No church on Christmas? 1 in 10 Protestant pastors canceled services

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A new poll by LifeWay Research shows that roughly one in 10 U.S. Protestant pastors canceled Sunday services this Christmas, the?Washington Post reports.

The poll reportedly shows many others had abbreviated or altered services and some said they were giving their "second-string" clergy a chance to practice.

The Post reports that part of the reason is because Christmas in the United States has "become a cultural event about food, family and gifts."

Randall Balmer, a historian of American religion and an Episcopal priest in Connecticut, told the newspaper that many Christian churches do not hold Christmas services, no matter what day of the week.

"You have this aversion to calendric observance because it's seen as too Catholic," Balmer was?quoted as saying. "Evangelicals think it imposes too much structure."

What's more important: celebrating Christmas at church or spending the day with your family? If you celebrate, how does your family deal with that question? Sound off below and on our?WNWO Facebook?page.

Source: http://www.northwestohio.com/news/story.aspx?id=700931

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