Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Ben Stein on Christmas

The following was written by Ben Stein and recited by him on CBS Sunday Morning.

Commentary.

My confession:

I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish. And it does not

bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful lit up, bejeweled

trees, 'Christmas' trees. I don't feel threatened. I don't feel discriminated

against. That's what they are: Christmas trees.

It doesn't bother me a bit when people say, 'Merry Christmas' to me. I don't

think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a ghetto. In fact, I

kind of like it It shows that we are all brothers and sisters celebrating this

happy time of year. It doesn't bother me at all that there is a manger scene on

display at a key intersection near my beach house in Malibu. If people want a

preacher, it's just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away.

I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don't think Christians

like getting pushed around for being Christians. I think people who believe in

God are sick and tired of getting pushed around, period. I have no idea where

the concept came from that America is an explicitly atheist country. I can't find

it in the Constitution and I don't like it being shoved down my throat.

Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from that we

should worship celebrities and we aren't allowed to worship God as we

understand Him? I guess that's a sign that I'm getting old, too. But there are

a lot of us who are wondering where these celebrities came from and where

the America we knew went to.

In light of the many jokes we send to one another for a laugh, this is a little

different: This is not intended to be a joke; it's not funny, it's intended to get

you thinking.

Billy Graham's daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson

asked her, 'How could God let something like this happen?' (regarding Katrina).

Anne Graham (Lotz) gave an extremely profound and insightful response. She

said, 'I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years

we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government

and to get out of our lives. And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has

calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His

protection if we demand He leave us alone?'

In light of recent events... terrorists attack, school shootings, etc. I think it

started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body found a

few years ago) complained she didn't want prayer in our schools, and we said

OK. Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school. The Bible says

thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself. And

we said OK.

Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they

misbehave because their little personalities would be warped and we might

damage their self-esteem (Dr Spock's son committed suicide). We said an

expert should know what he's talking about. And we said OK.

Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they

don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers,

their classmates, and themselves.

Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I

think it has a great deal to do with 'WE REAP WHAT WE SOW.'

Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world's

going to hell. Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question

what the Bible says. Funny how you can send 'jokes' through e-mail and they

spread like wildfire but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord,

people think twice about sharing. Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene

articles pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is

suppressed in the school and workplace.

Are you laughing yet?

Funny how when you forward this message, you will not send it to many on

your address list because you're not sure what they believe, or what they will

think of you for sending it.

Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of us than

what God thinks of us.

Pass it on if you think it has merit. If not then just discard it... no one will know

you did. But, if you discard this thought process, don't sit back and complain

about what bad shape the world is in.

My Best Regards, Honestly and respectfully,

Ben Stein

That's good stuff, thanks for sharing.

Nice.

Another one of many good things Ben Stein has written.

Good read

Ben is spot on IMHO

...one of the smartest men of our time and has a great native intuition.

Ben Stein is an outstanding example (among many good examples) of why Jews deserve admiration and respect far, far more than they deserve ridicule and hatred.

Like anyone else, I consider 'em wrong on many points � but as a people, I admire 'em greatly. Hats 0ff! to 'em all, from a far-too-ordinary mortal!