Re: OT: Let's Take the Religion out of Christmas

From: Jon Yaeger (jono_1_at_bellsouth.net)
Date: 12/26/04 

Date: Sat, 25 Dec 2004 23:20:40 -0500

in article 4qlqs0hv3pmq177bfnh8rpsm7asg4blcj9@4ax.com, Paul Burridge at
pb@notthisbit.osiris1.co.uk wrote on 12/25/04 7:17 AM:

> Hi all,
>
> I got home a bit the worse for drink last night (as you do) and
> switched on the telly, only to find that the usual diet of 3rd rate
> 'celebrity' quiz shows and adverts for Boxing Day sales had been
> replaced by some incongruous images of choirboys and joyful carolling
> by thronged multitudes. Then I dimly recalled that Christmas started
> out as some sort of religious festival before it evolved into the
> stuffing, drinking, gorging and feasting period of the year we know
> and love today. So the obvious question is: should we not dispense
> with the religious aspects of this ancient holiday altogether and
> simply concentrate on the material delights it brings?
>
> Oh, and "Merry Christmas Everyone" :-|

***

There's not much (Christian) religion left in Christmas, and it's been that
way for a long time.

Some basic research will show that Christ (Yahshua) was born in the late
spring. The Church authorities wanted to add a Christian touch to the pagan
festivals surrounding the winter solstice, so they "fixed" the birth date to
correspond.

The Church borrowed from the Roman orgy festival of Saturnalia, where gifts
(including bodily fluids) were exchanged . .

In fact, the Xmas tree itself is a pagan symbol, and Jeremiah 10:1-4
expressly forbids it:

"This is what the LORD says: "Do not learn the ways of the nations or be
terrified by signs in the sky, though the nations are terrified by them. 3
For the customs of the peoples are worthless; they cut a tree out of the
forest, and a craftsman shapes it with his chisel. 4 They adorn it with
silver and gold; they fasten it with hammer and nails so it will not
totter."

Mistletoe has roots in Druid tradition, and there are other "borrowed"
aspects to the holiday.

In the USA Xmas has had a very interesting history; the Puritans outlawed it
in their Colony.

I regard the season as a time of material excess, gluttony, and etc. that
bears no resemblance to the genuine article. Personally, I'm happy when
Jan. 2nd rolls around . . .

- Scrooge

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