By Movieguide® Staff
Comedian David Spade encourages people to put the “Christ” back in Christmas following a tree lighting event that didn’t even mention the holiday.
“I will say that Christmas is taking a little bit of a beating lately. It is December and I saw the other day there was a tree-lighting ceremony for the Christmas tree in some dopey mall, but it said tree-lighting ceremony, and they were careful not to say the word Christmas during the whole ceremony,” Spade said during an episode of the “Fly on the Wall” podcast.
The actor asked, “Why? So it’s just a tree? And you go, I would understand if you said, ‘They’re doing the tree lighting at [a certain mall] or whatever. You go, ‘OK.’ But to consciously avoid that, then what is the tree for?”
“We can call it a Christmas tree,” Spade concluded. “I’m still going to go to these malls. I still don’t want to offend people by saying it. But there’s so many things with different religions. You’re not allowed to slam someone else’s religion.”
Related: Tucker Carlson Calls Christmas Tree Burning ‘An Attack on Christianity’
David Spade slams mall tree-lighting ceremony for avoiding word Christmas https://t.co/RC7YdHoOFP pic.twitter.com/ZLFj7P8Zod
— New York Post (@nypost) December 9, 2025
Spade isn’t the only person calling this kind of thing out. Many expressed dismay at this year’s Portland Christmas tree lighting event, where they did not use the word “Christmas.”
“They can’t even say Christmas tree in Portland. They call it ‘the tree,’” one user wrote on X, per The New York Post.
Another commented, “It’s a Christmas tree, it’s always been a Christmas tree, and it will always be a Christmas tree.”
During Spade’s appearance on the podcast, he also commented on the ongoing persecution of Christians in African nations, saying, “We’re taking a beating down in Africa. It’s like this is not the year to be Christian. I will tell you that.”
“The crisis facing large areas of sub-Saharan Africa is hard to overstate. It is potentially existential for the future peace and stability of several nations in the region, not least Nigeria,” the U.K. division of Open Doors, a global Christian charity supporting persecuted Christians, told Fox News.
A spokesperson for the US.. State Department told the outlet, “The Department of State is working closely with the White House to identify opportunities to further the cause of religious freedom around the world.”
“Religious freedom for all people worldwide is a moral and national security imperative and a U.S. foreign policy priority,” they continued. “As President Trump has stated, the United States will vigorously promote this freedom.”
Spade is just one of many who are tired of the move to separate Christmas from Christianity, and are ready to put the “Christ” back in Christmas.
Read Next: We All Need to Hear This Christmas Season Reminder from Joanna Gaines
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