A decorative portrait of U.S. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden hangs from the Christmas tree in the Dining Room of the White House during a press preview of holiday decorations, Nov. 29, 2021, in Washington.
NOVEMBER 28: Holiday decorations are seen in the White House lobby and exhibit hall as part of First Lady Dr. Jill Biden's 'We the People' decor theme on November 28, 2022 in Washington, DC.
Theodore Roosevelt's 8-year-old Archibald surprised the first family by bringing a Christmas tree to the White House on Christmas Day 1902. "No one seemed more surprised than Mr. Roosevelt," read the caption. The event sparked American interest in home Christmas trees. Illustration by George Farian. (White House Historical Society)
But perhaps the most consistent political thread tying the 61-year-old's Christmas theme to the White House is his confident secularism, at least when it comes to Christianity.
Hanukkah has been celebrated at the White House since the days of the George W. Bush administration, and this year it takes on special significance because the second man, Doug Imhoff, husband of Vice President Kamala Harris, is Jewish.
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The Christmas tree is, of course, a typical Christian symbol. Contrary to claims that it is a relic from a pagan holiday, the tree is a combination of the Tree of Life (symbolized by the candy), the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil (the red balls resemble the forbidden fruit ) and the land. The origin of the Christ Child (the lights form a hierarchical family tree).
However, America's first ladies have tried to downplay the tree's religious significance. A beautiful 19th-century Neapolitan nativity scene has been in the White House since 1967, but is displayed in the East Room, well away from the Christmas tree in the Blue Room. For the sake of civic unity, it's even safer to celebrate all of America than to celebrate Christmas.
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