"Christmas" - why do we celebrate it like we do?

Traditions are odd things....

Published on November 30, 2004 By KarmaGirl In Misc

Christmas is an interesting time of year for me. I’m not Christian. I’m not any “religion”. That is not to say that I am atheist, because I am not. I just haven’t decided yet what I should believe. But, with that, I end up questioning everything. One of my biggest questions for winter is: “Why do we celebrate “Christmas” and why do we associate certain things with it?”

This is *not* an anti-Christian article. It’s an article about history and tradition. Many things have evolved over time, and “Christmas” is one of them.

-Jesus was not born on Christmas day, or really even close to it. According to some bible scholars, he was born on September 29th, 4 B.C., others believe he was born in the Spring. It's not believed that he was actually born on Dec. 25th of any year.

-Christmas trees really have nothing to do with Christmas. They have been used as far back as we can tell for Solstice and Equinox celebrations. Many religions used them as a way of praying to the “sun god” as a way of making him feel better. (During the dark times of year, they thought that the god was sick and that evergreens would help the god get better).

-On the Christmas tree note, the trees were not cut down. Branches were removed, or the entire tree was moved. When they started being brought in side, they were planted in planters then brought in. They were used as a celebration of life during the “death” of winter.

-“Yule time” has nothing to do with “Christmas”. It is a Norse tradition that pre-dates Jesus. It was celebrated on the 21^st of December.

-The 12 days of Christmas is from the same “Yule” tradition. They would burn a giant log (Yule log) and feast and celebrate while it burned. This log typically took 12 days to burn.

-It is believed that the Christian church adopted the 25^th as the official celebration date of Jesus’ birth as a way of absorbing the traditions of the Saturnalia festival, which was a pagan festival which honors the God of agriculture “Saturn”. The 25^th is also the day that Romans observed Juvenalia, which is a celebration of the children and the birthday of Mithra, the “god of the unconquerable sun”.

-Christmas wasn't declared a federal holiday in America until June 26, 1870

-During the Middle ages, Christmas was celebrated by attending church then celebrating in a drunken fashion, not unlike “Mardi Gras”. (Now, *that* is a tradition we should bring back! )

There are many other traditions surrounding Christmas that are “odd”. If you think of any that you don’t understand, let me know and I’ll see what I can dig up on them. And, if you have some other info on it, reply with it. I’d love to learn more!

Comments (Page 1)

messybuu

on Nov 30, 2004

Something tells me Hallmark played a part in the evolution of Christmas. It's easier to sell a Christmas tree to somebody if they get to keep it.

Danny Bassette

on Nov 30, 2004

Isn't it funny how many pagan traditions made it into christian holidiays.

mignuna

on Nov 30, 2004

karma, this is so bizarre, phil & i were discussing this stuff last night, as his folks are extremely religious and we always manage to make some kind of 'etiquette' blunder around this time of year. so we got to chatting about how silly some of our 'traditions' seem considering our modern society.

i found a good one about mistletoe:

mistletoe is a symbol of 'fertility' (hence the kissing thing) because it grows berries in winter when other plants are barren. it used to be known as 'all heal', and because it was used by the ancient druids in folk medicine and sacrificial ceremonies, it was outlawed by the church as an emblem of paganism.

great article, karma. we're a weird mob, us humans !

mig XXX

Ravenblack

on Nov 30, 2004

I guess that they wanted the new christians to be able to remember the dates, so 25th was picked. Instead of using to honor the old gods or traditions, the pagan-turned-christians used the old holidays to honor and remember Christ.

It goes to show that humans are beings that are not easy to change. Most of the old practices are really still intact.

Spc Nobody Special

on Nov 30, 2004

Yes, many of the traditions are pagan in origin, adopted and modified by the Church to christian meaning, however this does not make Christianity less true, or the celebration of Christ's birth, the fulfillment of God's promise, (the central meaning for christians,) any less sincere.

Nor for that matter, were the pagan religions the holiday and its traditions came from original in and of themselves, often adapting practices and changing names.

The changed symbolism still has meaning to christians if you know it. The evergreen, representing Jesus and eternal life, (although it is ironic that we kill a tree now to celebrate spiritual immortality,) the lights for the star that guided the wise men to the baby savior, red holly berries for the blood of christ, and the gifts for the gifts of the wise men, and life eternal. It's not all drunken pagan revelry and fat men bearing gifts on reindeer.

KarmaGirl

on Nov 30, 2004

OH CRAP! I forgot my whole bit about St. Nicholas and his evolution into Santa Claus! Darn. I'll add that when I get a bit of time.

It's not all drunken pagan revelry

Actually, it was the "new" Christians that were doing that, not the pagans

Larry Kuperman

on Nov 30, 2004

At Nicea, in the third century AD, Christianity became the state religion of the heretofore pagan Roman Empire. There were many compromises made, including the incorporation of pagan symbols and dates.

