Freethought Matters: Winter Solstice

[@rachelmann7488]

A very happy solistice and reason's greetings to you! Thank you for what you do for our country!

[@donkeyparadise9276]

what's wrong with Christmas

[@allwinds3786]

@@donkeyparadise9276 what do you mean?

[@robertmethia7080]

very good for all to enjoy thanks

[@pambromley7481]

A refreshing break from wall to wall christmas.

[@mariavaleriagiacaglia8974]

Dear Annie and Dan, thank you for your awesome work. May 2023 be a great year to you!

[@gretam3260]

Annie and Dan You are doing and incredible job, thank you and happy solstice !

[@louisanow]

I love your protest display. Thanks for all your hard work.

[@stiksmommy5079]

We had a great winter solstice. We head to one of our local forest preserves as they usually hold an event with a bonfire and short hike along their trails. It's a great way to welcome back the sun.

[@rcnfo1197]

Thank you for this winter solstice update and celebration. Love the songs. We need more like them!

[@jasonhoblin_sociopolitical]

☃ Happy ❄ Winter 🎇 Solstice🎄

[@Krush00]

Happy holidays and Merry Solstice!

[@brooksshepard9649]

It’s a tough time of year to be an atheist and a diabetic. Although I seldom need cheering, this message has given me an even brighter day. Thanks you. My donation will soon be on its way. The best gift I give all year 19:32

[@rhondah1587]

I’m an atheist and diabetic too. All the sugary sweets are always a hard test for us at this time of year. I just up my insulin a bit and moderately indulge. Lol. Happy Winter Solstice.

[@cybersandoval]

loved the secular hymn, very nice 👌

[@allenhonaker4107]

I engage in Reformed Tree Worship. I worship the coffee bean and tobacco leaf.Blessed be the Bean. Sooting be the Leaf. 😂😂😂😃

[@fbeve10040]

Loved this program...

[@robertjsmith]

Everything we have comes from EARTH,WATER,FIRE,AND AIR,let all peoples come together and celebrate round the fire

[@omaddad1525]

Thanks for this video I learned a lot. Happy solstice and new year to you!

[@toe2toe22]

The Bill of Rights Nativity scene is brilliant for non-believers.

[@beckyd712]

Happy Solstice! Thank you both for all you do. We appreciate you!

[@jrobinsong]

Dan Barker's playing and singing reminds me of Dave Frishberg. I loved them both.

[@alanw505]

Somebody has to play the bad guy if we all want freedom from religion. I don't envy their life's mission but I sure as hell appreciate it.

[@xtradelite903]

Annie is getting younger and younger as we all age. Just beautiful looking.

[@alexhidel3732]

Thank you for the information, I’ve heard it all before but I like a refresher every Christmas, the truth. Happy winter solstice 👻

[@TrevorduBuisson]

Gosh Dan, I knew you were a musician, but that's some very fine piano playing, choice accompaniment, superb voicing and improv. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Not to mention the thoughtful and poignant rewrite of 'Little Town of Bethlehem'! 🎄☃🎅

[@norwalltino]

Amazing nice piano playing! Your gospel is amazing as well 🙂

[@CarynDPrescott]

Wonderful!

[@toe2toe22]

happy winter Solstice everyone.

[@zap...]

Happy December!

[@frednurc4088]

Thanks. You give me hope. Have a great solstice time!

[@jarodcarnarvon5198]

Annie is so sweet.

[@kookamunga2458]

I love you guys for telling us the truth. My pagen holiday was stolen from me and renamed Christmas. Have a sinfull Saturday night and a Merry Winter Soltace . This is your friendy neighborhood godless hell bound atheist sinner .

[@ahmetdogan5685]

Great Channel 👍

[@jarodcarnarvon5198]

The show is definitely informative. Growing up Christian I always thought Christmas originated from the Bible......

[@christarakich4953]

Nice piano playing there, Dan, with no sheet music! 😮

[@andyeckles4158]

Very informative. Thank you for reminding me just how important your organization is. Perhaps I should get more involved... Seasons greetings.

