Most of us receive a number of Xmas cards at this time of year, and many of them will wish us a merry Christmas. Some of these cards will include biblical scenes, typically a manger scene. But some of the cards will include no references to Jesus at all. They include pictures of Santa Claus, snow men, trees, families, or even the Grinch—but no Jesus.

How are these non-biblical images associated with Christmas? What do people mean when they say “Merry Christmas?”

When people talk about Christmas these days, they may have a variety of things in mind.

There are three separate meanings of the term “Christmas.”