Dan Brown, author of the Da Vinci Code, views Nicea as part of a vast conspiracy. I don't. The message of Christianity was not diluted. What difference does it make when we celebrate the birth of Jesus, if we choose to celebrate it at all? Okay, so there are no evergreens in Bethlehem. So what? If it converted the pagans to keep their traditions and symbols, it was still a wise decision.

BigDreamer415

on Nov 30, 2004

Isn't it funny how many pagan traditions made it into christian holidiays.

That's pretty much it. If I remember from my research correctly, Thanksgiving and 4th of July are the only major holidays that didn't start out pagan.

In 350, Pope Julius I declared that Christ’s birth would be celebrated on December 25. Ravenblack is right about the evident purpose of this.

I found a great article here: Link

~Sarah

JillUser

on Dec 01, 2004

If I remember from my research correctly, Thanksgiving and 4th of July are the only major holidays that didn't start out pagan.

You are talking secular or Pagan holidays I'm sure. You can't say all religious holidays had pagan roots.

Organized religion has always been very political. That is why I never understood why a lot of christians I know got so defensive when I would discuss the history of their traditions. I think that if something reaffirms your faith, it really doesn't matter how the tradition originated.

Interesting stuff though.

kingbee

on Dec 01, 2004

excellent reminder of how things came to be the way they are.

im not quite sure what this sentence means tho...unless there were pre-pagan pagans.

Nor for that matter, were the pagan religions the holiday and its traditions came from original in and of themselves, often adapting practices and changing names

BigDreamer415

on Dec 01, 2004

You are talking secular or Pagan holidays I'm sure. You can't say all religious holidays had pagan roots.

Well, I am meaning Halloween, Christmas, Valentine's Day, and Easter (when I say they had pagan origins). Am I missing any "major" holidays? (besides the aforementioned Thanksgiving and The 4th).

Well said.

~Sarah

foreverserenity

on Dec 01, 2004

Christmas time is my favourite time of the year. In my family, as far back as I can remember, we celebrate Christmas. My family have always have always been christian, some born again, (some not so born again!) and others just being very spiritual in nature. So, we always went to church the Sunday before Xmas day, had the tree, the decorations, balloons - yes, baloons, the fruit cake (w/rum and all the trimmings - you get drunk eating too much!) and of course we all used to just wait til the clock ticked to Midnight then it was open season on all presents! When I had my own family, I kept this tradition with my children, the tree, the decorations, sans the baloons - only at birthdays, the fruit cake - if I could get the ones made in my birth-country (beleive me, nothing like the fruit cakes here, our fruit cakes are sooo goood), and waiting until midnight to open the presents. I've usually attended church the Sunday before, but since moving here, we haven't done so.

My family never celebrated Kwaanza, truthfully, I didn't know what that was until I moved to the US. Last year my son asked me why we didn't celebrate Kwaanza, I told him because we celebrate Christmas, just like grandma and grandpa and everyone in our family. I am aware of what Kwaanza is but it's not a celebration that we practice.

KarmaGirl

on Dec 01, 2004

Well, I am meaning Halloween

Halloween is "All Hallows Eve" (aka "All Hollows Day" and "All Saints Day") which was originally November 1st. However, the Celtics had Samhain (the Celtic new year) on the 31st, so thats where the "new" date came from. The traditions that surround American Halloween are borrowed from all over the place. And, the original "Jack's Lantern" (Jack o'Lantern) was a hollowed out turnip.

Traditions are quite fascinating the more you learn about them..... And I still forgot to write up my bit on St. Nicholas and Santa Claus...

KarmaGirl

on Dec 01, 2004

Am I missing any "major" holidays?

Some may say that holidays like "Hanukkah" would be considered "major"

Rightwinger

on Dec 01, 2004

So what? If it converted the pagans to keep their traditions and symbols, it was still a wise decision.

This is very true; much of the reason for the old pagan ways being phased into Christian celebrations seems to simply have been good PR, bringing the new faithful in by keeping at least some of their old ways. Makes the transition easier.

I have friends, a married couple, who are very devout, almost puritan, in their beliefs. They are Bible scholars, and they see nothing wrong with celebrating Christmas or Easter with all the old pagan ways included. In fact, Jon put it this way: "Their gods are dead (meaning of course, that they never existed anyway, and that the practice of worshipping them is outmoded); why shouldn't we appropriate some of their rituals and holidays and use them for worship of our God?"

I think this makes sense; after all, Christianity was a new faith, coming into the world around all these much older, pagan faiths. We had no real rituals or celebrations of our own, so we adopted others and modified them for our use. I never understood the "hollowed-out turnip". Ever seen a turnip? My grandma loved them and cooked them all the time. It would have been much easier to hollow out a pumpkin, so it's no wonder they chose to use them after a while.

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