[@jesseriker3076]

Excellent work .

[@jarodcarnarvon5198]

Nice jazzy song the girl sang at the end.

[@Rolanda-Doe.1126]

I love y'all you set me free.

[@anniesue4456]

I remember watching you on a set of vhs tapes I got from the library...

[@metiusabt2581]

Haopy Zamenhof day! (15 december). Happy winter solstice! The new year used to start, but because the calende was a little bit to short the solstice shifted to earlier days in december. Hence we have 3 festivities now: new yeare, christmas and midwinter. I celebrate st the 25th that the christians get it wrong!

[@harveywabbit9541]

There is also the 25th of June when Jesus (the sun) leaves his family behind.

[@teacherrussell5206]

BTW, I love Away "with" the manger😄

[@neilforbes416]

Here in Australia, Summer has started on 1st December(the day a season should start) and gets very warm, even hot.

[@harveywabbit9541]

The Egyptian Neith (Virgo of the Zodiac) reigned inseparably with Aman (Aries) in the summer hemisphere. She was the mother of the Gods," mother of the Sun, etc. Being the feminine principle as Aman was the male principle, her temples bore this inscription: "I am all that has been, all that is, and all that will be. My offspring is the Sun." She, like the Virgin Mary, conceived on the 25th of March, and gave birth to the Sun on the 25th December following.

[@jdn42y11]

Blah blah blah…It’s all mythology!

[@harveywabbit9541]

@@jdn42y11 The sun is real and so is his wife, the moon.

[@Rolanda-Doe.1126]

Thanks I never knew this.

[@harveywabbit9541]

@@Rolanda-Doe.1126 Aman, the sun, can also be called Amen/Amun. Jesus (the sun) is called "the Amen." The Jesus myth is closely associated with Aries the Ram who is also the Egyptian Khnum, a creator god. Adam/Cain/Seth, is also an Egyptian god. He is the Greek Typhon who represents chaos.

[@jdn42y11]

@@Rolanda-Doe.1126 Beyond mind boggling stuff, eh? Unreal the crap sheoples follow

[@neilforbes416]

7:00 The practice of a decorated tree comes from the German custom and was introduced to Britain(then to the world) by Prince Albert, husband and consort of Queen Victoria. It was called *Weihnachtsbaum* in Albert's native German language.

[@linkbiff1054]

Christmas went through like three different changes in dates before keeping it on December 25th

[@teacherrussell5206]

Christians are just confused about the lyrics to that great Lennon song. It's not War on Christmas, it's Happy Xmas (War is Over).

[@harveywabbit9541]

Moses was also born on December 25. Zeus fell in love with this beautiful boy sun (Shinar) and carried him to Mount Olympus. This became Exodus 19.4.

[@ric2play]

We the Sheeple

[@incorectulpolitic]

Preventionism isn’t conditional. Never has it been ethically justifiable to impose unnecessary risk, suffering and death without consent. Breeders selfishly want a toy-child to distract them from their mundane lives.

[@ericjohnson6665]

It has made sense to me to have any kind of festival of lights during the shortest days of the northern hemisphere as a psychological pick-me-up to use as a defense against Seasonal Affected Disorder. Subconscious not doubt, but real and useful, nonetheless. As for when Jesus was actually born, a new divine revelation tells us it was on August 21st, 7 BC, at noon. But Jews didn't celebrate birthdays, only pagans did. Christians cleverly converted pagans to Christianity by this more.

[@btbingo]

When I was in college I tried to persuade my department to indulge in a Saturnalia during the xmas vacation. I failed.

[@timhansen3376]

Amazing sadness. I guess when the people stop with this then they will do other needed advocateies. Like right to die.!!

[@alexhidel3732]

Dan could of been a comedian, he still can be. I hope I see him on stage one day holding a puppet of satan, I’d die laughing.

[@93Current]

At the Winter Solstice the sun rises at it's lowest point in the sky. However, it does not appear at a higher point in the sky until three days after the Solstice. In pagan terms the sun was said to die, rising back to life, or resurrecting on the third day.

