can now celebrate FSM as he needs to be.

AUSTIN (CBSDFW.COM) – Texas Gov. Rick Perry today signed House Bill 308, which removes any legal risks of saying "Merry Christmas" in Texas public schools.

The bill also allows public schools to use holiday greetings and display religious symbols on school property, so long as more than one religion and a secular symbol are also reflected.

"I'm proud we are standing up for religious freedom in our state," Gov. Perry said. "Freedom of religion doesn't mean freedom from religion, and people of faith often feel like they can't express that faith publicly. HB 308 works to address that by ensuring that people of all faiths are free to use traditional holiday greetings, and display religious scenes and symbols, even on school property. It ensures freedom of expression where, for many students, teachers and administrators, it's most important."

Houston Republican Rep. Dwayne Bohac sponsored the bill, which Bohac says will allow teachers to educate students about the history and roots of different religions.

"I have heard from many constituents who dislike that it is becoming less culturally acceptable to openly celebrate these holidays in the ways past generations have," Sen. Nichols said. "To me, this is a matter of helping our teachers and administrators feel safe talking about these holidays at school without fear of legal action being taken against them, and of letting our children know that it's okay to say 'Merry Christmas.'"

The bill quickly passed through the both chambers before reaching Perry's desk on Thursday. When the House passed the bill, several Santa Claus impersonators were in attendance and rang their sleigh bells.

The link has a lot of ads. The complete text is above.
//http://dfw.cbslocal.com/2013/06/13/texas-gov-perry-signs-merry-christmas-bill/

[kilodelta]

Damn... just realized that this is from June.

[AllPurposeAtheist]

Must....send...sisters....granddaughter...lifesize....tooth fairy statue! :)

[kilodelta]

Here's an article that has a Texas school choosing not to put up a "Christmas Tree," but a "Holiday Tree "instead. The Christians seem to think that the law that was passed required a Christmas tree instead of just allowing it.

//http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2013/12/05/school-bans-christmas-trees-colors-red-green/

[AllPurposeAtheist]

What? The gubner didn't force everyone to pray to the same god? That bastard!

[stromboli]

I think Texas atheists should start a petition to make the Festivus pole the state tree. Let's shake this shit up a little.

[Solitary]

How It All Got Started
Long before the advent of Christianity, plants and trees that remained green all year had a special meaning for people in the winter. Just as people today decorate their homes during the festive season with pine, spruce, and fir trees, ancient peoples hung evergreen boughs over their doors and windows. In many countries it was believed that evergreens would keep away witches, ghosts, evil spirits, and illness.

In the Northern hemisphere, the shortest day and longest night of the year falls on December 21 or December 22 and is called the winter solstice. Many ancient people believed that the sun was a god and that winter came every year because the sun god had become sick and weak. They celebrated the solstice because it meant that at last the sun god would begin to get well. Evergreen boughs reminded them of all the green plants that would grow again when the sun god was strong and summer would return.

The ancient Egyptians worshipped a god called Ra, who had the head of a hawk and wore the sun as a blazing disk in his crown. At the solstice, when Ra began to recover from the illness, the Egyptians filled their homes with green palm rushes which symbolized for them the triumph of life over death.

Early Romans marked the solstice with a feast called the Saturnalia in honor of Saturn, the god of agriculture. The Romans knew that the solstice meant that soon farms and orchards would be green and fruitful. To mark the occasion, they decorated their homes and temples with evergreen boughs. In Northern Europe the mysterious Druids, the priests of the ancient Celts, also decorated their temples with evergreen boughs as a symbol of everlasting life. The fierce Vikings in Scandinavia thought that evergreens were the special plant of the sun god, Balder.

Germany is credited with starting the Christmas tree tradition as we now know it in the 16th century when devout Christians brought decorated trees into their homes. Some built Christmas pyramids of wood and decorated them with evergreens and candles if wood was scarce. It is a widely held belief that Martin Luther, the 16th-century Protestant reformer, first added lighted candles to a tree. Walking toward his home one winter evening, composing a sermon, he was awed by the brilliance of stars twinkling amidst evergreens. To recapture the scene for his family, he erected a tree in the main room and wired its branches with lighted candles.

Most 19th-century Americans found Christmas trees an oddity. The first record of one being on display was in the 1830s by the German settlers of Pennsylvania, although trees had been a tradition in many German homes much earlier. The Pennsylvania German settlements had community trees as early as 1747. But, as late as the 1840s Christmas trees were seen as pagan symbols and not accepted by most Americans.

It is not surprising that, like many other festive Christmas customs, the tree was adopted so late in America. To the New England Puritans, Christmas was sacred. The pilgrims's second governor, William Bradford, wrote that he tried hard to stamp out "pagan mockery" of the observance, penalizing any frivolity. The influential Oliver Cromwell preached against "the heathen traditions" of Christmas carols, decorated trees, and any joyful expression that desecrated "that sacred event." In 1659, the General Court of Massachusetts enacted a law making any observance of December 25 (other than a church service) a penal offense; people were fined for hanging decorations. That stern solemnity continued until the 19th century, when the influx of German and Irish immigrants undermined the Puritan legacy.

In 1846, the popular royals, Queen Victoria and her German Prince, Albert, were sketched in the Illustrated London News standing with their children around a Christmas tree. Unlike the previous royal family, Victoria was very popular with her subjects, and what was done at court immediately became fashionable—not only in Britain, but with fashion-conscious East Coast American Society. The Christmas tree had arrived.

By the 1890s Christmas ornaments were arriving from Germany and Christmas tree popularity was on the rise around the U.S. It was noted that Europeans used small trees about four feet in height, while Americans liked their Christmas trees to reach from floor to ceiling.

The early 20th century saw Americans decorating their trees mainly with homemade ornaments, while the German-American sect continued to use apples, nuts, and marzipan cookies. Popcorn joined in after being dyed bright colors and interlaced with berries and nuts. Electricity brought about Christmas lights, making it possible for Christmas trees to glow for days on end. With this, Christmas trees began to appear in town squares across the country and having a Christmas tree in the home became an American tradition.

Does Texas Gov. Rick Perry realize the Christmas tree is a Pagan symbol? How many Christian customs  and rituals are also?  #-o   :rollin:    Solitary

[SGOS]

Cut down a tree, drag it into your house, and put ornaments on it.  Then light it up with different colored lights.  After New Years, throw it away.  And this makes sense, because?  It glorifies god?

Frankly, I'm all for it.  Sometimes, I get tired of thinking and doing things for a reason.  I just want to do some thoughtless activity that accomplishes nothing and makes no sense.  Think of it as a break from reality.

Who but a Republican Governor of Texas would be better suited to passing laws that protect these sorts of activities, whether it be protecting the true meaning of Christmas, however you define true, or invading non threating countries around the world?  And that's why I'm proud to be from Amurica, The home of Texas, the leader in protecting the most cherish rights of North America.