Should Christian’s Celebrate Pagan Festivals

[Guitar's Cry]

… true… bug who is ‘Santa’?

An amalgam of innate response mechanisms, positive associations, and cultural icons.

He is Odin: the All-Father, old and learned in lore.

He is the Horned God: Coming from the Wilds to bring light and life.

He is the Saint: Concerned about the welfare of humans and bestowing gifts to help us on our way.

 

[loverofhumanity]

Well, this is half true.

Last year at the Christmas Midnight Mass I attended the nave of the Cathedral was full.

Thats great and to remember Jesus and the example He taught us how to treat one another is to me the real message.

 

[McBell]

Yes, I'm just confused that @Soapy seems to think we're celebrating Guy Fawkes.

James I certainly wasn't a criminal, as far as I know, in the conventional sense.

So I am baffled.

I am not the least bit baffled.
The OP is clearly an attempt to poke the bear into response.

 

[loverofhumanity]

Children are more concrete and better understand Santa and presents than God and Jesus who are fairly abstract. As folks age, and we can grasp abstract concepts, the nostalgia of Santa and Christmas gifts has a power that Church, with its judgements and abstract customs and concepts can never live up to. And both are monetized and used for profit.

It's not a coincidence that the old gift-gifters with their judgements and punishments fell out of favor but Santa, jolly, all-loving, and only punishes by withholding treats and never with a whip, lives on as the ultimate Christmas symbol.

Is that so bad? God still punishes with hellfire and eternal damnation. Santa withholds candy and offers a year's redemption.

Christ also offers redemption but is a little ascetic about it. Santa is large and full of life and love. He is the kindly grampa who expects good behavior but loves just the same, with a ready laugh and open arms.

As a child I loved Jesus very much so I had no difficulty believing in Him at an early age. But as I grew up and discovered that I was lied to about Santa, I became an atheist assuming that I was also lied to about God because the very same people who lied to me about Santa also taught me about Jesus. I never ever went back to christianity again. So I believe that deceiving and lying to a child can have ramifications on his/her future spiritual life.

I went through much personal trauma before I accepted God existed because I believed, like Santa, God was a myth made up too!

 

[Soapy]

I saw fingers, toes and a lost Oxford comma the other day.

I like ‘Oxford Commas’, and I use it constantly because it speaks more correctly, grammatically, of what is being presented:

• ‘This, that, and the other’

rather than:

• ‘This, that and the other’

 

[Debater Slayer]

I like ‘Oxford Commas’, and I use it constantly because it speaks more correctly, grammatically, of what is being presented:

• ‘This, that, and the other’

rather than:

• ‘This, that and the other’

I agree. I always use it too.

 

[Soapy]

You left out Easter.

Here is a longer list of pointless days

Wardipedia - 65. Pointless national days - Star Wards

Happy Pointless National Day! Introduction And what a choice you have. There’s National Donald Duck day, National Chip week (clearly too important to restrict to a single day) and (Jewish) Marion’s favourite – Hug a Jew day. (She hasn’t yet been able to persuade her therapist that this is the...

www.starwards.org.uk

I did not leave out anything… The list I presented was not, in anyway, exhaustive.

Moreover, I stated that you are welcome to add your own PAGAN festivals and PAGSN Celebrations.

EASTER, is not Pagan…!

It is TRUE, however, that the people THOUGHT they were welcoming a WARRIOR MESSIAH.

A few days later they realised they were wrong and were after his death.

The CELEBRATION was not wrong - only the projected reason for it by the Jews who had wrongful outcomes for THEIR celebration.

 

[Soapy]

I agree. I always use it too.

Funny?

“I always use it, too.”

 

[exchemist]

Well, this is half true.

Last year at the Christmas Midnight Mass I attended the nave of the Cathedral was full.

Oh yes all sorts of people come out of the woodwork for Midnight Mass. I may have mentioned on another thread the drunk we had one year - off his face and kept trying tunelessly to sing. The MC, who is a large ex-policeman with a patriarchal ginger beard, had to come down from the sanctuary to have a word. But he stayed until the end and people wished him a happy Christmas as we left, so he was made welcome.

 

[Soapy]

An amalgam of innate response mechanisms, positive associations, and cultural icons.

He is Odin: the All-Father, old and learned in lore.

He is the Horned God: Coming from the Wilds to bring light and life.

He is the Saint: Concerned about the welfare of humans and bestowing gifts to help us on our way.

A person who declares himself as a God but who must LEARN will err many times - and there can never be ‘ALMIGHTY GOD’.

He (Odin) will always be CHANGING - not a Constant. Who was he learning the ‘Lore’ from?

Jesus changes many times in his life and even makes errors and is shown as mortal and defecidnt in knowledge except where his constant God and Father (No Oxford comma!) taught him or informed him:

• ‘The truth I heard from God’).
• God made him immortal after being raising him from the dead.
• God seated him at His side in the kingdom of Heaven as His Right hand MAN
• God gave him power to rule for a limited period of time
• God GRANTED him to have the ability to give eternal life to those whom he deemed worthy of it at the judgement seat

Worship God…
Glorify Jesus Christ…
Celebrate BOTH!