[@luv2fly745]

This is where the Christians got it wrong. They should be observing Easter now..not the birth of their 'savior'

[@PhilRounds]

Ok, i'm going to play devil's advocate here: The First Amendments actual words are " Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof..." This appears to have the explicit meaning that no laws may be passed by Congress concerning the establishment or the lawful practice of any religion in regard to government. It does not explicitly say that government entities and organizations may not openly celebrate or take part in any religious holidays or practices. These are implications assumed by the Supreme Court as an extended meaning of the Establishment Clause. If the Establishment Clause is taken at its most basic meaning, it only restricts Constitutional law and allows for the free practice of any (or no) religion.

[@PhilRounds]

....and Happy Solstice to everyone!

[@ChucksterOLove]

All major Christian holidays just so happen to be on days when the Sun changes phases. Christmas happens during the Winter Solstice, and Easter happens during the Vernal Equinox.... just a coincidence I'm sure. 🙄👌

[@harveywabbit9541]

Moses was also born on December 25. Zeus fell in love with this beautiful boy sun (Shinar) and carried him to Mount Olympus. This became Exodus 19.4.

[@AmitKumar-qz2us]

Chritianity debunked using science & history As per Bible the creation Begins in 4004 BC at 9 AM on 23rdOctober. Means creation took place nearly 6000 year ago. (But as per modern science its happened 15 billion yr. Ago Even age of earth is about 4.5 billion years ) *Naturally you cannot have History written before the creation of cosmos , right ?* So they burn all great library of world and rewrite world history Also Bible said earth is flat , sun moving around the Earth , But Galileo said that the earth is round and circles the sun , and the church blinded him , so that he can never look into another telescope. Aslo punish copernicus . Undermining science is evil I don't give a damn what the bible says about gay people. The bible Allow slavery, child abuse, misogyny, war, and rape-marriages, Genocide, sex slaves, Cannibalism and should not be considered a "moral guidebook". And until you actually prove that Flat Earth, Adam- eve, Jesus even exists, your argument is irrelevant. "It is from the Bible that man has learned Cruelty, Rapine, Genocide and Slavery for the belief of a cruel God makes a cruel man.” It would be more consistent that we call [the Bible] the work of a demon than the word of God. It is a history of wickedness that has served to corrupt and brutalize mankind. The Bible: a history of wickedness that has served to corrupt and brutalise mankind. Of all the tyrannies that effect mankind, tyranny in religion is the worst; every other species of tyranny is limited to the world we live in; but this attempts to stride beyond the grave, and seeks to pursue us into eternity. Thomas Paine Founding father of USA

[@timhansen3376]

A DULLNESS IN THE VOICE IT SEEMS SO COMMON NOW . all the legacy media and most of academia and medicine. My opinion is a hopelessness but I also think it is also a mental and spiritual slavery.

[@RomanPaganChurch]

I fully support the separation of church and state, but what can we do about the reality that religiosity is genetic?

[@thedude9941]

Belief in the supernatural is just part of the human experience, there is really nothing you can do about this fact.

[@RomanPaganChurch]

@@thedude9941 precisely my point.

[@winc06]

It seems to me that if that church is tax free, then that is a government subsidy of religion and that creche display. Is that really private property?

[@jacklong7048]

If that was true-what about many charities that are not religion based and tax free? Comment doesn't make sense.

[@robertdeland3390]

Great song Dan, but I advise you to keep your day job. 🤣

[@boxcardboard5594]

In scandinavia, we still do not have the word "Christ's mass". We all celebrate, and use the word Jul; happy christmas is "God Jul". Jul, by the way is not related to the later Yul. The roots for Jul is concidered to be pre-iron age, possibly early bronze age. It is believed to have the same roots as the word hjul. Both meaning "wheel". Jul being related to the "Sun Wheel". ... Even the religiois use this. God Jul to y'all...

[@kevchard5214]

I wish the US would celebrate saturnalia. It would be great for the slaves and masters to change places for a while again but we all know christian capitalism will never let this happen again.

