Tweet
THE ORIGIN OF CHRISTMAS
PNG Post-Courier (Australia)
December 5, 2013 Thursday
Christmas (Cristesmsse, meaning "Christ's Mass") is an annual
commemoration of the birth of Jesus Christ and a widely observed
holiday, celebrated generally on December 25 by millions of people
around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical
year, it closes the Advent season and initiates the twelve days of
Christmastide, which ends after the twelfth night. Christmas is a
civil holiday in many of the world's nations, is celebrated by an
increasing number of non-Christians, and is an integral part of the
Christmas and holiday season.
While the birth year of Jesus is estimated among modern historians to
have been between 7 and 2 BC, the exact month and day of his birth are
unknown. His birth is mentioned in two of the four canonical gospels.
By the early-to-mid 4th century, the Western Christian Church had
placed Christmas on December 25, a date later adopted in the East.
The date of Christmas may have initially been chosen to correspond with
the day exactly nine months after early Christians believed Jesus to
have been conceived, or with one or more ancient polytheistic festivals
that occurred near southern solstice (i.e., the Roman winter solstice);
a further solar connection has been suggested because of a biblical
verse identifying Jesus as the "Sun of righteousness".
The original date of the celebration in Eastern Christianity was
January 6, in connection with Epiphany, and that is still the date of
the celebration for the Armenian Apostolic Church and in Armenia,where
it is a public holiday. As of 2013, there is a difference of 13 days
between the modern Gregorian calendar and the older Julian calendar.
Those who continue to use the Julian calendar or its equivalents thus
celebrate December 25 and January 6, which on the Gregorian calendar
translate as January 7 and January 19. For this reason, Egypt,
Ethiopia, Eriteria, Russia, Georgia, Ukraine, Serbia, the Republic
of Macedonia, and the Republic of Moldova celebrate Christmas on what
in the Gregorian calendar is January 7. Eastern Orthodox Churches in
Bulgaria, Greece, Romania, Antioch, Alexandria, Albania, Finland,
and the Orthodox Church in America celebrate Christmas on December
25 in the revised Julian calendar, corresponding to December 25 also
in the Gregorian calendar.
The celebratory customs associated in various countries with Christmas
have a mix of pre-Christian, Christian, and secular themes and
origins. Popular modern customs of the holiday include gift giving,
Christmas music and caroling, an exchange of Christmas cards, church
celebrations, a special meal, and the display of various Christmas
decorations, including Christmas trees, Christmas lights, nativity
scenes, garlands, wreaths, mistletoe, and holly. In addition,
several closely related and often interchangeable figures, known
as Santa Claus, Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, and Christkind,
are associated with bringing gifts to children during the Christmas
season and have their own body of traditions and lore.
Because gift-giving and many other aspects of the Christmas festival
involve heightened economic activity among both Christians and
non-Christians, the holiday has become a significant event and a
key sales period for retailers and businesses. The economic impact
of Christmas is a factor that has grown steadily over the past few
centuries in many regions of the world.
From: A. Papazian
PNG Post-Courier (Australia)
December 5, 2013 Thursday
Christmas (Cristesmsse, meaning "Christ's Mass") is an annual
commemoration of the birth of Jesus Christ and a widely observed
holiday, celebrated generally on December 25 by millions of people
around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical
year, it closes the Advent season and initiates the twelve days of
Christmastide, which ends after the twelfth night. Christmas is a
civil holiday in many of the world's nations, is celebrated by an
increasing number of non-Christians, and is an integral part of the
Christmas and holiday season.
While the birth year of Jesus is estimated among modern historians to
have been between 7 and 2 BC, the exact month and day of his birth are
unknown. His birth is mentioned in two of the four canonical gospels.
By the early-to-mid 4th century, the Western Christian Church had
placed Christmas on December 25, a date later adopted in the East.
The date of Christmas may have initially been chosen to correspond with
the day exactly nine months after early Christians believed Jesus to
have been conceived, or with one or more ancient polytheistic festivals
that occurred near southern solstice (i.e., the Roman winter solstice);
a further solar connection has been suggested because of a biblical
verse identifying Jesus as the "Sun of righteousness".
The original date of the celebration in Eastern Christianity was
January 6, in connection with Epiphany, and that is still the date of
the celebration for the Armenian Apostolic Church and in Armenia,where
it is a public holiday. As of 2013, there is a difference of 13 days
between the modern Gregorian calendar and the older Julian calendar.
Those who continue to use the Julian calendar or its equivalents thus
celebrate December 25 and January 6, which on the Gregorian calendar
translate as January 7 and January 19. For this reason, Egypt,
Ethiopia, Eriteria, Russia, Georgia, Ukraine, Serbia, the Republic
of Macedonia, and the Republic of Moldova celebrate Christmas on what
in the Gregorian calendar is January 7. Eastern Orthodox Churches in
Bulgaria, Greece, Romania, Antioch, Alexandria, Albania, Finland,
and the Orthodox Church in America celebrate Christmas on December
25 in the revised Julian calendar, corresponding to December 25 also
in the Gregorian calendar.
The celebratory customs associated in various countries with Christmas
have a mix of pre-Christian, Christian, and secular themes and
origins. Popular modern customs of the holiday include gift giving,
Christmas music and caroling, an exchange of Christmas cards, church
celebrations, a special meal, and the display of various Christmas
decorations, including Christmas trees, Christmas lights, nativity
scenes, garlands, wreaths, mistletoe, and holly. In addition,
several closely related and often interchangeable figures, known
as Santa Claus, Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, and Christkind,
are associated with bringing gifts to children during the Christmas
season and have their own body of traditions and lore.
Because gift-giving and many other aspects of the Christmas festival
involve heightened economic activity among both Christians and
non-Christians, the holiday has become a significant event and a
key sales period for retailers and businesses. The economic impact
of Christmas is a factor that has grown steadily over the past few
centuries in many regions of the world.
From: A. Papazian