Except, of course, to Paul and the author of gMark, who felt it entirely unworthy of note, perhaps because the Virgin Birth was a later fabrication.Sava said:
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Who Celebrates Christmas, and why?
- Thread starter wiskeychris
- Start date
jeffrey
â Ãig Dogâ
Aww.. That was so sweet. And that's the real meaning of Christmas to me. Bringing family together and joy in their hearts.michel said:I shall never forget the year Andy was born; he was due on 16th December, but he is always first in the queue - he is always in a hurry, and so he made his apperance on the 8th December.
As Marie spent quite awhile in the post natal ward (one or two minor complications - and andy was slightly jaundiced), I had the house to myself. I went out and bought a great big real tree, and spent a couple of days going crazy with the decorations. That year, Johnny Mathis was at No 1 with 'When a child is born'. When I brought Marie home with andy, I shall never forget the look on her face when she saw all the decorations.
That was Christmas.
jeffrey
â Ãig Dogâ
I remember back in grammer school, right after Christmas, myself and my friends where excitedly telling each other what we got. One boy, I don't remember his name was quiet. We asked him what he got and he replied, "Nothing". We asked him what he meant, and he said that his parents didn't believe in Christmas. I can still see the hurt on his face. On the way home from school I stopped and bought a candy bar, took it to school with me the next day and gave it to him, saying "Merry Christmas." You could see his eyes water. Back then, it was not about the birth of Christ, but giving. Spreading joy. I had forgotten about this until I read this thread. Of how some people will try and ruin something that is a child's biggest day of the year. Christmas is a day for friends, family, and kids. As evident by some people that have posted about celebrating Christmas whom are not Christians. I tip my hat to you. Bless you. And bless the children.
EnhancedSpirit
High Priestess
Here is one of thousands:Prima said:
Christmas Origins
One of the first facts that comes up in a study of the origins of Christmas deals with a festival called Saturnalia. Beginning on December 15th, the Romans held this seven-day celebration in honor of Saturn, god of agriculture. The winter solstice often fell around December 25 on the Julian calendarfollowing these seven days of feasting, revelry, and merrymaking. To commemorate the lengthening of days marked by this solstice, many Romans also enacted rituals that glorified Mithra, the god of light from ancient Persia. But Mithra was of older origins yet than the Romans, who had integrated him into their mythos.
Mithra was a figure spoken of in the Zend-Avesta, or sacred Zoroastrian scriptures. In it, he was known as the chief spirit, the ruler of the world. Many modern scholars trace some of Christianitys origins back to Zoroastrianism, and for good reason. There are indeed many similarities between the two. It would seem that this is the same land that the patriarch Abraham lived in, as did Daniel, and many other Biblical figures. While differing from the God of the Hebrews, there is little doubt that the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob did not influence and enter into the Babylonian cosmology. In fact, from the land of Zoroastrianism came the three Magi, or wise mennamed Balthasar, Melchior, and Caspar (Gaspar) according to a mosaic from around 500 A.D. from a church in Ravenna, Italywho came to visit the Christ child.
In time, after the 6th and 7th century Assyrian conquests, Mithra became known as the god of the sun. The Greeks identified him with Helios, proliferating the Cult of Mithra, and the Romans simultaneously adapted Mithra into their pantheon as they incorporated the Grecian Empire into their culture. The Roman Catholic Church also had the habit of absorbing pagan traditions into Christendom, soon converting this holiday commemorating the birth of the sun god into Christ Mass, a ceremony honoring the birth of the Son of God, whose actual date of birth is uncertain.
Quoth The Raven
Half Arsed Muse
He wouldn't have happened to be a man of Scottish descent in posession of a bottle of whiskey would he?dan said:
When Scotts get on the sauce they've been known to marry fairies.
And that's historically documented, too.
EnhancedSpirit
High Priestess
Ahh, I see, you are questioning Dan's post. I think he just got his information a little confused. Saul was the name of someone who spread the word of Christ. But he is a very interesting character in the bible. He was Paul, a man who did not believe in Jesus until after the crucifixion. Then he changed his name to Saul, and began preaching the gospel of Christ. He is the one who spread Christianity to the part of the world where it meshed with another religion and this is where Christmas came from. Here is a better explaination of Saul and the role he played in starting the Holiday that we celebrate today.Prima said:
Saul of Tarsus and Christ's Blood
The man known as Paul, also called the 13th apostle, was originally named Saul. Until he was about 30 years old, Saul was an outspoken critic of the new cult of rebel Jews following the teachings of the Rabbi Yeshua, who we now know of as Jesus. Paul later became the first evangelist.
Saul's anti Christian stance was abruptly reversed when on the road to Damascus, he had a vision. The Bible says he lost his sight for three days, and when he recovered, he was a convert.(Acts, chapter 9)
In Damascus, Saul began to preach, but the locals drove him out of town. He went to Jerusalem and tried to preach there, but Jesus' followers didn't trust him either. He escaped to his home town, Tarsus, in Cilicia, also known as Cesarea.
Tarsus, on the northern side of the Mediterranean, in what is now Turkey, was a bustling seaport, 2000 years old when Saul arrived in about year 40 C.E. This big, cosmopolitan city was a mixture of many cultures, and the ancient religion of the god Mithras was prominent among them. Shrines and images of Mithras abound there and as far west as the Danube River, and though obscure, a few of the concepts of Mithraism are known to us.
A Look at Mithraism
The roots of Mithraism go back to a Persian religion (Zoroastrianism) and one of its Magi, named Zarathustra, whose name for "God" was Ahura-Mazda. Around 390 B.C.E., This religion made its way west into Greece, and placed "Mithras" in the role of a deity equal to the sun god. Its priests were "Magi;" the same Magi who visited Betl'chem when Jesus was born.
Zarathustra had predicted a Messiah, and Jesus' birth was thought perhaps to be his arrival. In the Persian "Avesta" (their religious writings), this Messiah will appear at the end of time to bring the triumph of good over evil. They call him the "Saushyant," and according to the Bundahishn (XXX,25), he will slay a magnificent bull, and make a potion of immortality for mankind from its fat, mixed with Hamoa juice.
The early Christians saw in the Magi's anticipation of `Jesus' coming a confirmation of their own belief and so allowed them to worship their Savior.
The festival of Mithras' birth was December 25th, the winter solstice, and the rebirth of the sun's light. He was said to have been forced out of a rock, wearing the Phrygian cap, holding a dagger and torch in his hands. This conception is almost certainly based on an ancient tradition dating from the time when humans first discovered that both light and fire could be produced by striking a flint. His day of worship was Sun-Day. Besides having the same birthday as Christianity's Jesus, Mithras was said to have been born in a manger, among shepards. The custom of giving gifts on December 25 originated in Mithraism also, hundreds of years before the birth of Christ.