Must Christians Really?

I was shopping at our local Walmart store last week. I wanted to buy some green Christmas lights for a tree outside of my house before they all were sold like last year. I thought that I would look at the other Christmas ornaments and the tree toppers at the same time.

I found the lights. There were only a few left. Most of them were already gone. I felt good that I was able to get them before they were all gone. I looked at other items, seeing what was new. There were the usual gaudy, cheap ornaments, reels for storing Christmas light, and garland. As I pushed my shopping cart down the tree topper aisle, I was stopped in my tracks. I couldn’t believe what I saw. They had the normal stars, snowflakes, starbursts, and even an owl to perch on the top of a tree, but what hit me like a fist was the topper that seemed totally out of place. I felt sick to my stomach.

The topper was the crescent moon and star, one of the symbols of Islam.

We are being deluged with stories of ISIS, a radical group of Islamists, beheading Christians in Iraq and Syria and here it was nestled with the decorations of the Christmas season. Christmas is a Christian holiday, not one to be shared with a religion that calls Christians infidels and dogs. It shouldn’t be shared with a religion who wants to convert Christians or kill them. It was offensive and disgusting to me as a Christian.

I was so surprised I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I wanted to rip them off the peg they were hanging on and stomp them there in the middle of Walmart, but I thought, “This isn’t a local store problem, this is companywide”  at all of their store locations. Smashing them would be of little use. I paid for my purchases and left the store. I shared my experience on Facebook and got a few responses, but I wanted the offensive symbols removed from all Walmart stores or at least removed from the Christmas section of the stores.

I called the company offices and a young lady took my information, saying that a local manager would be calling me back n regard to my complaint. They woman seemed sympathetic to my call and did say, “Have a blessed weekend, sir.”

I felt that this was another blatant assault on Christianity by a corporation that makes millions of dollars during the Christmas season, but doesn’t allow their employees to say, “Merry Christmas” and must reply “Happy Holidays.” Why are they now seemingly endorsing another religion while refusing to honor the reason for the holiday in the first place? If Christ hadn’t been born, there would be no reason to celebrate December 25^th.

Yesterday, I got a call from the manager at our local Walmart. She had no idea that the item was even on display in her store. She also seemed sympathetic to my concerns and reason for my upset. I described the item and its location. She said that she would check it out and try to handle my concern. I suggested that she place it with the Halloween items or the pork products as appropriate display areas.

I shop the Walmart frequently and said, “If it’s not removed, I will do my shopping elsewhere.” I will check it out later today and see if it is resolved.

When I sent an e-mail to the corporate headquarters, I asked, “What executive allowed a buyer to select such an item for a Christmas tree topper?” I think the buyer and the executive should be discharged and they should be beheaded from their positions.
I finished with my will this morning and told my attorney about the Walmart issue. He couldn't believe that Walmart would put such things out with the Christmas items. I told him, "When I stop at Walmart's today and if they haven't removed it, I would get back to him if he wasn't afraid to take on Walmart.
He chuckled and said, "I've gotten money from Walmart before."
At Walmart, one of the first places I visited was the tree toppers. The spot that held the crescent and star was vacant. I immediately went to the back of the store and asked for a manager. The manager who came out was the same one that I spoke to on the phone. I thanked her very much for her prompt response. She shared that she hadn't been aware of this product and that she notified the personnel above her.