To Hizzoner

Dear Mayor Daley,

Chicago has always been my kind of town, but more than that, my town. I love it here and brag about it a lot. So does my family, here and around the world wherever we travel. There’s so much to love and be proud of here.

But I’m not proud of this.

Chicago Christmas Festival Nixes ‘Nativity Story’ Ads Over Fears of Offending Non-Christians

That’s distressing enough. But the story is worse. If you haven’t seen it yet, here’s how the Associated Press reported it.

A public Christmas festival is no place for the Christmas story, the city says. Officials have asked organizers of a downtown Christmas festival, the German Christkindlmarket, to reconsider using a movie studio as a sponsor because it is worried ads for its film “The Nativity Story” might offend non-Christians.

New Line Cinema, which said it was dropped, had planned to play a loop of the new film on televisions at the event. The decision had both the studio and a prominent Christian group shaking their heads.

“The last time I checked, the first six letters of Christmas still spell out Christ,” said Paul Braoudakis, spokesman for the Barrington, Ill.-based Willow Creek Association, a group of more than 11,000 churches of various denominations. “It’s tantamount to celebrating Lincoln’s birthday without talking about Abraham Lincoln.”

You know, Mr. Daley, that’s true.

He also said that there is a nativity scene in Daley Plaza — and that some vendors at the festival sell items related to the nativity.

So that’s supposed to appease the Christians, it appears.

The city does not want to appear to endorse one religion over another, said Cindy Gatziolis, a spokeswoman for the Mayor’s Office of Special Events.

 With all due respect to Ms. Gatziolis, that’s pretty ridiculous, especially at Christmas.

She acknowledged there is a nativity scene, but also said there will be representations of other faiths, including a Jewish menorah, all put up by private groups. She stressed that the city did not order organizers to drop the studio as a sponsor.

Then how did it happen? You know, I really give you a lot of credit for the plain common sense and reasonableness I think you have, to see that some of your staff is nervously scrambling to wash the whole Christmas event out with….bleach. Why?

Officials with the German American Chamber of Commerce of the Midwest, which has organized the event for several years, did not immediately return calls for comment. The festival started Thursday.

So maybe they’re too busy organizing, and can’t return the AP’s calls. But meanwhile…

An executive vice president with New Line Cinema, Christina Kounelias, said the studio’s plan to spend $12,000 in Chicago was part of an advertising campaign around the country. Kounelias said that as far as she knew, the Chicago festival was the only instance where the studio was turned down.

That’s a really bad distinction, Mr. Daley. It’s bad business, yes, but it’s a terrible sacrifice to the god of….unoffensiveness.  

Kounelias said she finds it hard to believe that non-Christians who attended something called Christkindlmarket would be surprised or offended by the presence of posters, brochures and other advertisements of the movie.

“One would assume that if (people) were to go to Christkindlmarket, they’d know it is about Christmas,” she said.

Now, that’s the end of the AP story. But this story is actually just getting started. As I was writing this, I heard Bill O’Reilly on Fox News talking about Chicago and Christmas, and I went to listen. Know what’s funny? When I read this story earlier, I told someone I was just stupefied. When O’Reilly told the story, he said he wasn’t even mad about it “because it’s so stupid it’s beyond belief.” He said “this is insane” and “the mayor’s office is offending far more people” by being unreasonable than by taking this material.

Mike Rich of New Line Cinema, who wrote “The Nativity Story“, was a guest on Fox, and he said it’s only natural to be playing a Christmas story at a Christmas festival. He said his motive was to get at the true meaning of Christmas.

Mr. Daley, I saw a private screening of the film “The Nativity Story” last evening. I was planning to write about it today, not having a clue something like this was happening in Daley Plaza. Watching the film, I thought how beautiful it was to see the real, true story of Christmas on the big screen. In its simplicity, it was marvelous. What was most evident in this film was the message of humility, of obedience in the face of every pressure to the contrary, of self-sacrifice and love. Every person could be moved by these lessons.

By the way, how did this festival in Daley Plaza get started, way back when? To celebrate Christmas, right? It’s nice that in our diverse culture, so many other people of multiple beliefs want to celebrate, too, and want their own faith symbols represented. Alongside the central symbol of Christmas, as it should be. So how is it that some potential charges of people being offended by scenes from “The Nativity Story” have already prevented it from being present? I mean, they’re potential –hypothetical — because those posters and screens aren’t even up yet.

Couple more things…

Last year during the holidays, I hosted “The Right Questions” on Relevant Radio, and had Fox News’ John Gibson on as a guest, a couple of times, for his book The War on Christmas. He made the point that feeling excluded is not being excluded, that he didn’t feel excluded because Muslims go on a hajj, or because they observe Ramadan in his presence, or because Jews observe Passover. In fact…get this…Gibson said that in the Muslim world, you see a lot of Christmas in public, for people to enjoy or ignore. But in the U.S. — which is about 86 percent Christian — many signs of Christmas in public lead to complaints, litigation, angry protests, threats and hard feelings.

Then I went to the Middle East, to the Holy Land, for Christmas last year. And you know, we really did see a lot of Christmas decorations in Jordan, Israel and Palestine. And the Jews and Muslims wished us ‘Merry Christmas.’

One more thing.

The Christkindlmarkt originated in Germany, and I visited it for a few years in downtown Munich. The symbol of Munich is the Christ Kind, the Christ Child in a hooded robe, arms outstretched. How wonderful that Chicago would reproduce a version of this festival celebrating Christmas, and capture the sights and sounds of the holiday, with many sponsors and vendors and happy visitors. If someone decides they’re unhappy with a sight or sound, they don’t have to look or listen. Do they?

So do you see how….misguided….this decision was to block a sponsor because their scenes from “The Nativity Story” might offend somebody passing by? Surely, they didn’t give it enough thought. They’re pretty busy in that office with all the marvelous events this city holds.

Mr. Daley, please look into this and allow the marketplace — the Christkindlmarket-place — to include “The Nativity Story” posters and screens, right in there with the Menorah and the other symbols. It’s so stirring a story, so tastefully done, and it would show Chicago to be the magnificent city it…usually…is.

I’m sorry this is long and I took up this much time. I could have made it much shorter by saying just this: Please take your family to see “The Nativity Story.” It’s what Christmas was always about, and still is.

Wishing you peace and many blessings,

Sheila Liaugminas