The Meaning of Christmas...

Sonti Ramirez and Nestor Sayo take a look at how Christmas is viewed by young people of different religions...

Christmas is here; bright lights in the streets, decorations in shops and people selling pine trees here, there and everywhere. And who of course could forget Santa Claus!

As young adults we think Christmas is a time when you spend money but it is also a peaceful period marking a religious event. Whereas, when we were younger we thought Santa Claus was real and just looked forward to opening our presents on Christmas morning.

Right now millions of young people around the world are eagerly counting down the days until they wake up to find presents at the ends of their beds.

With all of this going on, it’s easy to forget that not everyone celebrates Christmas. But in fact more than 3 million people in the UK identify with another religion other than Christianity, which works out to be more than a quarter of the population.

Nivine, 10, is one of 1.6 million Muslim people in the UK and for her Christmas is an important day because it symbolises the birth of Christ but it’s not the most important day in the year:

"Eid marks the end of Ramadan so this is the most precious day for Muslims," she says. But she adds that this doesn’t mean she and her family ignore Christmas:

"My family still give gifts to our friends and other people who celebrate it, but we don’t give gifts to each other. We don’t have things like tinsel or trees in our house but my sister and I make paper chains."

Mariya is also Muslim and agrees that Christmas is special:

"It’s not just another day because there is a very different atmosphere in the air. It’s a religious way of giving thanks to Jesus.

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We don’t go and do anything religious on Christmas day like going to church but my family does take a day off work and sometimes we put up a Christmas tree."

After Islam, the next largest religion in Britain is Hinduism. Natasha, 15, is Hindu but says her family is not very religious. She finds it hard not to get into the spirit of Christmas, even though she is not Christian, because it is everywhere:

"England has a Christian history and as most people in this country are Christian, it is almost impossible not to make it the largest celebration of the year."

Natasha says her and her family don’t do anything ‘religious’ at Christmas but they do buy into the commercialised side of it, like having a tree and buying presents. Whilst Natasha enjoys this, she thinks it’s sad that Christmas is becoming more about money than meaning:

"The fact that Christmas is a Christian holiday is becoming less and less important with each generation as the religious celebration gets exchanged for the commercial.

In many ways Christmas has been cheapened by profit making companies and the media. It’s more about spending money than a true celebration."

Natasha isn’t the only one who feels this way. Daniel, 15, is Jewish and also believes that Christmas is more about receiving presents than the birth of Jesus:

"I feel the concept of Christmas has been cheapened over the years. Companies see it as a way of making money. Many people still celebrate Christmas for its original purpose but I think that they are now in the minority."

According to market analysts Mintel, the average adult in the UK this year will spend more than £300 on presents for family members and friends alone. Their report also highlights that over half the population say they spend more than they intend to, with only 38% sticking to their original budgets.

Zak, 13, who is a practising Muslim says: "I think the youth these days just think about presents too much. Some people believe in Santa Claus and some don’t, even though I am not a Christian I think they [Christians] should think about the true meaning of Christmas."

Although a lot of young people we interviewed seemed to think young Christian people are clouded by the importance that Santa Claus and the presents are given, we think young people do also believe in the real meaning of Christmas. We understand the celebration as being about remembering Jesus but also about families getting together, having fun and producing a spirit, which in a way is religious.

Like us, the people we spoke to seemed to enjoy the Christmas spirit, even though they were all non-Christian. Zak enjoys Christmas because of the effect it has on people:

"Most people are happy and there is less trouble."

Daniel adds: "I like the sense of festivity, and in many ways fraternity, that Christmas brings. Everyone seems to be jovial and upbeat and everyone is far more generous than usual."

Finding out what young people from other faiths think of Christmas has been very interesting and enlightening. Maybe in the future it would be nice to celebrate one of their religious celebrations - but for now we’ll just look forward to the 25th and all those presents!

About the team

This story was produced by Sonti Ramirez and Nestor Sayo, 12.It was published by Reach for the Sky Website.