[@markwhitman9029]

Just wonderful and enjoyed this immensely

[@jarodcarnarvon5198]

I thought Martin Luther was the first one to decorate a tree on Christmas....

[@thedude9941]

Correct

[@jerryjones7293]

Rulers find religion to be useful. Jefferson considered it to be used for power and pence.

[@incorectulpolitic]

I've had a few cousins laugh at me for not having kids. One of those cousins just found out his newborn son is severely autistic and will require 24/7 care. That same cousin came to me and said that he now understands what I meant by this. They all think it's fun and games until it happens to them. One of my other cousins lost his 18 year old son to a motorcycle accident. They think their lives are perfect until disaster comes knocking at their doors. No thanks I'm not putting another sentient being thru this mess. Just goes to show the immaturity that comes with being a compulsive gambler, in particular a compulsive gambler who accepts a set of risks that are going to be directly dealt to a whole newly created being and not actually that person themselves. Egotistical and dishonest. Most humans are like that, which explains why relatively few are persuaded by the very rational philosophy of preventionism. Not rejoicing in some else's misfortune but it does not hit home until it happens to you. Similar story, I have cousins so self absorbed, 1 of them tried for a 2nd kid and suffered a miscarriage. I just never could understand why would you want to subject an innocent soul to this russian roulette.

[@ACB2K]

Waw, I feel you, understand and respect you. People try to put their philosophies onto others that dont share ideologies.. Children is not for everyone, and others should respect that.

[@incorectulpolitic]

@@ACB2K Existence is death row. We don't need more future corpses. why people are creating more future funerals, it doesn't make sense at all. Preventionism isn’t conditional. Never has it been ethically justifiable to impose unnecessary risk, suffering and death without consent. Breediot-exploiters selfishly want a toy-child to distract them from their mundane lives.

[@ACB2K]

@@incorectulpolitic Ha ha..😇 But when we get older we need someone, but them again, it's not guaranteed that children will be there.

[@incorectulpolitic]

@@ACB2K thank you proving how selfish and narcissistic and malevolent in intent breediot-exploiters are. it is ALL about THEM, what THEY 'need' and 'want'.

[@ACB2K]

@@incorectulpolitic 😄😄😄😄

[@rodneydowney2561]

Where are the Satanists? Don't they have a right to a display?

[@robertdeland3390]

Love and agree with your message, but the tempo and timing of your speech patterns remind me of JW elders speech patterns. !!

[@RaptorSeer]

I don't know about these particular speakers, but I'm guessing that there are plenty of ex-JWs and other ex-fundies within the ranks of FFRF. It's a hard habit to break when we're raised to present that way!

[@FirewindII]

I HATE the Winter Solstice!!

[@kayrush9834]

Spare the rod or spoil the child you have a problem With that one too.?

[@spidertheateo4344]

They did that on purpose cause they knew

[@thearmchairspacemanOG]

also.. I don't see the issue with the nativity scene if, as it seems, it's *part of* a display which has, as you stated, so many pagan elements as to represent most pre-christian beliefs. Its not like the Green Man and Bel are any more real than Jesus and Mary are after all... are you saying there shouldn't be ANY festive displays on Govt property? that would never wash in UK, we don't care about a daft nativity scene, that's the least of the issues god-fearing has brung among us.. it's a trivial matter, 'cause nobody's trying to force out the other stuff and claim the whole season as theirs alone.. they claim other stuff of course.. like easter.. and the crown it's self.

[@biblebadcopycatofcuneiform8210]

Great Winter Solstice. I, too, wish Christians would keep their [bleeping] hands off what it is not theirs!! I have a hard time during this time, at times, because I do not agree at all with children being deceived with Satan stuff at all. I do not like control methods where kids are being guided how to be. I dig people, but I do not dig Jesus people at all. {Willful} ignorance bothers me a lot.

