From Santa, elves and Ebenezer Scrooge, to the culture wars and virgin birth,Christmas - Philosophy for Everyone explores a host of philosophical issues raised by the practices and beliefs surrounding Christmas.

Offers thoughtful and humorous philosophical insights into the most widely celebrated holiday in the Western worldContributions come from a wide range of disciplines, including philosophy, theology, religious studies, English literature, cognitive science and moral psychologyThe essays cover a wide range of Christmas themes, from a defence of the miracle of the virgin birth to the relevance of Christmas to atheists and pagans

Scott C. Lowe is professor of Philosophy and chair of the Department of Philosophy at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania. His current interest is in the political philosophy of Richard Rorty. He is the editor, along with Steven Hales, ofDelight in Thinking: An Introduction to Philosophy Reader (2006).

Foreword: Joining the Manger to the Sleigh? (Stephen Nissenbaum).

Editor's Introduction (Scott C. Lowe).

Part I: Christmas: In the Beginning.

1. Jesus, Mary and Hume: On the Possibility of the Virgin Birth (Zachary Jurgensen and Jason Southworth).

2. The Virgin Birth: Authentic Christmas Magic (Victor Lyons).

3. Putting the "Yule" Back in "Yuletide" (Todd Preston).

Part II: Is Celebrating Christmas Really a Good Idea?

4. Armed for the War on Christmas (Scott F. Aiken).

5. Christmas Mythologies: Sacred and Secular (Guy Bennett-Hunter).

6. The Significance of Christmas for Liberal Multiculturalism (Mark Mercer).

7. Crummy Commercials and BB Guns: Son-of-a-Bitch Consumerism in a Christmas Classic (Erin Haire and Dustin Nelson).

Part III: Santa: A Deeper Look.

8. The Mind of Santa Claus and the Metaphors He Lives By (William E. Deal and S. Waller).

9. Making a List, Checking It Twice: The Santa Claus Surveillance System (Richard Hancuff and Noreen O'Connor).

10. You'd Better Watch Out (Will Williams).

11. Santa's Sweatshop: Elf Exploitation for Christmas (Matthew Brophy).

Part IV: The Morality of Christmas.

12. Against the Santa Clause Lie: The Truth We Should Tell Our Children (David Kyle Johnson).

13. Lying to Children about Santa: Why It's Just Not Wrong (Era Gavrielides).

14. Putting Claus Back into Christmas (Steven D. Hales).

15. Scrooge Learns it All in One Night: Happiness and the Virtues of Christmas (Dane Scott).

Part V: Christmas Through Others' Eyes.

16. Holly Jolly Atheists: A Naturalistic Justification for Christmas (Ruth Tallman).

17. Heaven, Hecate and Hallmark: Christmas in Hindsight (Marion G. Mason).

18. Festivus and the Need for Seasonal Absurdity (Caleb Holt).

19. Common Claus: Santa as Cross-Cultural Connection(Cindy Scheopner).

Afterword (Santa Claus).

Notes on Contributors (Santa's Elves).