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by Erik Alsgaard

Quick, fill in the blanks: 'Merry ________'; 'Happy _________.'

Apparently, the words that go next, 'Christmas' and 'Holidays' are causing quite a stir this year, which is kind of amazing when you stop and think about it.

It seems that too many people are 'happy' these days but not enough are 'merry.' Or, to be specific, not enough people are wishing others merriment at this time of year and that is causing unhappiness.

Apparently President and Mrs. George W. Bush committed some kind of faux pas this year when they sent out greetings cards using the latter wording and not the former. Tsk tsk tsk, the pundits said. After all, they said, isn?t President Bush a Christian? Isn?t the First Family United Methodist, for goodness? sake? Don?t they know the reason for the season?

Apparently, several major retail stores are in hot water because they greet their customers with 'happy' and not 'merry.' I have heard that some people went so far as to stop shopping at these places until store management reversed this policy. I am told that several have done just that to attract and keep shoppers.

I thus took it upon myself to unravel this linguistic mystery; it is obviously important to know the difference. So I looked them up. Here?s what I found.

'Merry ? adjective ? pleasing, agreeable; full of fun and laughter; lively and cheerful, mirthful; festive.'

'Happy ? adjective ? favored by circumstances; lucky; fortunate; having, showing or causing a feeling of great pleasure, contentment, joy, etc.'

Both sound pretty good to me. What?s the fuss?

Well, it?s not the first word in the phrase that?s troubling; it?s the second. The kafuffle is over the words 'Christmas' and 'Holidays.' Best as I can understand it, 'Merry' goes with 'Christmas' and 'Happy' goes with 'Holidays' like peanut butter goes with jelly, like Abbott goes with Costello, and like Sonny goes with Cher. In other words, one just doesn?t go without the other.

'When you take away ?Christmas? and replace it with a generic term like ?holiday,? you take away the very essence of what is being celebrated,' the American Family Association explained in a news release defending its retail boycott campaign of stores that use 'Seasons Greetings' or something other than 'Merry Christmas.'

You see, 'Christmas' is very specific to a particular day, faith and (some would say) historic event, while 'Holiday' is seen as more generic; a word that seeks to be inclusive of others for whom Christmas is neither celebrated nor observed.

What?s a disciple of Jesus to do!? How faithful are we to be with our own set of beliefs versus our sensitivity to others who may not share that same set of beliefs? Do we try and include or exclude? Do we keep our integrity or do we possibly offend?

Not easy questions, at least on the surface.

Not easy, that is, if you and I somehow think that being genuine in living our faith will cause others to stumble in theirs. I, for one, don?t buy it.

For many (most?) people, their idea of Christianity is that we are people who clunk other people over the head with a Bible, asking, 'Do you know Jesus?' at every turn.

Just like, for many (most?) people, when you say the word 'Islam' the first word that pops into their head is 'terrorist,' followed closely by the word 'extremist.'

Neither example is accurate or true, but that?s the image many people have and, in this world, perception is reality.

Are we threatened when other people celebrate a faith that is different from ours? And if so, why do we do that? Is it out of fear? Ignorance? Both?

Should it diminish or threaten my belief in Jesus when the family down the street sets up their Menorah in their living room window? Does it make me want to convert them to Christianity?

For me, the answer is 'no.'

Does it make me appreciate the rich diversity of God?s creation, of the many ways people over the centuries and around the world strive for harmony, peace, goodwill and love? Does the celebration of another person?s faith different from mine make me appreciate all the more the traditions and richness of my faith.

For me, the answer is a firm 'yes.'

Mostly, though, what this discussion does is show me two things. One, words are important. And two, we Americans will get distracted from some very difficult issues of life ? war in Iraq, poverty and racism here at home ? at the drop of a hat and be much more enthused about this 'Christmas-Holidays' thing than just about anything else.

How depressing.

But then I heard something that cheered me. I was doing my cookie baking last weekend, preparing for a party at work. Right in the middle of the third batch of chocolate chip cookies, and right at the end of Jimmy Buffet?s 'Christmas Island' CD, on a bonus track not listed on the cover, Buffet reads the famous poem, 'A Visit from St. Nicholas' by Clement C. Moore, famous for its first line, 'Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house?.'

At last, I thought, now here?s something that will really give me a Merry Christmas; here?s something that will lift me from the holiday funk. Besides, it?s one of the few poems I have memorized.

At least I thought I did. Do you remember how the poem ends? Do you really remember how it ends?

'Happy Christmas to all and to all a good night.'