Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day (Old English: Crīstesmæsse, meaning "Christ's Mass") is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed most commonly on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year, it is prepared for by the season of Advent or the Nativity Fast and initiates the season of Christmastide, which historically in the West lasts twelve days and culminates on Twelfth Night; in some traditions, Christmastide includes an Octave. The traditional Christmas narrative, the Nativity of Jesus, delineated in the New Testament says that Jesus was born in Bethlehem, in accordance with messianic prophecies; when Joseph and Mary arrived in the city, the inn had no room and so they were offered a stable where the Christ Child was soon born, with angels proclaiming this news to shepherds who then disseminated the message furthermore. Christmas Day is a public holiday in many of the world's nations, is celebrated religiously by the vast majority of Christians, as well as culturally by a number of non-Christian people, and is an integral part of the holiday season, while some Christian groups reject the celebration. In several countries, celebrating Christmas Eve on December 24 has the main focus rather than December 25, with gift-giving and sharing a traditional meal with the family.
Although the month and
date of Jesus' birth are unknown, by the early-to-mid 4th century the Western Christian Church had placed Christmas on December 25, a date which was later
adopted in the East. Today, most Christians celebrate on
December 25 in the Gregorian calendar, which has been
adopted almost universally in the civil calendars used in countries throughout the world.
However, some Eastern Christian Churches celebrate Christmas on the December 25 of the older Julian calendar, which currently
corresponds to January 7 in the Gregorian calendar, the day after the Western
Christian Church celebrates the Epiphany. This is not a
disagreement over the date of Christmas as such, but rather a preference of which
calendar should be used to determine the day that is December 25. In the Council of Tours of 567, the Church, with its desire to be universal, "declared the twelve days between Christmas and Epiphany to be one unified festal cycle", thus giving significance to both the Western
and Eastern dates of Christmas. Moreover, for Christians, the belief
that God came into the world in the form of man to atone for the sins of humanity, rather than the exact birth
date, is considered to be the primary purpose in celebrating Christmas.
Although it is not
known why December 25 became a date of celebration, there are several factors
that may have influenced the choice. December 25 was the date the Romans marked
as the winter solstice, and Jesus was identified with the Sun
based on an Old Testament verse. The date is exactly
nine months following Annunciation, when the conception of Jesus is celebrated. Finally, the Romans
had a series of pagan festivals near the end of the year, so Christmas may have
been scheduled at this time to appropriate, or compete with, one or more of
these festivals.
The celebratory customs
associated in various countries with Christmas have a mix of pre-Christian, Christian, and secular themes and origins. Popular modern customs of the holiday
include gift giving, completing an Advent calendar or Advent wreath, Christmas music and caroling, lighting a Christingle, an
exchange of Christmas cards, church services, a special meal, and the display of
various Christmas decorations, including Christmas trees, Christmas lights, nativity scenes, garlands, wreaths, mistletoe, and holly. In addition, several
closely related and often interchangeable figures, known as Santa Claus, Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, and Christkind, are
associated with bringing gifts to children during the Christmas season and have
their own body of traditions and lore. Because gift-giving and many other
aspects of the Christmas festival involve heightened economic activity, the
holiday has become a significant event and a key sales period for retailers and
businesses. The economic impact of Christmas has grown steadily over the past
few centuries in many regions of the world.
Etymology
"Christmas"
is a shortened form of "Christ's mass". It is derived from the Middle English Cristemasse, which is from Old English Crīstesmæsse, a phrase first recorded in 1038 followed by the word Cristes-messe in 1131. Crīst (genitive Crīstes) is from Greek Khrīstos (Χριστός), a translation of Hebrew Māšîaḥ (מָשִׁיחַ), "Messiah", meaning "anointed"; and mæsse is from Latin missa, the celebration of the Eucharist. The form Christenmas was also historically used, but is now considered archaic and dialectal; it derives from Middle
English Cristenmasse, literally
"Christian mass". Xmas is an abbreviation of Christmas found particularly in print, based on the initial letter chi (Χ) in Greek Khrīstos (Χριστός), "Christ", though
numerous style guides discourage its use; it has precedent in Middle English Χρ̄es masse (where "Χρ̄" is an abbreviation for Χριστός).
