New Microsoft Holiday Commercial Omits 'God' From 'Let There Be Peace on Earth' Hymn

The tech company Microsoft has recently released a holiday-themed commercial that shows its employees singing "Let There Be Peace on Earth," but omitting any reference to God in the traditional Christmas song.

The commercial shows Microsoft employees in New York City performing a rendition of the holiday classic with members of the local New York City children's youth choir to employees at a local Apple store.

"To celebrate the holidays, Microsoft employees, who were selected from across the country, gathered together, meeting each other for the first time, at the new Microsoft 5th Ave Store to spread some holiday wishes," a description for the commercial reads. "Joined by a local NYC children's youth choir, they share a message of peace and harmony with their neighbor down the street."

Some viewers have taken note that the rendition of "Let There Be Peace on Earth" performed in the commercial omits reference to God, instead jumping from "the peace that was meant to be" to "Let peace begin with me."

Microsoft is not the first company this holiday season to receive attention for its apparent secular approach to the holidays.

In November, the Starbucks coffee shop chain received criticism for changing the design of its annual holiday cups to a solid red color, instead of including holiday images, such as snowflakes and polar bears, as it had in the past.

Some criticized the coffee company for waging a "war on Christmas," but the company released a statement saying the cups were meant to be inclusive of all people visiting the Starbucks stores this holiday season.