It’s Christmastime again. The tree is up and the lights are lit. The house is filled with decorations that sparkle and shine. The presents are wrapped (for the most part) and the celebration is ready to begin. The celebration, for many these days, is now something that is entirely commercial in nature. I, like many, have never viewed the Christmas holiday as something that was supposed to be about Jesus or any of the stories behind the Christian faith.
While there are stories of the birth of Jesus and the relation to Christmas trees because of Saint Boniface, I realized that even if these myths were true (they aren’t by the way)the spirit of Christmas really has little to do with these ideas. Christmas trees are decoration and presents are material goods that do not make a person’s life better or worse.
As a believer in Hellenic faith, I am not one to consider Christmas my celebration. It’s mainstream. I tend to celebrate Winter Solstice instead because that makes more sense to me. The Christmas tree and decorations may be considered a Christian concept, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, much like Jesus’ December birthday, it’s a fallacy.
Some believe that Jesus really was born on December 25 and others have looked to January 6. Others tend to look towards the spring and feel that those dates are more relevant. The Bible does not offer an actual date. However, I find December 25 and January 6 interesting for a number of reasons.
While Winter Solstice is no longer on December 25 according to the new calendars, in Ancient times the old calendar had Solstice set on the 25. This, the day of Invincible Sun, was celebrated as far back as the third century during the reign of Aurelian. In 273, the Christian Church chose the same day. Many believe that it was an attempt to Christianize the day. Whatever the reason, it was the original Winter Solstice. January 6, the other option many look to, is known as Epiphany. However, the Ancient Egyptians observed this date as Winter Solstice.
The fact that the birth date of Jesus cannot be proven was not always celebrated by Christians. From 1659-1681 the Puritans in Massachusetts made celebrating Christmas illegal. The reasons for this included the fact that the celebration was formed from “Pagan” roots and therefore it was ungodly in nature. They determined this because the birth of Jesus was not written in the Bible, which meant that it was a date that was not meant to be celebrated. The Puritans also rejected the idea of drinking, feasting, and not working. The Christmas holiday had a tendency to get rowdy back then and they wanted nothing to do with it.
The idea of Christmas trees being a Christian concept is due to the story of Saint Boniface splitting the oak tree that the German Pagans were worshipping. When this happened and the fir tree sprang from its center Boniface informed everyone that the evergreen, with branches pointing to the heavens, was a holy tree. He deemed the tree a Christ Child, meant to symbolize the purity of the faith. From there, he ordered the tree be taken from the wilderness and to be surrounded by gifts in the homes of the people.
In truth, evergreens had been used in Ancient celebrations long before Saint Boniface came into play. In Ancient times, evergreens were used as a representation of fertility, reproduction, agriculture, and even sexual potency. During the winter celebrations, people would bring evergreens into their homes and decorate them with fruits, candles, and small metal pieces, depending on the area you were from and the celebration that you participated in. The trees were used to help honor and celebrate the Gods.
These are just some of the reasons why Christmas has never been about mangers and baby Jesus in my house. Like the holiday, it remains a word without the implied meaning. Solstice is celebrated with good food, drinks, presents (in this case), a tree, and lots of love for the whole family. The name of the activity has never been as important as the activity itself.
While the Christians of old may have attempted to take that from the Hellenics and Pagans what they did not realize is that you can rename the holiday, but you cannot take away the meaning and purpose of the day, even if you want to change the story.
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