"A Different Kind of War on Christmas"

"So McKinley and his friends decided to try a radical experiment. They urged congregants to spend less on presents for friends and family and to consider donating some of the money they saved as a result. At first, church members weren't quite sure how to react. 'Some people were terrified,' remembers McKinley. 'They said, "My gosh, you're ruining Christmas. What do we tell our kids?"' The pastors had to reassure people that they weren't advocating a Grinchy no-gifts kind of Christmas, but rather one in which people spend a little less and think a little more, expressing their love through something more meaningful than a gift card. Once church members adjusted to this new conception of Christmas, they found that they loved it. Many, in fact, seemed relieved to be given permission to slow down and buy less."

Amy Sullivan in Time reports on efforts to de-escalate Christmas commercialism.