Christmas wins at the White House

[Eucharisted]

Ms. Rogers came to the capital with clear ideas for her new role, rooted in the Obamas’ oft-stated conviction that the White House should be “the people’s house.” Working with the first lady, she set about opening the mansion’s doors. Young jazz musicians were invited to a Stevie Wonder concert. Gay families were included in the traditional Easter egg roll. Non-Irish people were invited on St. Patrick’s Day. Culinary students toured the kitchen and met the chefs.


“What do we want the personality and the tone of the experience to be?” Ms. Rogers asked in an interview earlier this year, describing the Obamas’ philosophy. “We want it to be inclusive, diverse, representative of all Americans, celebratory, authentic. So you sit and you say, O.K., how can we make this event” — and here, Ms. Rogers paused for a moment, adding, “Obama-tized.”


But Washington is a city that likes its traditions, and Ms. Rogers has raised a few eyebrows by trying to bend them. When former social secretaries gave a luncheon to welcome Ms. Rogers earlier this year, one participant said, she surprised them by suggesting the Obamas were planning a “non-religious Christmas” — hardly a surprising idea for an administration making a special effort to reach out to other faiths.


The lunch conversation inevitably turned to whether the White House would display its crèche, customarily placed in a prominent spot in the East Room. Ms. Rogers, this participant said, replied that the Obamas did not intend to put the manger scene on display — a remark that drew an audible gasp from the tight-knit social secretary sisterhood. (A White House official confirmed that there had been internal discussions about making Christmas more inclusive and whether to display the crèche.)


Yet in the end, tradition won out; the executive mansion is now decorated for the Christmas holiday, and the crèche is in its usual East Room spot.

SOURCE: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/06/fashion/06desiree.html?_r=1

 

[princess_ballet]

Are we supposed to be excited by the fact that our Christian president, while celebrating a Christian holiday, decided to put up Christian decorations?

It is a wonderful idea to invite discussion between different faith groups, however, that doesn't mean we should "hide" our faith in order not to offend others.

Besides, let us be honest, they made the decision less on conviction and more on the fact that the last thing the administration needed right now was a discussion about why they didn't put up the nativity.

 

[Fantine]

None of us knows what decorations may or may not be in their private quarters.

The remainder of the White House is a public government building,

But there are those who try to find fault with everything the Obamas do, particularly the religious right whose aim it is to make the US a Christian theocracy.

 

[Krentis]

Besides, let us be honest, they made the decision less on conviction and more on the fact that the last thing the administration needed right now was a discussion about why they didn't put up the nativity.

If we were being honest, we would admit that we have no idea what the decision was based on. You can guess, but you ought not presume to know.

 

[Fantine]

Well, as of August 3, the Obamas hadn't picked a Church yet.

I suppose they wanted to spare Rush Limbaugh the trouble of reading thirty years worth of old sermons to see if they contained any liberal ideas.

t's no surprise, then, that most successful candidates have found a way to talk about their personal faith on their way to the White House. Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama all spoke convincingly of their Christian faith on the campaign trail. Once elected, however, they had widely different records of church attendance. Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton were regulars, for instance, while Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush rarely attended church in Washington. For most Americans, these attendance records are a non-issue.

 

[princess_ballet]

Well, as of August 3, the Obamas hadn't picked a Church yet.

I suppose they wanted to spare Rush Limbaugh the trouble of reading thirty years worth of old sermons to see if they contained any liberal ideas.

So you agree that America is a horrible nation that should be "damned." Great.

And with that, I bow out of this pointless discussion...

 

[AMDG]

Gee I guess there's a little hope for the Christian foundations of our country afterall--at least the people managed to insist on the traditional White House nativity scene.