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Thanks to the global financial crisis, finances for many of us are tighter than a fish's proverbial. The traditional splurge at Christmas, if it does occur this year, will be using credit instead of cash. Like some Dickensian nightmare, festive spirit financed on credit cards will return to haunt us as the ghost of Christmas Past, in the form of credit card statements and the demand to pay.

Here are a few simple tips to limit the damage, potentially save money and thereby avoid the New Year blues:

1. Convert all ye faithful
Christmas and celebrating the birth of Jesus is a Christian tradition. I'm not sure how Santa Claus came into being, although I do find it a little disconcerting that Santa, as a word, is so close to Satan, but it is clear that it is a relatively recent phenomenon, dating back no more than a couple of hundred years and has nothing to do with Jesus.

My first tip is to convert to a religion or denomination that doesn't celebrate Christmas. Become a Jehovah's Witness. They believe that Christmas derives from ancient false religions and the weight of evidence supports their case. There appears little doubt that Christmas is based on an ancient pagan ritual, most probably the Roman Saturnalia and Dies Natalis Solis Invicti (or 'birthday of the unconquered sun').

If that is a little too drastic and you believe in the literal interpretation of the Bible, read up on these rituals and then think about them in the context of Exodus 20:3-7 and Deuteronomy 5:7-11. These are the texts of the Ten Commandments and Santa Claus walks a very fine line as to whether he is a false idol. By all means, celebrate the birth of Jesus, in which case you might want to re-think the dates (evidence suggests he was really born in September), but give the big jolly fellow in the red suit a miss.

2. Back to basics
I've always believed that the true spirit of Christmas is about being thankful for what you have and enjoying the company of the people you love. Enjoy the company of family and friends amidst plenty of good food and drink and, if you are Christian (and the above tip is a little unpalatable), celebrate Christmas as the birth of Jesus rather than as a gift giving or exchanging event. When I say family, I mean your close, immediate family as there is nothing worse than having a tyrannical mother-in law spoil the celebrations.

Unless of course she is an excellent cook and is free and easy with the booze, in which case it is a great idea to enjoy Christmas over at her place.

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