Christmas History

Like many of us, coming up as a child we are taught to believe December 25^th is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. A common and traditional belief that has caused many of us to be misled with the true significance of Christmas. I’m quite certain one would wonder how can we celebrate the birth of Jesus, the Nativity of our Lord and Savior, on December 25^th if he was born in March?

During the Roman times the early Christians wasn’t certain exactly when Jesus was born. Out of speculation they celebrated his birth during different months, mostly September. It wasn’t until Telesphorus; the 2^nd Bishop of Rome declared the celebration of Chris on December 25^th, during the Jewish Feast of Prophets from 125AD TO 136AD. By 325AD Constantine, The Great introduced December 25^th as the official date for Christmas-the celebration of Christ’s birth. But there were still those Christians who honored the date as a pagan festival that were against the Roman Emperors new meaning. During ancient pagan times the date December 25^th represented Solstice, the last day of winter, and the day the sun begins to return in the Northern Hemisphere. This day is also called Yule, the day a log is placed in a bonfire and everyone around it would dance and sing to awaken the sun from it’s long Winter sleep. By the 1600s Oliver Cromwell banned Christmas festivities in England, but by the 1800s Christmas was declared a legal holiday. From that point on during the Middle Ages more traditions like the Christmas tree, Christmas carols and fictional figures were created. Such fictional figures like Santa Claus, who was created by Thomas Nast, an American Illustrator, who borrowed European stories about St. Nicholas and created a father for Christmas and named him Santa Claus.

By the 19^th Century Christmas became very popular and as generations grew they gravitated to the new meaning versus the original meaning that the ancient and Roman pagans initiated as Solstice. What they believed was a formal day had been turned into a joyous celebration. They became even more dissatisfied when their beliefs were used but in a different form;

1. From December 25^th to January 6^th(12 days) is the celebration of Christmas but in ancient and Roman pagan times the same amount of days represent Solstice.
2. The meaning “Peace and Joy” stems from pagan beliefs in magical powers, where enemies who meet under the mistletoe had to call a truce until the following day, but in modern times when two people stand under the mistletoe they have to share a kiss.
3. In the 19^th Century Santa still wears a red and white bishop’s robe, but he rides on a sleigh and deliver gifts to children not to mention the chimney he climbs down, but in the Middle Ages Santa wore a red and white bishop’s robe and he rode on a donkey to deliver gifts to children.
4. The 12 days of Christmas in modern times was declared as civil peace but during the ancient pagan time it represented a person who commits a crime during that time will receive a more harsher punishment than usual.

Now in the 21^st Century Christians and their followers is still celebrating Christmas on December 25th as the birth of Christ. They decorate Christmas trees with lights, ornaments and other fancy holiday décor. They wrap gifts and some like to sing Christmas carols and dress up like Santa Claus to keep our young living in a fantasy. Christmas didn’t truly become official until the 19^th Century, but what many of us must know and take great heed to is, before then it was not celebrated!