I don't know, Helen, that the views of Rhu or any other Englishperson would depend on the fact that the C of E is the state religion in England. Fact is, the percentage of the population which attends C of E services or otherwise gets involved in the church (everyone is by law presumed a member of it) is even more miniscule than the corresponding percentages of US Christians and Jews of all stripes who are active church or synagogue members. Strange that the U.S., which is specifically forbidden to have any state religion or to allow the govt to support any religion, is a far more religious country than any European country, most of which have state religions; but that's not saying much, since the vast majority of USns have no religion or just some vague religious notions which impose no religious practices or duties.
[Rant]Be that as it may, what gets my goat is that Wall St. and Madison Ave. have done a pretty good job of taking over religious holidays, including Christmas and Hannukah (which is not a major festival among Jews), assigning new limits for the seasons, continually introducing new icons and symbols (like talking snowmen, red-nosed reindeer and such ilk), and in general making them over into whatever they think will assist in moving merchandise. If they would just carry on merchandising campaigns for The Holidays and work on more music like "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire" and dream up as many secular cutesie-wutesie moose, mice, hippopotami, elves, dancing fir trees, or whatever, and leave our religious traditions alone. What with their continually assaulting our ears in the malls with carols, you now can't convince anyone that We Three Kings of Orey and Tar is not a Christmas carol, or that I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus is not an update of a 13th century sequence antiphon in the Phrygian mode, for Lauds on Christmas Day. Here endeth this year's Christmas rant.
