Part of the problem across the board, though, is one of education–if people are too lazy/uninterested to educate themselves about the beliefs of others, whether they be atheist, agnostic or followers of a particular faith, they will find that other person's faith frightening.

And of course, the Christmas tree is a pretty amazing symbol of the syncretic nature of current ritual practice (being as it is a pre-Christian component of the solstice adopted by Christians and made modern by the Victorians).