Customer Reviews:
 How did Christmas become such a significant commercial activity in the twentieth century? April 6, 2006
Roger D. Launius (Washington, D.C., United States)
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
Dell Dechant suggests that the holiday is a construction of twentieth century consumer culture. "The Sacred Santa" argues that the new religion of America is consumerism and that it is most effectively practiced in the holiday season at the end of each year. He believes that American society has raised the practice of consumerism to a religious ritual.
At a fundamental level Dechant challenges the dominant narrative in American religious studies, that modern society is becoming less overtly religious and more secular in orientation. The movement of Christmas from its status as a holy day to a commercial experience might seem to confirm that narrative, but Delchant quickly turns this idea on its head. No question, he believes, mainstream religion is less central to the lives of most of the population, but he also demonstrates the pervasive power of the holiday ritual of gift giving and receiving and its folkways of religious observation. By suggesting that consumerism has become the modern American religion Delchant has expanded the discussion of the subject in the same way that earlier scholars have suggested that there is an American civil religion built around reverence for the nation's Founding Fathers, the celebration of democracy and republicanism, and the veneration of iconic spaces and symbols. Delchant finds similar elements in modern consumerism.
Delchant's thesis is provocative and suggestive of many other avenues of research into American religious life. An interesting question, if consumerism is the dominant religion of modern America what happens when society become unable to sustain the level of consumerism currently practiced? All signs point to fundamental shifts in the place of the United States as the leader of the world in standard of living, etc., and two or three generations from now--unless something changes--the manner in which Americans live their lives will be quite different. In such an environment does consumerism evolve to remain a major part of society or is it replaced with something else or is there a crisis of faith? I could go on and on.
This is a very interesting and useful book. I recommend "The Sacred Santa" as a worthwhile thesis helping to explain modern American society.
 Compelling Effort March 26, 2003
Ella Quin (Daejeon, Korea)
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
A compelling work relating consumerism with religions. deChant delves into comparisons between shaman, priests, etc. as they exist within the today's religion of economy (he says economy serves the same function as nature did in relgions of old-- that is, it is an uncontrollable power that must be appeased).The main point-- Christmas has not been desacrilized. Rather, it has become a sacred holiday of the emerging dominant religion, consumerism. This is a splendid work for anyone interested in religion, post-modern culture or sociology.
Sacred Santa Delivers December 26, 2002
Charles Throckmorton (St. Petersburg, FL United States)
8 out of 8 found this review helpful
Dell deChant's The Sacred Santa: Religious Dimensions of Consumer Culture, is a fascinating study of America's most dominant religion: consumerism. With just enough academic emphasis to lend credibility without becoming boring, deChant paints a picture of how our acquire-consume-dispose oriented society resembles cosmological religions of the past. Using the latest research combined with examples of how we participate in consumerism's myths and rituals, the author explains the underlying psychological forces that compel us to buy merchanidise throughout the calendar year, but especially during the "high holy days" of Christmas. Christmas and other holidays will never look the same to those who read this book. I highly recommend it.
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