 

[RestlessSoul]

Oh yes all sorts of people come out of the woodwork for Midnight Mass. I may have mentioned on another thread the drunk we had one year - off his face and kept trying tunelessly to sing. The MC, who is a large ex-policeman with a patriarchal ginger beard, had to come down from the sanctuary to have a word. But he stayed until the end and people wished him a happy Christmas as we left, so he was made welcome.

Well he was the parish priest...

 

[Quintessence]

Quintessence the Pagan scratches their head in confusion at the opening post's list of "pagan" festivals.

Huh?

Er... to turn this around to ask whether Christians should celebrate actual Pagan festivals - like attend a Summer Solstice ritual at Stonehenge put on by Druids or a Samhain circle put on by Wiccans or a Saturnalia festival put on by Hellenics - personal preference. Many folks participate in interfaith networking and go to celebrations of other folks religions. Maybe they've got an interfaith family or friends. Maybe they just want to be more cultured and learn. If their Christianity doesn't survive exposure with cultural diversity, so be it. Same with Pagans attending Christian festivals whether it's church on Sundays or going to a living nativity event at Christmas.

 

[wellwisher]

The one Almighty God of the Jews prohibited the worship of other Pagan Gods and also any festivals associated with them.

But, contemporary ‘Christian’s’ openly, and even advocate, taking part in pagan festivals so as to attract non-Christians and younger audience who indulge in the festivities with no regard to its actual Christian meaning for people who live in countries who’s religious belief is that of ‘Christian’.

Pagan Festivals include:

• Christmas (Otherwise known as Self Indulgent day)
• Guy Fawkes (UK) (Also known as Celebrate a Criminal day)
• Thanks Giving …
• Halloween (Celebration of non-existent disembodied spirits)
• Mothering Sunday (Weirdly called ‘Mothers Day’)
• Pointless Day (Weirdly called ‘Fathers day’)
• Animal Day (weirdly known as Celebrate your Pet with fluffy toys and gay body waste coat and treats day)

It’s an open question and no explicit pagan festival is implied in the question so you can add your own.

Jesus was about love and not the secret handshake of any clan. Many clans follow only the clan bill of kinship.

Love your enemy was not just about not resisting a physical threat with force, but also about not hating or fearing the enemies of your own mind, such as the programmed taboos of your clan. Paul, in the New Testament became all things, to all men; he became universal clannish, so he could mingle everywhere and save some through love.

I was brought up Catholic and still relate to the long history of the Christian Church of Rome; best of both worlds. However, after my Confirmation, at about age 13, I decided I had a good moral background and I wanted to learn more about the other clans; religions and secular. I found that there were good and bad people, in all the clans.

Clans will often accept their own, both the good and bad, as long as they clan up with their secret handshake. Each Ethnic clan may have its own Mafia but dirty laundry never leaves the clan. But to me, in the light of love, the real dividing line was not any given clan being the best clan for me, but it was between the good and bad people found in all the clans. There are "good" intentioned people in all clans. There are also the shady people found in all the clans, which I was still friendly. Sinners can be more fun if they are not harmful to others; party animals who buck the system, but have a good heart. This is a good person but a clan reject; marry outside the clan.

 

[Soapy]

Presume because even this poster recognises that celebration of the Resurrection is not exactly pagan.

But if we're not careful, this will activate @Riders, so I'd better shut up....................

The DEATH of Jesus is the main Christian commemoration - But his resurrection can also be made a joyful event as it illustrates the power of God over the power of Death…

I mean, like, God gives life, so why would of be problematic for God to resurrect a person from death.

Afterall, death of a person is but like the person is in sleep to God… God can ‘wake them up’ again (resurrect them).

 

[Soapy]

“Be careful not to make a treaty with those who live in the [Pagan] land; for when they prostitute themselves to their gods and sacrifice to them, they will invite you and you will eat their sacrifices.” (Exodus 34:15)

 

[ADigitalArtist]

“Be careful not to make a treaty with those who live in the [Pagan] land; for when they prostitute themselves to their gods and sacrifice to them, they will invite you and you will eat their sacrifices.” (Exodus 34:15)

A treaty or binding legal agreement is different from trying to learn about a people so you can engage them where they're at honestly and knowledgeably instead of with ignorance, judgement and force. The latter of which pushes people away from taking an interest in your perspective and beliefs.

 

[Secret Chief]

EASTER, is not Pagan…!

So why is it called Easter? It comes from the name of the Germanic pagan spring goddess Ēostre, who was celebrated with feasts during April ("Ēostre's month").

 

[ADigitalArtist]

Bonfire Night is not celebrating him. He is being condemned in effigy over and over again. It's celebrating the fact that he failed. You didn't know this?

I blame Alan Moore and V For Vendetta for this. It's the only interaction a lot of people outside the UK have had with the concept.

 

[Rival]

So why is it called Easter? It is derived from the name of the Germanic goddess Ēostre, who was celebrated with feasts during April ("Ēostre's month").

Bede probably made this Goddess up.

It's called that only in England; other nations still use the Jewish derived Pascha.

Easter probably comes from east, where the sun rises, hence the resurrection.

 

[Rival]

I blame Alan Moore and V For Vendetta for this. It's the only interaction a lot of people outside the UK have had with the concept.

The OP is from the UK tho.