Christmas is a popular holiday enjoyed by numerous individuals worldwide. Known as the Mass of Christ, it commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ and was initially celebrated in the early fourth century. Most Christmas traditions have their roots in ancient pagan customs, which were later adapted and reinterpreted by the Church.
The precise date of Jesus’ birth remains unknown, as the Bible does not specify any dates related to this event. But December 25 has become widely recognized as the day to celebrate it. In the time of Christ, the Romans held a festival called Saturnalia, honoring the god Saturn, which took place from December 17 to December 24. They also celebrated Sol Invictus, or the “Unconquered Sun,” which was linked to the winter solstice on December 25. In the fourth century, when Rome made Christianity its official religion, the church reinterpreted the celebrations of Saturnalia and Sol Invictus as the Feast of the Nativity, which honors the birth of Jesus. This change offered an alternative to pagan festivities. The more inappropriate customs associated with Saturnalia were removed, and some of its practices were adopted into Christmas celebrations. Since then, December 25 has been recognized by Christians as the date of Christ’s birth.
One of the most popular traditions of Christmas are Christmas trees. Germany is actually credited with starting this tradition as people know it, and the 16th century was really when Christians were bringing decorated trees to their homes. Some people would build Christmas pyramids that were made out of wood and they were decorated with evergreens and candles because wood during this time was scarce. There is wide belief that Martin Luther, the 16th century Protestant reformer, first added lighted candles onto a tree, and according to one version of this story, walking home one winter evening, Luther was in awe by the stars twinkling among the evergreen trees, and to recapture this scene with his family, he put a tree in the main room of the house and wired all of the trees branches with lighted candles.
