'Love note' to Hudsonville's 'pagans'

HUDSONVILLE, Mich. (WOOD) - This Hudsonville neighborhood is not unlike so many others in West Michigan this time of year -- homes outlined by lights, Christmas trees in front windows, wreaths on every door.
 
But this neighborhood's been targeted -- by what some neighbors are calling a Grinch.
 
And, he left a note.
 
"It started out real nice," neighbor Kurt Burns said, reading from the letter. " Hi neighbor. Nice light display. This is a love note."
 
Neighbors around Rolling Hills and Vintage drives, north of Port Sheldon Street, found the notes attached to mailboxes earlier this week.
 
"Then it went on to say how we were practicing pagan customs and worshipping in a heathen way," Burns said.
 
Paganism in Hudsonville? Kind of surprising, considering the neighborhood -- where many parents send their kids to Christian schools.
 
"I don't know why he chose to target this neighborhood. I have no idea."
 
The anonymous note refers to sun worshippers who celebrated with a festival of lights, the Roman God Saturn's nativity birth gifts , and the Norsemen -- with their sexual soliciting mistletoe and tree worship.
 
The Christmas trees, it says, along with the lights, nativity scenes, even the mistletoe are the ways of heathens.
 
"None of this honors the life of Yeshua the Christ ," the letter continues.
 
"The second time I read it through, I took a little more offense to it," Burns said.
 
The letter writer calls Christmas a "pagan festival" and suggests Christ has never been part of Christmas.
 
Tricia Warsen and her neighbors also got the message.
 
"I just can't imagine that someone would spend the time and energy putting together something like that, knowing it is such a joyous season," Warsen said. "It just made me think, you obviously don't have the joy of the season that we do."
 
Her house is decked out for the season -- a reindeer on the front porch, even  mistletoe, where she makes her son give her a hug.
 
"We're not pagans at all. We believe in the Lord. We go to church regularly. We teach our children that Christmas is about more than trees and lights and presents. It's truly about Jesus coming."
 
Neighbors say they want to know the identify of their Secret Scrooge.
 
Burns said he tried to figure it out, but his wife made him stop.
 
"I don't know who this person is, or where they live," Burns said. "I imagine it's in this subdivision somewhere."