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.

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I have been thinking a lot about the holidays lately. The more research I do into the subject of religion and celebrations, the more I realize that Christianity has taken over polytheist celebrations. It is said this was done to try and wipe out polytheist celebrations and make those who were not so keen to convert to consider changing religions or participating in the new religion more actively.

As Christmas approaches, I find that I want to celebrate actual Christmas, less and less. You see, the Greeks were not the first to observe the Winter and Summer Solstices. The Winter Solstice occurred on the shortest day of the year. The date of the solstice was recorded by astronomers in Babylon and Africa, who were able to find out when it was by observing it as the darkest day of the year. The day is the shortest on the solstice. So, when the Ancients celebrated, they did so in honor of their Sun God. By appeasing the Sun God, the sun wouldn’t disappear for too long and spring would come with plenty of crops to feed the hungry populations after the winter had ended.

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I don’t understand something and I am hoping someone who is Christian can clarify this for me. Why are people Christians? Is it because it is currently the most popular religion? Is it because it is easier to go with the flow and be one to follow the crowd? The more I study and learn about Christianity, the more absurd I find the religion. Don’t get me wrong. I don’t dislike people who are Christians. I would never try to convert anyone to my beliefs. I merely have a major problem comprehending why people believe in Christianity due to the facts that are known about the religion.

First, we know the Bible was written by men. It was not written by God. These men claim they were encouraged to write the Bible because God told them to do so. They also claim to be writing the words of God. While this is a fundamental Christian belief, and one I grew up believing to be true, I have to laugh at my foolishness in retrospect. How do we not know these men were lying and trying to manipulate the common public into following their beliefs? The polytheist beliefs of the time prior to Christianity allowed for a lot more freedom for those who were religious. Perhaps it was just one way to try and control the masses?

I wrote a book. The Big Purple Barney Monster told me to write it. He told me to tell people what was right and wrong. He told me to tell people how to live. The Book is called the Mible. Those who don’t follow it will be tortured for all eternity after they die. They will be placed in hot goo to burn for the rest of their existence. Those who believe in the world of the Mible must be benevolent in their beliefs…or else I’ll cast them into the goo as well.

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