Christmas

All about Christmas

Christmas is a holiday that is celebrated on December 25th to commemorate the birth of the Jesus Christ, the central icon of all of Christianity. The religious history of Christmas is formed around the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, specifically based upon Matthew 1:18, Luke 1:26, and Luke 2:40. According to these Gospels, Jesus was born to the Virgin Mary and her husband Joseph in the city of Bethlehem. Popular tradition paints the picture of the virgin birth taking place in a manger, surrounded by farm animals, although the Bible makes no specific mention of either of these details. The manger was, however, mentioned in Luke 2:7, where it mentions that there was no room at the inn, so Mary wrapped the baby Jesus in cloths and placed him in the manger. Popular culture has since hypothesized this to mean that this is also the location of the birth itself.

Christians celebrate Christmas in a number of different ways. First and foremost, it is one of the most important and highly attended days of the year for church service. Christians attend church to pay their respects and honor their God and Messiah. There are also other religious popular traditions and devotions that revolve around the Christmas holiday. Many Western Christians celebrate four weeks of Advent and the Eastern Orthodox Church practices the 40-day Nativity Fast to ready themselves for the birth of Jesus Christ.

Santa Claus is arguably the most recognizable symbol for Christmas all across the world. We quickly think of the plump, jovial, red velvet suit wearing, white bearded old man that brings gifts to all of the good little boys and girls of the world on Christmas Eve. The name Santa Claus is derived from the Dutch word Sinterklass, quite literally, meaning Saint Nicholas. During the fourth century, in Turkey, Nicholas was Bishop of Myra. He was known, amongst other things, for his care of children, generosity, and the giving of gifts. Saint Nicholas requested information about the behavior of children during the previous year before deciding whether or not they deserved a gift. Gaining popularity through the 13th century, Saint Nicholas became very well known in the Netherlands, and the concept of giving gifts in his name began to spread to other countries and cultures. During the 16th and 17th centuries in Europe, many Protestants changed the role of gift bringer to "Christkindl", the Christ Child, which was later adapted in English to Kris Kringle.

Many of the modern day Christmas traditions are derived from the English Victorian Christmas, such as described in "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens. The gifts, the feast, the wishing of good cheer, and the caroling all come together to help create the special Christmas atmosphere that is so well recognized today.

* The idea of hanging stockings from the mantle stems from an English story where Father Christmas had dropped some coins on his way down the chimney. There happened to be some stockings hanging from the mantle at the time which caught the coins before they fell through the ash grate and would have been lost. Since that time, children have hung stockings in the hopes of finding them filled with treats and gifts.

* The word "carol" means song of joy and most of the popular carols we recognize today were actually written in the nineteenth century. During the middle ages, groups of serenades would sing ancient carols and spread the holiday spirit by traveling house to house to share their songs.

Although Christmas is a Christian holiday, it is also celebrated by numerous non-Christian entities. Many of the popular customs that are commonly associated with Christmas are believed to have originated from pre-Christian or secular themes and origins; some dating back more than 4000 years. In 274 CE, the winter solstice fell on December 25th, and pagan emperor Aurelian proclaimed the day as "Natalis Solis Invicti", or the festival of the birth of the invincible sun. Christianity has been known for supplanting pagan holy places and celebrations in an attempt to speed up conversion. It is believed that this may be one such instance.

Although current Christmas traditions and beliefs stem from a diverse background, there are certain things about this joyous celebration that can bring together people from all walks of life, multiple religions, and varying backgrounds. Christmas is for joy, laughter, spending time with family and friends, giving and sharing, laughter, and most importantly, love.