xhonzi said:

And as a seriously Christian, I am well aware that Christ's birth was not in the Winter, let alone on 25 Dec (since there wasn't such a thing at the time anyhow). However, it doesn't bother me to celebrate Christ's birth that day or to use symbols lifted from the pagans to do it.

This is exactly how I feel about it. Granted, "Christmas" is essentially the Christianization of a pagan holiday necessitated by the Constantinian Shift and the Edict of Milan. But so what? As with Valentine's Day, Christmas means whatever you make of it. Want to engage in the crass commercialization for the sake of mere materialism? Be my guest. Want to use it as a time to be together with your friends and family and celebrate the passing of the year? No problem there either. Want to see it as a celebration of the birth of Christ? Again, feel free; that's what I do. As Bingo pointed out, no one really knows when He was born, so one date (Dec. 25) is as good as any other for memorial purposes.

Also, personally I think it's silly when certain ultra-conservative Christians refuse to use a Christmas tree because it "has pagan roots." I wonder if they realize that many of their cherished hymns are sung to the tunes of old bar songs...