CHRISTMAS: It’s the day children wait for all year long — Christmas.
We looked up a bit of the story of Christmas from the website history.com
Dec. 25 was named a federal holiday in the U.S. in 1870, but it has been celebrated around the world for nearly two millennia with secular and religious traditions.
Early Europeans celebrated a holiday around the middle of winter, centuries before the birth of Jesus Christ. The ancient winter celebrations honored light and birth during the darkest days of the year.
Scandinavians, the Norse, celebrated Yule in recognition of the return of the sun from the winter solstice on Dec. 21 through January. To celebrate fathers and sons would bring home large logs, which would be set on fire as people feasted, until the log burned out.
The end of December was a perfect time for celebration. It was “harvest” time for cattle, so the animals wouldn’t have to be fed through the winter months; therefore, fresh meat was available. And most wine and beer made during the year was fermented and ready for consumption.
In Germany, it was believed the pagan god Odin made nocturnal flights through the sky to observe his people and decide who would prosper or perish during the mid-winter holiday.
In the early years of Christianity, Easter was the main holiday, until the fourth century when church officials decided to institute the birth of Jesus as a holiday. However, the Bible does not mention the date for his birth and although some evidence suggests that his birth may have occurred in spring, Pope Julius I chose Dec. 25.
The custom was first known as the Feast of the Nativity, which spread to Egypt by 432 and to England by the end of the sixth century. And by the end of the eighth century, the celebration of Christmas had spread all the way to Scandinavia.
By holding Christmas at the same time as traditional winter solstice festivals, church leaders increased the chances that Christmas would be popularly embraced.
However you choose to celebrate, The Era and Bradford Publishing Co. wish you happy holidays.
