Why Christians Shouldn’t Freak Out About the Term “Xmas”

The other day, I was scrolling through my Facebook newsfeed, and I saw someone say, “So excited for Xmas!” and in the comments, someone replied, “Don’t take the Christ out of Christmas!” 

Now, I understand that some Christians are a bit sensitive about this issue since it seems that many are replacing “Merry Christmas” with “Happy holidays,” but honestly, that’s a whole separate issue. 

It’s a common misconception that the term “Xmas” comes from a secular attempt to remove “Christ” from “Christmas.” The term “Xmas” actually dates back to the 16th century. And you know what? The letter X is the Greek letter “chi,” the initial letter in the word Χριστός. And here’s the kicker: Χριστός means “Christ.” X has been an acceptable representation of the word “Christ” for hundreds of years. This device is known as a Christogram. The mas in Xmas is the Old English word for “mass.”  (The thought-provoking etymology of “mass” can be found here.) In the same vein, the dignified terms Xpian and Xtian have been used in place of the word “Christian.” {source}

Christians are often know for what we’re against, instead of what we’re for. What are we for?

Love.

Peace.

Acceptance.

Joy.

And by freaking out when someone writes “Xmas” instead of “Christmas,” we are just reaffirming the idea that Christians are just anal-retentive people who are waiting for the opportunity to point fingers and shake our fists in the air. 

Sure, some people may be using the term Xmas as a way of avoiding the word “Christ,” but who cares? Let’s let other people live their lives without a condemning Christian breathing down their necks. Let’s just love people for who they are. If you want to spell out the word Christmas because of a personal conviction, more power to you. But just know that it’s not inherently bad to shorten “Christmas” to “Xmas.”