Interestingly enough, I’ve once been told it was bad that I said merry Christmas.
Context: I’m from a fairly irreligious country. Christmas has nothing to do with religion for me because our ancestors celebrated it long before the crusade and in our language it has nothing to do with Christ, we call it jõulud.
Anyway, my dad had a business in the US but his English was poor enough that when I was like 12 or 13, he asked me to send some emails to his clients for him. I did. This was in December. Next time he called, he said some client was furious because I either started or ended the email with Merry Christmas aaaand apparently it went to a Jewish family. Which I guess he knew beforehand but I did not and the didn’t know the email was from me, not him.
Sounds like the person was an asshole. But there are many, that’s why businesses use “Happy Holidays” to avoid them.
Though most people don’t care enough. It is really which kind of person do you deal with. I actually had a situation when my neighbor who is Jewish without much thinking wished Merry Christmas and got same response. Just few seconds later realized I made a mistake and corrected myself.
I suppose if somebody is an Orthodox Jew and dresses in a way that screams left and right who they are, those kind of people might take it that you say Merry Christmas to purposefully offend them, as they put so much effort to show who they are.
Interestingly enough, I’ve once been told it was bad that I said merry Christmas.
Context: I’m from a fairly irreligious country. Christmas has nothing to do with religion for me because our ancestors celebrated it long before the crusade and in our language it has nothing to do with Christ, we call it jõulud.
Anyway, my dad had a business in the US but his English was poor enough that when I was like 12 or 13, he asked me to send some emails to his clients for him. I did. This was in December. Next time he called, he said some client was furious because I either started or ended the email with Merry Christmas aaaand apparently it went to a Jewish family. Which I guess he knew beforehand but I did not and the didn’t know the email was from me, not him.
This would’ve been like late 00s.
Sounds like the person was an asshole. But there are many, that’s why businesses use “Happy Holidays” to avoid them.
Though most people don’t care enough. It is really which kind of person do you deal with. I actually had a situation when my neighbor who is Jewish without much thinking wished Merry Christmas and got same response. Just few seconds later realized I made a mistake and corrected myself.
I suppose if somebody is an Orthodox Jew and dresses in a way that screams left and right who they are, those kind of people might take it that you say Merry Christmas to purposefully offend them, as they put so much effort to show who they are.