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Another St. Patrick's Day down
Today was St. Patrick's day. If you're not Irish, that probably doesn't mean anything to you. Or so you'd expect for what started out as a basically religious holiday until us Americans got our hands on the holiday. I'm not trying to disrespect my fellow Americans, I'm just pointing out that our love of a good party has transformed a number of traditional holidays into something much different than originally intended. To support my view, I offer exhibit A - Mardi Gras aka Fat Tuesday the day before Ash Wednesday, which signifies the commencement of Lent. To the average American, Mardi Gras conjures images of drunken debauchery in the streets of New Orleans; young women exposing their breasts for strings of cheap plastic beads. For most of us, it has lost its religious affiliation, and is equally celebrated by devout believers and non-believers alike. Not that there is anything wrong with that, it's just that it has turned into something different. Likewise, St. Patrick's Day has gone from the celebration of the life of a beloved patron saint to an excuse to get drunk on green beer and celebrate all things Irish. Oddly, it has only been in very recent years that the type of celebration seen in the USA has been practiced in Ireland. Previously, green beer would have been unheard of in Ireland. For exhibit B, I offer Cinco de Mayo aka May 5th. Originally the Mexican independence day, it is probably more celebrated in the USA as an excuse to have a party than it is in Mexico itself. Is that a bad thing? I don't think it is really, because despite the Americanization of these celebrations, they can actually lead to greater knowledge and understanding across cultures. St. Patrick's Day has sparked interest in learning more about the emerald isle in more than a few Americans who might otherwise not have sought to know and understand the Irish any better. Cinco de Mayo has helped a number of Americans appreciate their neighbors to the south, while Mardi Gras has led to awareness of Christianity and particullarly Catholicism that they might not have had. In conclusion, I say let the changes happen if they lead to a more open and accepting attitude. Who knows, perhaps through the distortion of some holidays, we are really opening the door to being better world citizens. And isn't that what we should all strive to be? Don't look now, but here comes Easter... |
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