The traditions behind Christmas actually begins prior to the Birth of Jesus. They date back 4000 years, when people marked the beginning of longer hours of daylight with fires and ritual offerings. According to Mesopotamian (Iraqi) history the winter festival, Zagmuk , lasted 12 days from which we get the 12 days of Christmas. The Roman festival of Saturnalia, a time for feasting and gambling, lasted for weeks in December. Germanic tribes celebrated mid-winter with feasting, drinking and religious rituals. Historians believe that Jesus was born in springtime. In 137 A.D. the Bishop of Rome ordered a solemn feast to honor the birth of Jesus Christ. In 350 A.D. Pope Julius I chose December 25^th as the celebration of Christ’s birthday, by including a Christian element in the long-established mid-winter festivals. In the 4^th century, a Bishop in Turkey who came to be called St. Nicholas was known for good deeds involving children. Various history accounts tell us that he was born into a wealthy family in Patara, Turkey, he was orphaned at the age of 13, and gave all of his money and possessions to the poor. He later became a Bishop in the Catholic Church, died in 340 A.D., and became known as Saint Nicholas. St. Nicholas is illustrated in medieval and renaissance paintings as a tall, dignified man. His feast day on December.6^th was celebrated throughout Europe until about the 16^th century. History continues with other accounts of St. Nicholas. Dutch children would put shoes by the fireplace for St. Nicholas or “Sinter Klaas” and leave food out for his horse. He’d gallop on his horse between the rooftops and drop candy down the chimneys into the children’s shoes. Meanwhile, his assistant, Black Peter, was the one who popped down the chimneys to leave gifts behind. Dutch settlers brought the legend of Sinter Klaas to North America, where we came to know him as Santa Claus. The “jolly old elf” with his sleigh drawn by reindeer was described by Clement Clarke Moore, in the poem “The Night Before Christmas”. Christmas was not declared a Federal Holiday in America until June.26,1870 under President Ulysses S. Grant during the period of reconstruction following the American Civil War, 26 years after Charles Dickens published his Christmas Carol in 1843. The giving of gifts as Christmas is an old tradition. The first Christmas gifts were given by three wise men to Jesus (there came three wise men from the east to Jerusalem) and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts. The gifts were gold, frankincense and myrrh. Gold for a king; Frankincense for a god, used in worship; and Myrrh, for a man, used in preparing a body for burial. We give gifts to honor God’s most precious gift of hope to mankind. Scenes of the Nativity are drawn directly from the Bible. Even though three wise men are often in the nativity scene, they did not appear until Jesus was much older. Additionally, the Bible does not state how many wise men there were. Francis of Assisi made the first nativity in 1223 with live animals and people. It is also called a creche (pronounced Kresh), meaning a representation of the Nativity scene. The Star of Bethlehem was an astronomical phenomenon that alerted the wise men of Jesus’ birth. The top of the Christmas tree is often adorned with the star to represent the star of Bethlehem high in the sky. God used angels to proclaim the coming of the messiah and then again to announce the birth of Jesus. In North America, the traditional Christmas stockings dates back to the end of the 19^th century. The first mentions of Christmas stockings being hung from a chimney were through Thomas Nast’s illustrations and George Webster’s story about a visit from Santa Claus. In Quebec and Acadia, children traditionally put their shoes close to the fireplace so that the Infant Jesus, and later “Pere Noel” (Father Christmas), could put gifts there on Christmas Eve. In some Quebec families, children hung their stockings at the end of their shoes. This custom ended during the 1930s when Christmas trees started to be set up in houses with gifts placed underneath. Japanese oranges have a special meaning to the people who live in the Canadian Prairies. A gift from the east, their arrival at the coldest time of the year has brightened many homes and Christmas feasts for 110 years. To many, the festive season begins when Santa Claus welcomes the first major shipment of Japanese mandarin oranges at the Port of Vancouver, accompanied by young girls dressed in traditional kimonos. The fruits finds its way into many children’s Christmas stockings. The fir tree tradition began in Germany almost a 1000 years ago when St. Boniface, who converted the German people to Christianity, was said to have come across a group of pagans worshipping