Remembering the reason for the season: Timothy Cardinal Dolan addresses dismal Christmas poll
Timothy Cardinal Dolan reflects on the true meaning of Christmas as a new poll indicates 84% of Christians say the U.S. has forgotten its significance.
A majority of Americans believe most people have forgotten the true meaning of Christmas, according to a new survey.
Forty-two percent of Americans overall strongly agree that Americans have forgotten the true meaning of Christmas and 33% said they somewhat agree, according to a nationally representative Ipsos poll of 1,023 adults conducted Dec. 9–11 using KnowledgePanel, with a margin of sampling error of +/- 3.3 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.
Only 6% strongly disagreed with the statement, and 10% somewhat disagreed.
Among those polled, Christians were the group that most adamantly claimed the purpose of Christmas has been forgotten, with 84% overall saying they agree with the opinion.
GETTING TO THE HEART OF CHRISTMAS
Several figures representing a scene of the birth of Christ are shown in the traditional Christmas nativity scene of Neapolitan origin from the 19th century. (Atilano Garcia/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Of these Christians, 50% said they strongly agree and 34% said they somewhat agree. Only 4% and 9% of Christians said they strongly disagreed or somewhat disagreed, respectively.
Sixty percent of non-religious Americans also believe many have lost the true meaning of Christmas.
The belief was more widely held among Republicans, with 88% agreeing compared to 66% of Democrats.
A Christian worshipper prays after lighting a candle on Christmas Eve at the Church of the Nativity, built atop the site where Christians believe Jesus Christ was born, in the West Bank City of Bethlehem, Saturday, Dec. 24, 2016. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)
Age also influenced how strongly people agreed with this sentiment. Eighty-one percent of those 50 and older agreed that most people have forgotten the true meaning of Christmas, while 68% of those 18 to 24 and 66% of those 25 to 34 agreed.
In the group of participants ages 35 to 49, 72% agreed.
CARDINAL DOLAN COMMENTS ON A NEW POLL: 84% BELIEVE ‘TRUE MEANING’ OF CHRISTMAS IS ‘FORGOTTEN’
The Adoration of the Shepherds (iStock)
The survey also touched on Americans' opinions regarding other Christmas-related topics, such as holiday decorations and music.
According to the survey, 85% of Americans decorate their homes for the holiday season, and 41% take down their decorations during the first week of January. Forty-eight percent of respondents think that decorations should not be left up past the first week of January, while 23% believe they should be taken down by the end of the month.
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A majority (87%) agreed that Christmas music should start after Thanksgiving, and 54% were able to name a Christmas song they found annoying. The spot for the most annoying Christmas song went to Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas Is You," at 12%.
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