 In the United States of America, Christmas was established as a federal holiday on June 26, 1870. It is a celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, the man Christians believe is the son of God and the savior of the world. It has its roots in ancient times and is celebrated around the world.
For the first few hundred years after Jesus Christ, his birthday was not celebrated. Instead, Epiphany, when the three kings from separate places of the world visited Christ, was the focus of Christians. The visit of the Magi symbolized that salvation was open to the whole world, not just one select nation. Later, early Church Fathers promoted the idea that the birth of Jesus Christ should be celebrated. December 25, 336, marks the first day Christians officially celebrated the first Christmas on Earth, and it was in the Roman Empire. The date of Christmas and some American traditions have pagan roots. In the Roman Empire, December 25th was the day of “natalis solis invict” (the Roman birth of the unconquered sun), and the birthday of Mithras, the Iranian “Sun of Righteousness.” Saturnalia, a Roman festival that honored the sun, lasted from December 17th to December 23rd. The winter solstice, the darkest day of the year, also falls a few days before December 25th and had been celebrated by pagans. Early Christian Church leaders believed that days that had been set aside to honor pagan gods could be changed to honor Christianity. It was thought that people would more easily accept Christianity and move away from paganism by replacing pagan celebrations with Christian ones. The festival of Saturnalia honored the Roman god Saturn. Romans had a public banquet, gifts were exchanged, there was much partying, and servants were served by their masters. Singers performed in streets, and baked cookies shaped like men. While some Christians dislike any association with pagan traditions, Saint Augustine of Hippo (354-430) wrote, “We hold this day holy, not like the pagans because of the birth of the sun, but because of him who made it." In Great Britain, Christmas was celebrated until the Puritans, led by Oliver Cromwell, outlawed Christmas in 1645. Puritans believed that celebrating the birth of Christ was a sign of decadence and a disgrace to Christianity. In the English Colonies, the English separatists also believed in worshipping Jesus without ceremonies and made celebrating Christmas a crime. In the 1800s, Americans' views on Christmas changed a great deal. One author, Washington Irving, wrote fictitious stories of how Christmas had been celebrated in England before the Puritans took over, and some of these stories caught on in American practices. German immigrants brought with them the practice of placing evergreen branches and trees in home during winter as a reminder of life during hard times. And, Catholic immigrants brought the tradition started by Saint Francis of keeping small nativity scenes in their homes. By the late 1800s, most Americans celebrated Christmas. In 1870, President Grant and Congress declared Christmas, the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, savior of the world, a national holiday. Questions
21 Comments
Judith Martinez
12/23/2015 03:27:51 pm
I've read numerous articles in recent years that make a good argument against the roman holidays predating the date early Christians chose for Christ's birth. Some early Christians believed that a prophet would die the same day he was born and then it was pointed out that thru should consider conception date rather then birth. Although there isn't enough evidence to know for sure it appears that the early church determined march 25 to be the dates of the crucifixion and then counted forward nine months to determine his birthday.
Ethan Clausen
12/30/2015 07:25:04 am
This was a very interesting article. I always knew WHY we celebrated Christmas but I knew the history behind America's version of this holiday.
Rachel Johnson
1/4/2016 10:25:18 am
This was a really interesting article. I knew that part of the celebration of Christmas had pagan roots, but I didn't know how we got the tradition of Christmas trees.
Hannah Stebner
1/6/2016 02:10:51 pm
Interesting history. I never knew that christmas had once been outlawed.
Elisabeth
1/6/2016 02:20:13 pm
Christmas has become such an established holiday it's really interesting to hear about it's origins, and to learn that Puritans thought it a disgrace to Christianity.
Colin Lewis
1/6/2016 02:43:41 pm
Thank you for writing this article it was nice to learn more about the history of Christmas during the holiday season.
Everett
1/6/2016 04:21:03 pm
Interesting that Christmas wasn't a huge deal back then compared to what it is now.