an oak tree. In anger, St. Boniface is said to have cut down the oak tree and to his amazement a young for tree sprung up from the roots of the oak tree. St. Boniface took this as a sign of the Christian faith. It was not until the 16^th. Century that fir trees were brought indoors at Christmas time. Holly has origins in ancient China’s New Year festivals and Rome’s mid-winter feast for Saturnalia. The Druids of ancient Britain and Gaul held the English holly tree sacred, where the plant was widely believed to repel evil spirits. Later, holly was used as holiday décor that gave the good fairies and elves a place to hide as they did good deeds. With the coming of Christianity, the use of holly was condemned as a pagan ritual and forbidden by the Christian council. But Christian Romans continued to decorate with holly during festive seasons. Spiny leaves and red berries were a reminder of the crown of thorns and the and the blood of Christ. Pennsylvania Dutch held that the plant’s white flowers represented Jesus’ purity. The Germans called this plant Christdorn, Christ’s crown of thorns. They thought holly had white berries until they were stained by Christ’s blood. This custom was brought to the United States by English settlers. The native American holly was one of the first plants sighted by the Pilgrims. American Indians planted strong, evergreen hollies, their symbol of courage and eternal life, around dwellings for protection. They also made the fruits into buttons and used them in trade. Early candy canes were intentionally shaped like that of a shepherd’s crook to remind us that Jesus Christ is the Good Shepherd who laid down his life for his sheep (John 10:11). The earliest candy canes were pure white, and invented in the 17^th century, possibly about 1670. They were given to quiet then children while they listened to the choir and watched ceremonies associated with the live Nativity scene at Cologne Cathedral in Germany. Possibly the red stripes were added after the candy cane tradition came to America. Nutcracker figurines originated in Germany as early as the 1700’s. They were traditionally dressed as soldiers and kings Villagers took satisfaction in having these authorities figures perform the menial task of cracking nuts. Some may still crack nuts, but the real joy is their colorful presence decorating the home. Mistletoe was for many centuries a symbol of healing and divine love. In Scandinavia, mistletoe was considered a plant of peace. When hung in a doorway or from the ceiling it became a sign of goodwill and harmony. The Current custom of kissing beneath the mistletoe is based on Scandinavian mythology. Did you know there’s even a Christmas spider? Legend tells of a poor woman was unable to provide decorations for the Christmas tree. A spider had narrowly escaped the dust mop, made his home in her tree, and began to spin beautiful webs. On Christmas morning, the first light of sun struck the cobwebs, turning them to silver. When the woman awoke, she found the tree covered with silver treasure - the spider had brought good fortune! Research shows that there are many more traditions of Christmas. Tiny acorns becoming mighty oaks represent the life of Christ. Bees hum in honor of the Christ Child. Apples represent peace. Bird nests, mushrooms and pickles represent good luck. Candles represent Christ as the light of the world. The Ladybug represents Mary. Peanuts wrapped in colorful papers were early ornaments. Pigs represent prosperity. Pinecones represent eternity. Part of the sand dollar represents the star of Bethlehem. The Rooster represents the triumph of light over darkness. The drummer boy reminds us that the best gifts come from the heart. The Poinsettia and the rose represent stories of those who had no gift to give the King. Bells announce the birth of Christ. Resulting from this centuries-old history of
Christmas we have many traditions from all around the world. Although it was never celebrated in biblical times, Christmas is celebrated in local churches here in praise of the fact that God loved us so much, he sent his one and only son to earth. He was wholly god and wholly man. Whereas we have succumbed to the temptations of this earth, Jesus was able to overcome all temptations and live a sinless life. He was then crucified as the perfect sacrifice for our sins. We cannot celebrate the birth of Christ without seeing the other end of his life. He was crucified for our sins and resurrected. In our culture is “Christmas” a seasonal celebration of winter or a religious celebration honoring the birth of Christ? In truth, it is a mixture of both with quite a bit of materialism thrown in. We should be as the angels and use the holiday season to announce the glory of the birth of the Christ Child.