David Spade slams mall for omitting 'Christmas' from tree-lighting ceremony

Comedian and podcaster David Spade says he’s getting tired of the rising “anti–Christian feel” over Christmas.

The 61-year-old SNL alum and “Grown Ups” actor called out a local mall for "consciously" omitting any mention of Christianity during a recent Christmas tree-lighting ceremony. 

"I will say that Christmas is taking a little bit of a beating lately,” said Spade in the Dec. 7 episode of the "Fly on the Wall" podcast with fellow former SNL alum, Dana Carvey. “... I saw the other day, there was a tree-lighting ceremony for the Christmas tree in some dopey mall, but it said tree-lighting ceremony, and they were careful not to say the word ‘Christmas' during the whole ceremony.”

During the podcast, both Spade and Carvey acknowledged that even non-Christians have traditionally enjoyed Christmas tree-lighting ceremonies, “I’ve never met someone from another religious faith that was upset about a Christmas tree,” added Carvey.

Spade said that while it’s understandable to forget to mention Christmas at a tree-lighting ceremony, doing so deliberately obscures the meaning of the holiday itself. “I would understand if you said, ‘They're doing the tree lighting at the Grove,’ or whatever. You go, ‘OK.’ But to consciously avoid that? Then what is the tree for? ‘A December to remember’? Is it a Lexus dealership?”

When Carvey pointed out that Christmas trees are a longtime American tradition, he also acknowledged that, for people of faith, “it’s about Christianity,” while others celebrate it as a “fun holiday.”

For Spade — who identified himself as a Christian — the glaring omission was evidence of what he called “anti-Christian” sentiment around the holidays.

 “I don't like the anti-Christian feel, ‘cause Christmas to me wasn't really about that. Because I am Christian, but more spiritual,” he said, as Carvey interjected to call him a “lapsed” Christian.

The actor made what appeared to be a reference to Christian persecution in Nigeria, where last month a group of armed militants seized over 300 students from St. Mary’s Catholic Primary and Secondary School.

"We're taking a beating down in Africa," he added. "It's like, this is not the year to be Christian. I will tell you that."

Spade and Carvey have both previously been less friendly toward religion in their comedy, most recently in a rehash of Carvey’s “Church Lady” character on SNL. Last December, the duo revived Carvey’s character for a sketch called “Church Chat,” a fictional local TV show created by Carvey as a parody of Christian programming found on TBN and other networks. 

Spade joined the segment as a fictional version of Hunter Biden, who compares himself to Jesus throughout the sketch.