Well, yes, because this year is an interesting one that may once again point out how much we have in common, and not only the differences we have.

Wednesday December 5: Chanukah / Hanukkah, the Festibal of Lights, celebrated by Jews in memory of the temple lights that burned for 8 days, not 1, at the time of the Maccabean Revolt.

Thursday December 20: Eid ul-Adha is celebrated by Muslims to honor the sacrifice of Abraham was willing to make for his God.

December 25: Christmas is the day celebrated by Christians in honor of the birth of Jesus Christ.

The only fixed Gregorian date is that of Christmas, but they all have one major root in common - Christianity, Islam and Judaism are all the Abrahamic religions (Baha'i is also claimed by some to be Abrahamic,) and we share many things in common (e.g. Jews and Muslims do not eat pork nor the other creatures that are determined "filthy" - no lobster, etc.; Christians and Muslims acknowledge the importance of Jesus, albeit quite differently.)

Perhaps this year especially is a good one to point out what we share in common - ignoring those few who seek to maximize our differences and set us against each other, reach out to each other in celebration and to bring together in some form our hopes for peace in the world.

I certainly pray and hope for peace for the people all over the world who are coping with the evils of various kinds of "-isms" and war, as well as to all my friends and co-members of FlyerTalk!