WASHINGTON // The holiday spirit will soon sweep across this mostly Christian nation as it prepares to celebrate Christmas, the anniversary of Jesus's birth. Nativity scenes - complete with models of baby Jesus and the Virgin Mary - will crop up on church lawns, Christmas carols will play on the radio and some congregations will see a modest bump in attendance.
But for Americans who do not subscribe to a particular faith - or who do not believe in God at all - this can be a lonely time of year. That is, until now.
The Washington-based American Humanist Association (AHA) - which promotes the belief that people can act morally without religion - has launched the first "godless holiday campaign", a blitz of advertisements that soon will appear on buses in the nation's capital.
"Why believe in God? Just be good for goodness' sake," the advertisement reads, taking a line from the famous secular carol Santa Claus is Coming to Town. One version of the ad shows an Asian woman dressed as Santa and shrugging her shoulders; another has Santa as a black man with dreadlocks.
The campaign kicked off on Tuesday with two prominent newspaper ads. By Christmas, the ads will adorn about 200 buses in the city's fleet, a presence that will cost about US$40,000 (Dh147,000).
It is well worth it, said Roy Speckhardt, the group's executive director.
"There are millions of Americans of strong moral character who don't happen to believe in God, but many feel alone in their convictions, especially during the holidays as we are often bombarded by religious messages," he said.
The campaign has been pitched as the latest salvo in what they say is a growing tide of "godlessness". A slew of books that question organised religion - by such prominent authors as Sam Harris, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Christopher Hitchens and Richard Dawkins - have received critical acclaim in recent years.
Bill Maher, a US comedian, recently struck gold at the box office with Religulous, a documentary film that attempts to poke holes in the teachings of some faiths.
Last month, the British Humanist Association launched a similar advertising campaign in London with ads reading: "There is probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life." The British ads led to a flurry of media attention, a spike in donations to the association and a swift reply from the Church of England.
"Christian belief is not about worrying or not enjoying life," the Church said in a statement, acknowledging the right of humanists to freely express their views.
In the United States - where 92 per cent of the population believes in God, according to a recent study by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life - the "godless" ads have already found plenty of critics.
"This may be successful in getting [AHA] some publicity, but I don't think it will be successful in getting them any converts, so to speak," said Peter Sprigg, vice president for policy at the Family Research Council, a conservative Christian group in Washington.
While Mr Sprigg does not question the right of the humanists to purchase ad space, he strongly disagrees with the idea that morality can exist without religion.
"I think the Christian idea that all humans are sinful has been borne out by human history," he said. "The most brutal regimes in human history, specifically Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, were godless regimes."
Susan Fani, a spokesman for the Catholic League, likened the group to "secular militants" whose message has been getting "bolder and bolder"."They're attacking Christmas," she said. "They obviously can't have a holiday because they don't believe in anything, so they are attacking our holiday."
Some would argue that Christmas has already lost much of its religious meaning; in western culture, the holiday is almost as much about getting gifts and holiday discounts as it is about Jesus.
Americans are more likely to flock to shopping malls than they are to church, and many stores count on Christmas sales to carry them through the rest of the year.
Still, Fred Edwords, an AHA spokesman, said some pushback by the religious community is to be expected.
"Some folks may be offended, but that isn't our purpose," Mr Edwords said. "We just want to reach those open to this message but unaware of how widespread their views really are."
In fact, such non-religious views are spreading faster than those of any organised religion, the Pew poll showed. About 16 per cent of Americans are "unaffiliated" with any religion, though only about one-quarter of that group say they definitely do not believe in God.
That represents a dramatic climb since the 1980s, when polls by the University of Chicago put them at between five per cent and eight per cent of the population.
The AHA's membership has blossomed too, from 4,000 members in 2004 to more than 10,000 now.
Mr Edwords attributed the rise, in part, to the outgoing president, George W Bush, a Methodist and self-proclaimed born-again Christian who speaks openly of his relationship with God. "There is nothing like a very religious administration to make a number of other people say, 'hey, wait a minute, we've had it'," he said.
Still, any gains by the "godless" probably match a rising number of people who are clinging tighter to their religion, analysts said. Some point to an increasing split between the faithful and the faithless.
A 2006 study by the University of Minnesota, for example, showed that atheists are the most distrusted minority in America. Forty per cent of respondents listed atheists as the group that "does not at all agree with my vision of American society", more than any other demographic.
Mr Edwords said he hoped the ad campaign would be an important first step in breaking down that stigma. "This is just the beginning," he said. "You'll be hearing a lot more from us in the future."
sstanek@thenational.ae
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Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
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MATCH INFO
Manchester City 2 (Mahrez 04', Ake 84')
Leicester City 5 (Vardy 37' pen, 54', 58' pen, Maddison 77', Tielemans 88' pen)
Man of the match: Jamie Vardy (Leicester City)
Vikram%20Vedha
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Emirates exiles
Will Wilson is not the first player to have attained high-class representative honours after first learning to play rugby on the playing fields of UAE.
