As festive families begin to hang twinkly lights around their homes and children put homemade ornaments on their Christmas trees, we also begin to hear Christmas tunes playing in the mall and jingles about the latest sales on our TV. In the last couple decades, Christmas has shifted from a strictly religious celebration to a cultural, festive holiday. Today, not only Christians celebrate Christmas, but so do many other families who want to take part in the spirit of giving and joy.

Christmas hasn’t only changed to a more universally celebrated holiday, it has also changed to a more commercialized holiday. As early as November, companies are already advertising their sales and products to attract customers for their holiday purchases. Many people worry that the spirit of Christmas has changed from giving and spending time with loved ones, to receiving the best gifts and getting the lowest prices on presents.

But one thing we must consider, is that (according to the National Retail Federation) many small and mid-sized retailers will do as much as 20-40 percent of their annual sales during the holiday season.

“Christmas is a traditional shopping period,” Juan Nagore, economics teacher, said. “The consumers drive the market place and companies react to that.”

Some argue the holiday is too commercialized, but is that essential for many retailers to stay in business? The answer is yes.

“Businesses use holidays as selling opportunities to sell more products,” Nagore, said. “ They rely on the season to be successful because they know people will buy more product.”

The Christmas spirit of giving comes from within. People may spend a lot of money on presents and companies may rely on the holiday to stay in business, but that doesn’t have to mean that the true meaning of Christmas has been lost in materialism.

“Economics is driven by individual decisions,” Nagore said.

If everyone keeps what’s important in their hearts, the true meaning of Christmas can never be lost.