"The early Christians did not celebrate Christ's birth because they considered the celebration of anyone's birth to be a pagan custom."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birthday
Wait a minute. Aren't Christian's supposed to be fighting to keep Christ as the true meaning of Christmas. Well I think that may depend on which Christmas traditions you are defending...
Date:
Many cultures had winter festivals long before Christ. The Romans had a festival called Saturna which occurs 8 days before the winter solstice.
Dies Natalis Solis Invicti means "the birthday of the unconquered sun". December 25 was Mithras' birthday, some sort of sun-god. It seems the Romans love for the sun had some influence on the date we celebrate for Christmas. (Just like Roman sun worship played a role in Sunday being the day for weekly worship.)
Gift giving:
- was part of the roman festival Saturna
Visiting friends:
- was part of the roman festival Saturna
Decorations:
- again people in the Roman Empire brought branches from evergreen plants indoors in the winter (before Christianity)
And then over the past 2000 years different cultures have added the Christmas tree, cards, Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, special foods, songs and decorations.
So which Christmas traditions are we defending? I think they are simply a mixture of traditions, some created by the church, and some from various cultures.
Of course not all traditions are wrong. I look forward to spending time together with family, and enjoying some great food together. I look forward to placing special attention to the narrative of Jesus in scripture. And it is great that there is often a special interest in caring for the poor during this season.
I'm not suggesting we need to re-thing celebrating Christmas. I just want to add to our mindset a historical perspective on Christmas and birthdays.
Romans 14:5 (NIV)
One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind.I guess in the spirit of Romans 14:5-18, it is not for us to judge others on the basis of if they celebrate a certain day or not.
Some sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saturnalia
http://ancienthistory.about.com/od/holidaysfestivals/a/solsticeceleb_4.htm
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2 comments:
Check out "monstrance" on wikipedia. This is what the catholic church uses as an essential piece of equipment for idolatrous worship.
Even in the midst of supposedly worshiping Christ they are bowing before a sunburst.
Thanks Frank. Sun Worship or Son Worship? Hmm... which one should I worship. :)
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