Ompassi

Ompassi is a secular holiday celebrated in the United States as an alternative to the traditional seasonal holidays. Ompassi emphasizes compassion and altruism. The holiday is celebrated on December 22.

History and Etymology

Ompassi was created in 2005 by two students from the University of California Riverside. Inspired by the success of Kwanzaa, Ompassi was developed to revive a sense of selflessness in the holidays. The founders of Ompassi argue that the traditional holidays have become about selfish consumerism.
Ompassi was influenced by cosmopolitan moral philosophers in that observers of the holiday seek to extend a helping hand to others in developing nations. Cosmopolitan philosopher Peter Singer developed this argument in many of his publications. Singer argued that choosing to reduce poverty in domestic society should be a lower priority than reducing poverty in less developed nations. By reducing inequality in developing nations, Singer argues, you are reducing relative poverty and absolute poverty. In other words, you are alleviating relative poverty between your own nation and the other, reducing the amount total of poverty in the world at the same time. Thus, from a utilitarian point of view, the duty to aid foreigners overrides the duties to aid fellow citizens.

Principles and Observation

The four tenets of Ompassi are:

Reflection During the day Ompassi observers reflect on their actions and the events of the past year, evaluating how much of the time was spent on helping others and how much time was spent in selfish endeavors.

Acceptance Ompassi observers accept the strong and weak actions of the past year and make an intention to spend time aiding others in the next year.

Fellowship Observers are encouraged to fellowship with old friends and establish friendship with new people.

Compassion The wish to help others in need and end their suffering without pity or selfishness is the cornerstone of Ompassi. This is why charitable giving and other altruistic deeds are encouraged during the holiday.

Ompassi observers organize and attend benefits for charities like and Save the Children.
Charities with an international scope are given to rather than domestic because of the cosmopolitan nature of the holiday.

The symbols of Ompassi are two overlapping circles, symbolizing interconnectedness. The color red symbolizes compassion, the color black symbolizes diversity.

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