Jonny Macdonald
Abu Dhabi-born and raised, the current Jebel Ali Dragons assistant coach was selected to play for Scotland at the Hong Kong Sevens in 2011.
Jordan Onojaife
Having started rugby by chance when the Jumeirah College team were short of players, he later won the World Under 20 Championship with England.
Devante Onojaife
Followed older brother Jordan into England age-group rugby, as well as the pro game at Northampton Saints, but recently switched allegiance to Scotland.
Company%20Profile
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Martin Sabbagh profile
Job: CEO JCDecaux Middle East
In the role: Since January 2015
Lives: In the UAE
Background: M&A, investment banking
Studied: Corporate finance
Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
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The Perfect Couple
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor
Creator: Jenna Lamia
Rating: 3/5
FINAL LEADERBOARD
1. Jordan Spieth (USA) 65 69 65 69 - 12-under-par
2. Matt Kuchar (USA) 65 71 66 69 - 9-under
3. Li Haotong (CHN) 69 73 69 63 - 6-under
T4. Rory McIlroy (NIR) 71 68 69 67 - 5-under
T4. Rafael Cabrera-Bello (ESP) 67 73 67 68 - 5-under
T6. Marc Leishman (AUS) 69 76 66 65 - 4-under
T6. Matthew Southgate (ENG) 72 72 67 65 - 4-under
T6. Brooks Koepka (USA) 65 72 68 71 - 4-under
T6. Branden Grace (RSA) 70 74 62 70 - 4-under
T6. Alexander Noren (SWE) 68 72 69 67 - 4-under
THE BIG MATCH
Arsenal v Manchester City,
Sunday, Emirates Stadium, 6.30pm
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
Credits
Produced by: Colour Yellow Productions and Eros Now
Director: Mudassar Aziz
Cast: Sonakshi Sinha, Jimmy Sheirgill, Jassi Gill, Piyush Mishra, Diana Penty, Aparshakti Khurrana
Star rating: 2.5/5
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The biog
Full name: Aisha Abdulqader Saeed
Age: 34
Emirate: Dubai
Favourite quote: "No one has ever become poor by giving"
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
South Africa v India schedule
Tests: 1st Test Jan 5-9, Cape Town; 2nd Test Jan 13-17, Centurion; 3rd Test Jan 24-28, Johannesburg
ODIs: 1st ODI Feb 1, Durban; 2nd ODI Feb 4, Centurion; 3rd ODI Feb 7, Cape Town; 4th ODI Feb 10, Johannesburg; 5th ODI Feb 13, Port Elizabeth; 6th ODI Feb 16, Centurion
T20Is: 1st T20I Feb 18, Johannesburg; 2nd T20I Feb 21, Centurion; 3rd T20I Feb 24, Cape Town
The specs
Engine 60kwh FWD
Battery Rimac 120kwh Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide (LiNiMnCoO2) chemistry
Power 204hp Torque 360Nm
Price, base / as tested Dh174,500
UAE jiu-jitsu squad
Men: Hamad Nawad and Khalid Al Balushi (56kg), Omar Al Fadhli and Saeed Al Mazroui (62kg), Taleb Al Kirbi and Humaid Al Kaabi (69kg), Mohammed Al Qubaisi and Saud Al Hammadi (70kg), Khalfan Belhol and Mohammad Haitham Radhi (85kg), Faisal Al Ketbi and Zayed Al Kaabi (94kg)
Women: Wadima Al Yafei and Mahra Al Hanaei (49kg), Bashayer Al Matrooshi and Hessa Al Shamsi (62kg)
KEY%20DATES%20IN%20AMAZON'S%20HISTORY
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You may remember …
Robbie Keane (Atletico de Kolkata) The Irish striker is, along with his former Spurs teammate Dimitar Berbatov, the headline figure in this season’s ISL, having joined defending champions ATK. His grand entrance after arrival from Major League Soccer in the US will be delayed by three games, though, due to a knee injury.
Dimitar Berbatov (Kerala Blasters) Word has it that Rene Meulensteen, the Kerala manager, plans to deploy his Bulgarian star in central midfield. The idea of Berbatov as an all-action, box-to-box midfielder, might jar with Spurs and Manchester United supporters, who more likely recall an always-languid, often-lazy striker.
Wes Brown (Kerala Blasters) Revived his playing career last season to help out at Blackburn Rovers, where he was also a coach. Since then, the 23-cap England centre back, who is now 38, has been reunited with the former Manchester United assistant coach Meulensteen, after signing for Kerala.
Andre Bikey (Jamshedpur) The Cameroonian defender is onto the 17th club of a career has taken him to Spain, Portugal, Russia, the UK, Greece, and now India. He is still only 32, so there is plenty of time to add to that tally, too. Scored goals against Liverpool and Chelsea during his time with Reading in England.
Emiliano Alfaro (Pune City) The Uruguayan striker has played for Liverpool – the Montevideo one, rather than the better-known side in England – and Lazio in Italy. He was prolific for a season at Al Wasl in the Arabian Gulf League in 2012/13. He returned for one season with Fujairah, whom he left to join Pune.