[@thedude9941]

So much misinformation six minutes into the video, seriously these people need to just stick to politics and leave history alone because they clearly are not historians. They are clearly just recycling the endless internet memes and wikipedia articles, and a whole list could be made of all the misinformation in the first six minutes. 1. Christians stole the holiday, this one is probably the worst since you can't steal something that doesn't even belong to someone. If you do your research you would know that these festivals did not materialize out of thin air, they were developed with influence from other cultures especially Egypt. 2. Christmas is the birth of Sol Invictus, this is also incorrect the celebration of Sol Invictus actually post dates Christmas, being made an official holiday. 3. Saturnalia this could also contend for the worst, Dan claims that everything about Christmas comes from this festival however there is no historical evidence of what we know as the Christmas tree today having any connection to Saturnalia, gift giving was a part of this festival however gift giving is a common tradition across many world cultures so claiming it comes from Saturnalia is disingenuous and kinda Eurocentric. 4. Christmas Trees, Dan is wrong here again the Christmas tree, was actually frist a product of the 1500s and didn't even become a common tradition until close to the 20th century. 5. Jeremiah 10 this one is just flat out stupid here's what it actually says. "Hear the word that the Lord speaks to you, O house of Israel. Thus says the Lord: Learn not the way of the nations, nor be dismayed at the signs of the heavens because the nations are dismayed at them, for the customs of the peoples are vanity. A tree from the forest is cut down and worked with an axe by the hands of a craftsman. They decorate it with silver and gold; they fasten it with a hammer and nails so that it cannot move. Their idols are like a scarecrow in a cucumber field, and they cannot speak; they have to be carried, for they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of them, for they cannot do evil, neither is it in them to do good." That's verses 1-5 of Jeremiah 10, and as you can clearly see it's talking about idols not Christmas trees it says they are carved by a craftsman, and have to be carried for they cannot walk which everyone knows a tree cannot walk. If you countinue reading God is telling Israel to only worship him, implying the chapter is about idols. 6. The Bible never says Jesus was born on December 25th, this is true and if you research the history of the nativity tradition, there were actually multiple dates proposed as the date with the oldest being March 25th which is the date in Jewish tradition that creation took place on this day and this was the birth of all the prophets, it is also important to remember in the region of the world known as Israel there are only two seasons summer and winter because it's a Mediterranean region. 7. Christmas was on December 25th as a marketing scheme, this is somewhat true but leaves out details. During the first 300 years of Christianity it was difficult to be Christian in the Roman empire because of persecution, this changed in 313 when Christianity became a legal religion then about a decade later the Christians, decided things are too boring we need more holidays so they took the nativity tradition and turned it into the holiday we call Christmas, it did not replace Saturnalia though or any other holiday there is historical evidence that Saturnalia was still celebrated at the same time Christmas became a holiday. 8. The Protestant reformers did outlaw Christmas not because of pagan origins, but because of Catholic origins. This had to do with fact they were fighting with the Catholic Church over power, the Catholics had long held that divine inspiration came from the teachings of their sages being the Pope's and Priests plus the Bible, the Protestants operated on the Bible alone and because of no command to celebrate the birthday of Jesus in the Bible the Protestants considered Christmas an unbilical Catholic holiday. If anyone is interested in learning more about these types of topics, I would recommend Tom O'Neill History for Atheists channel he's a real historian and doesn't base his research on wikipedia and Internet memes. Inspiring Philosophy is another good one yes he is a Christian, but he at least puts real research into his content.

[@Watchclock71]

Please speak a little faster.

[@harveywabbit9541]

The old sun "dies" and is born again as the baby sun on December 25. You must be born again to go to Heaven (Spring equinox - Autumn equinox). We will soon be on our way to the biblical Heaven.

[@jdn42y11]

Somewhere, there's roads paved with gold bricks, but no fresh water or edible food. That's banker's heaven coming to a town near you.

[@jdn42y11]

@@louisanow Lost me there Tarzan.

[@acrediteounao777]

If I born again, that means I am going to have two bellybuttons, right?

[@harveywabbit9541]

@@acrediteounao777 There are no deaths in the bible.

[@SCS-1964]

Winter Solstice=Sol Invictus=Christmas.....It's called evolution!