It’s difficult to understand everyone’s motives who replace the Christ in Christmas with an X. There are four possible reasons why people shorten “Christmas” to “Xmas.”

1. The abbreviation dates back over a thousand years. X represents a Greek letter chi, the first letter of the Greek word for “Christ,” Xtos (ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ).
2. Some believe the X stands for a cross, a symbol for Christ.
3. Some just use X as a shortcut, with no preconceived notions in mind.
4. Finally, others may use the abbreviation to cut Christ out of Christ. It’s hard to judge everyone’s intentions, but if you do, it’s not necessarily unChristian to use “Xmas.”