Other names
In addition to
"Christmas", the holiday has been known by various other names
throughout its history. The Anglo-Saxons referred to the feast as
"midwinter", or, more rarely, as Nātiuiteð (from Latin nātīvitās below). "Nativity", meaning "birth", is from Latin nātīvitās. In Old English, Gēola (Yule) referred to the period corresponding to December and January, which was
eventually equated with Christian Christmas."Noel" (or
"Nowel") entered English in the late 14th century and is from the Old
French noël or naël, itself ultimately from the Latin nātālis (diēs), "birth
(day)".
Nativity
The canonical gospels of Luke and Matthew both describe Jesus as being born in Bethlehem in Judea, to a virgin mother. In the Gospel of Luke account, Joseph and
Mary travel from Nazareth to Bethlehem for the census, and Jesus
is born there and laid in a manger. It says that angels
proclaimed him a savior for all people, and shepherds came to adore him. In the
Matthew account, magi follow a star to Bethlehem to bring gifts to Jesus,
born the king of the Jews. King Herod orders the massacre of all the boys less than two years old in Bethlehem, but the family flees to Egypt and
later settles in Nazareth.
History
The earliest known
Christian festivals were attempts to celebrate Jewish holidays, especially
Passover, according to the local calendar. Modern scholars refer to such
holidays as "Quartodecimals" because Passover is dated as 14 Nisan on
the Jewish calendar. All the major events of the life of Jesus were celebrated
in this festival, including his conception, birth, and passion. In the
Greek-speaking areas of the Roman Empire, the Macedonian calendar was used. In these areas, the Quartodecimal was celebrated on April 6. In
Latin-speaking areas, the Quartodecimal was March 25. The significance of the
Quartodecimal declined after 165, when Pope Soter moved celebration of the
Resurrection to a Sunday, thereby creating Easter. This put celebration of the
passion on Good Friday, and thus moved it away from the Quartodecimal.
The Christian
ecclesiastical calendar contains many remnants of pre-Christian festivals.
Although the dating as December 25 predates pagan influence, the later development of Christmas as a festival includes
elements of the Roman feast of the Saturnalia and the birthday of Mithra as described in the Roman cult of Mithraism.
Choice of December 25
date
In the 3rd century,
the date of birth of Jesus was the subject of both great interest and great
uncertainly. Around AD 200, Clement of Alexandria wrote:
“
|
There are those who have determined
not only the year of our Lord's birth, but also the day; and they say that it
took place in the 28th year of Augustus, and in the 25th day of [the Egyptian
month] Pachon [May 20] … And treating of His Passion, with very great
accuracy, some say that it took place in the 16th year of Tiberius, on the
25th of Phamenoth [March 21]; and others on the 25th of Pharmuthi [April 21]
and others say that on the 19th of Pharmuthi [April 15] the Savior suffered.
Further, others say that He was born on the 24th or 25th of Pharmuthi [April
20 or 21].
|
”
|
In other writing of
this time, May 20, April 18 or 19, March 25, January 2, November 17, and
November 20 are all suggested. Various factors contributed to the
selection of December 25 as a date of celebration: it was the date of the
winter solstice on the Roman calendar; it was about nine months after March 25,
the date of the vernal equinox and a date linked to the conception of Jesus; and
it was the date of a Roman pagan festival in honor of the Sun god Sol Invictus.
Solstice date
December 25 was the
date of the winter solstice on the Roman calendar. Jesus chose to be born on the shortest day of the year for symbolic
reasons, according to an early sermon by Augustine: "Hence it is that He was born on the day which is the shortest in
our earthly reckoning and from which subsequent days begin to increase in
length. He, therefore, who bent low and lifted us up chose the shortest day,
yet the one whence light begins to increase."
Linking Jesus to the
Sun was supported by various Biblical passages. Jesus was considered to be the
"Sun of righteousness" prophesied by Malachi. John describes him as "the light of the world."
Such solar symbolism
could support more than one date of birth. An anonymous work known as De Pascha Computus (243) linked the idea that creation
began at the spring equinox, on March 25, with the conception or birth (the
word nascor can mean either) of
Jesus on March 28, the day of the creation of the sun in the Genesis account.
One translation reads: "O the splendid and divine providence of the Lord,
that on that day, the very day, on which the sun was made, the 28 March, a
Wednesday, Christ should be born. For this reason Malachi the prophet, speaking
about him to the people, fittingly said, 'Unto you shall the sun of
righteousness arise, and healing is in his wings.'"
