What is up with Christian Holidays?

[James.williamson.3]

I don't understand this.

Almost every Major Christian holiday falls on the same day as a major pagan holiday and incorporates the same symbology. I understand that the Roman Churchs were trying to incorporate Romes vastly Pagan Population, but isn't it an afront to god to use these Pagan Holidays. Especially Easter. It is easily the most confusing Christian Holiday because the only thing that appears chirstian about it is that fact that we say that it is the day that Jesus rose from the dead, which is oddly specific because modern dating of ancient events never gets much closer that a week to the day that the actual event took place. was their a specific date in the bible or some other religious text that I don't know about.

 

[tumbleweed41]

New cultures tend to assimilate the old cultures habits.

 

[angellous_evangellous]

The dates weren't in the Bible, but the Christian holidays were on solstice and new moons, etc.... not to mention carry-overs from Jewish holidays. The solstice (etc) was an easy way to have Christians everywhere celebrate at the same time. I won't exclude Roman and other pagan influence - certainly in how celebrations developed, but Christians didn't even celebrate the pagan influenced holidays until several hundred years after Christ.

 

[Breathe]

Agree with the above posters.


I doubt any conception of God would be upset by the use of Pagan holidays to celebrate days that have meaning to followers that they can't be sure when they occurred, or even the days of the week or the naming of the planets: why would "He"?

 

[James.williamson.3]

It seemed odd to me but putting them on the Solstices does make sense and that would account for the relation ship with many Pagan Holidays.

Thanks everybody

 

[doppelganger]

which is oddly specific because modern dating of ancient events never gets much closer that a week to the day that the actual event took place. was their a specific date in the bible or some other religious text that I don't know about.

It's even more odd when you consider the manner of calculating the date for Easter each year in Western Christianity . . .

 

[angellous_evangellous]

It seemed odd to me but putting them on the Solstices does make sense and that would account for the relation ship with many Pagan Holidays.

Thanks everybody

Yep. I would be interesting to find out exactly when Christians started celebrating Christmas on Dec 25 -- but everything surrounding Easter has a fairly definate schedule, at least now. I really don't think that Christmas was celebrated on that date until at least the fourth century, but it could be as late as the nineth.

 

[Mister Emu]

It is easily the most confusing Christian Holiday because the only thing that appears chirstian about it is that fact that we say that it is the day that Jesus rose from the dead, which is oddly specific because modern dating of ancient events never gets much closer that a week to the day that the actual event took place. was their a specific date in the bible or some other religious text that I don't know about.

Passover

 

[HonestJoe]

What is up with Christian Holidays?

They only last three days and then you have to come back.

 

[doppelganger]

Yep. I would be interesting to find out exactly when Christians started celebrating Christmas on Dec 25 -- but everything surrounding Easter has a fairly definate schedule, at least now. I really don't think that Christmas was celebrated on that date until at least the fourth century, but it could be as late as the nineth.

There was a split in practice very early on, maybe as early as the 3rd century between celebrating it on December 25 and January 6, which was more common the further East you went. Many Armenian Christians still celebrate it on January 6, which is the Day of Epiphany in the West. And our 12 Days of Christmas are the days between December 25 and January 6.

 

[angellous_evangellous]

There was a split in practice very early on, maybe as early as the 3rd century between celebrating it on December 25 and January 6, which was more common the further East you went. Many Armenian Christians still celebrate it on January 6, which is the Day of Epiphany in the West. And our 12 Days of Christmas are the days between December 25 and January 6.

I don't recall if the Eastern fathers are seperated from the Western ones in my library, but the reason why I said that they didn't start before the 4th century is because I've read just about all the Christian literature (maybe just the West??) for the first 300 years and there's no mention of Christmas. There's just a few lines in Tertullian and Origen, but nothing like a widespread, important holiday.

Wiki has this - Chronography of 354 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia