Father Desmond O’Donnell said Christians of all denominations should realise that Christmas and Easter no longer has any sacred meaning.

He told the Belfast Telegraph: “We’ve lost Christmas, just like we lost Easter, and should abandon the word completely. We need to let it go, it’s already been hijacked and we just need to recognise and accept that.

“I am simply asking that space be preserved for believers for whom Christmas has nothing to do with Santa and reindeer.

“My religious experience of true Christmas, like so many others, is very deep and real – like the air I breathe. But non-believers deserve and need their celebration too, it’s an essential human dynamic and we all need that in the toughness of life.

“I’m just trying to rescue the reality of Christmas for believers by giving up ‘Christmas’ and replacing it with another word.

“I’m all for Christians choosing to celebrate Christmas by going out for meals and enjoying a glass of wine, but the commercialisation of anything is never good.”

Father O’Donnell, a registered psychologist and author, as well as a priest, added he did not intend his statement to be a criticism of non-Christians.

He said that unless Catholicism addressed the reality of what Christmas has come to mean “secularisation and modern life will continue to launder the church”.

The clergyman, whose latest book To Love And To Be Loved was published in September, admitted that he wasn't hopeful about the sacred institution being willing to change, but warned that its refusal to do so will have consequences.

Father O’Donnell’s words come in the wake of the furore over Greggs replacing the baby Jesus with a sausage roll in a nativity scene for an advertisement.

The chief executive of pressure group the Freedom Association, Simon Richards, claimed the advert was “sick” and that the retailer would “never dare” insult other religions.

The UK Evangelical Alliance also condemned the high street bakery, saying it was a gimmick that seemed to be about “manufacturing a scandal to sell baked goods”.

The publicity image depicted the Three Wise Men around the crib, with the infant Christ replaced by Greggs’ signature product.

A Greggs spokesperson said: “We're really sorry to have caused any offence, this was never our intention.“

The Rev Mark Edwards of St Matthew’s Church in Dinnington and St Cuthbert’s Church in Brunswick said Greggs had been “disrespectful”.

He said: “It goes beyond just commercialism, it’s showing a total disregard and disrespect towards one of the greatest stories ever told, and I think people of all faiths will be offended by this.”

The advert created a debate on the Greggs Facebook page but only a minority of comments complained about the scene.