Megan
12/12/2017 06:24:01 am
the English colonies paragraph mid way down. About ceremonies. sadly we get so taken in by ceremonies that we are focused on those not Christ. I think they are on to something good. drop the ceremonies and worship Jesus, truly worship him deep in your heart. most don't even get past the surface today of what worship is. Maybe Christians are afraid of that depth of love and respect. but they should not be. its what He wants from us. You said, "one early Christian writer commented, 'We hold this day holy, not like the pagans because of the birth of the sun, but because of him who made it.' Who was it and in what document? I am researching this subject and the people I deal with demand verifiable sources. 12/13/2018 01:09:30 pm
Dear Donita,
Dave
3/4/2021 10:33:53 pm
The Bible Colossians chapter 1:13-18
Desiree Giselle Gonzalez
12/19/2017 08:07:18 pm
I really enjoy reading this amazing article and it was very interesting to me. It was interesting to me because there was a lot of stuff that I did not know about Christmas. This help a lot for my speech that I'm going to do for Christmas . I thought it was very interesting that they did not celebrated Jesus birthday for the first few hundred years.
Rose
12/7/2019 10:26:18 am
Any way you spin it, Christmas has nothing factual to do with Christ's birth. If we were told to celebrate it, we would know the actual day of his birth. We do know the actual day of his death according to the Jewish calendar, and we are told to commemorate it. Everything having to do with Christmas is a pagan symbol, and December 25th was a pagan Roman holiday Solstice having to do with the return of the sun. Early Christians did NOT celebrate the birth of Jesus. He lived in heaven with his father, long before coming to Earth.
KJV
12/24/2019 04:47:42 am
Jeremiah 10 verse 2 through 4 . This was written long before Jesus came down to Earth to give his life so you may live. It is very plain and undeniable.
Katgrun
12/7/2020 08:14:23 pm
God told the people, ";when you come into this land i give you, dont look around at other countries to see how they worship their gods and do the same things". Well, thats exactly what's happened. That's what the Catholic did and what Christians have done. Exactly what God told them not to do. He gave us his Holy Days and people have ignored them and done what was right in their own eyes.
Tyrone E Delaney
7/19/2021 05:32:39 pm
You are so very correct. To God be the Glory!!!
Tanya
12/29/2020 10:11:38 pm
Thank you for writing this article. I’ve read a lot about the origins of Christmas but this clearest and best I’ve read.
Charles
1/27/2021 06:55:33 pm
Nearly every denomination of Christianity celebrates the vain and ungodly holidays and traditions but yet still think this is a nation under God. As we can understand how the decoration of the evergreen originated in Babylon as well as December 25 being celebrated as the birthday of pagan deities now we can fully understand why our nation remains corrupt, divided and a warmongering nation. All I can to suggest is stop participating in the occultist holidays and return to what we know as the Jewish holidays because if this nation doesn’t repent and amend with God then it may become the duty of Elias to burn every whorehouse of Baal we call churches to the ground and persecute Christians for their rebellion against God. Yeah they would call such of a person the antichrist but again what would one expect to hear out of a bunch of loons whom are to sorry to research and seek the truth? When Yahshuah warned me about this in 1972 in my second near death experience he stated the duty of every follower is to destroy the churches whom practice these such things therefore at least we can understand why God showed us in the 2020 election that he will not be mocked since Donald Trump didn’t condemn these practices therefore apparently is a sign to our nation.
The Federal Farmer
6/15/2021 03:24:44 pm
Good Lord.
The Federal Farmer
6/15/2021 03:30:29 pm
"Instead, Epiphany, when the three kings from separate places of the world visited Christ, was the focus of Christians." It always amuses me when layman write of religious texts; it seems they're more likely to cite myth rather than what the text actually says. In this instance, Matthew 2:1 is referenced about the magi visiting the newborn king. Although the Scriptures say they brought as gifts gold, frankincense, and myrrh, it is silent on how many magi in fact greeted the new born Jesus. If they were coming from afar rest assured there more than three. Leave a Reply. |
John De GreeJohn De Gree writes the current events with a look at the history of each topic. Articles are written for the young person, aged 10-18, and Mr. De Gree carefully writes so that all readers can understand the event. The perspective the current events are written in is Judeo-Christian. Receive Articles and Coupons in Your EmailArchives
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