I Really Like Some Christmas Songs

I’m not hugely into Christmas music, but there are a few songs that I like to listen to around the holidays. One is explicitly atheist, a few are secular favorites, and a couple are more traditional. Enjoy!

“White Wine in the Sun” – Tim Minchin
This is probably my favorite Christmas song ever, and Tim Minchin does a wonderful job of delving into the complex feelings that many atheists have about the holidays. This year, there is a new animated video for it.

How do atheists do Christmas?

The short answer, in my household at least, is pretty much the same as the rest of my family–just without God. The long answer is somewhat more complicated, and it continues to become more so as my daughter grows up, asks more questions, and tries to figure out what she believes.

I was raised Catholic, but like many US American Catholics my family was never particularly religious aside from going to mass most Sundays and making sure that my sister and I had first communion and were confirmed at the appropriate ages. Holidays with my family were and are primarily secular affairs, days for eating too much pie and spending more-or-less quality time together.