In the 17th century, Isaac Newton argued that the date of Christmas was selected to correspond with the
solstice.
According to Steven
Hijmans of the University of Alberta, "It is cosmic symbolism ... which
inspired the Church leadership in Rome to elect the southern solstice, December 25, as the
birthday of Christ, and the northern solstice as that of John the Baptist,
supplemented by the equinoxes as their respective dates of conception."
The Calculation
hypothesis
The Calculation
hypothesis suggests that an earlier holiday held on March 25 became associated
with the Incarnation. Modern scholars refer to this feast as
the Quartodecimal. Christmas was then calculated as nine months later. The
Calculation hypothesis was proposed by French writer Louis Duchesne in 1889.
In modern times, March
25 is celebrated as Annunciation. This holiday was created in the seventh century and was assigned to a
date that is nine months before Christmas, in addition to being the traditional
date of the equinox. It is unrelated to the Quartodecimal, which had been
forgotten by this time.
Early Christians
celebrated the life of Jesus on a date considered equivalent to 14 Nisan
(Passover) on the local calendar. Because Passover was held on the 14th of the
month, this feast is referred to as the Quartodecimal. All the major events of
Christ's life, especially the passion, were celebrated on this date. In his
letter to the Corinthians, Paul mentions Passover, presumably celebrated
according to the local calendar in Corinth. Tertullian (d. 220),
who lived in Latin-speaking North Africa, gives the date of celebration as
March 25. In the East, which used the Macedonian calendar, the date of celebration
was April 6. The date of the passion was moved to
Good Friday in 165 when Pope Soter created Easter by reassigning the
Resurrection to a Sunday. According to the Calculation hypothesis, celebration
of the quartodecimal continued in some areas and the feast became associated
with Incarnation. While Christmas was nine months after March 25, Epiphany
(January 6) was nine months after April 6. Both Christmas and Epiphany have
been widely celebrated as Christ's date of birth. The Armenian Church continues
to celebrate the birth of Jesus on Epiphany.
The Calculation
hypothesis is considered academically to be "a thoroughly viable
hypothesis", though not certain. It was a traditional
Jewish belief that great men lived a whole number of years, without fractions,
so that Jesus was considered to have been conceived on March 25, as he died on
March 25, which was calculated to have coincided with 14 Nisan.
A passage in Commentary on the Prophet Daniel (204) by Hippolytus
of Rome identifies December 25 as the date of
the nativity. This passage is generally considered a late interpellation. The
manuscript includes another passage, one that is more likely to be authentic,
that gives the passion as March 25.
In 221, Sextus Julius Africanus (c. 160 –
c. 240) gave March 25 as the day of creation and of the conception of
Jesus in his universal history. This conclusion was argued based on March 25 as the date of the spring
equinox. As this implies a birth in December, it is sometimes claimed to be the
earliest identification of December 25 as the nativity. However, Africanus was
not such an influential writer that it is likely he determined the date of
Christmas. He wrote in Greek, and Christmas seems to have originated in a
Latin-speaking area.
The tractate De solstitia et aequinoctia conceptionis et nativitatis Domini nostri Iesu
Christi et Iohannis Baptistae, falsely attributed to John Chrysostom, also argued that
Jesus was conceived and crucified on the same day of the year and calculated
this as March 25. This anonymous tract also states:
"But Our Lord, too, is born in the month of December ... the eight
before the calends of January [25 December] ..., But they call it the
'Birthday of the Unconquered'. Who indeed is so unconquered as Our Lord...? Or,
if they say that it is the birthday of the Sun, He is the Sun of Justice."
The History of Religions
hypothesis
The rival
"History of Religions" hypothesis suggests that the Church selected
the December 25th date to appropriate festivities held by the Romans in honor
of the Sun god Sol Invictus.[67] This feast was established by Aurelian
in 274.
An explicit expression
of this theory appears in an annotation of uncertain date added to a manuscript
of a work by 12th-century Syrian bishop Jacob Bar-Salibi. The scribe who added it wrote: "It was a custom of the Pagans to
celebrate on the same 25 December the birthday of the Sun, at which they
kindled lights in token of festivity. In these solemnities and revelries the
Christians also took part. Accordingly when the doctors of the Church perceived
that the Christians had a leaning to this festival, they took counsel and
resolved that the true Nativity should be solemnised on that day."
In 1743, German
Protestant Paul Ernst Jablonski argued Christmas was placed on December 25 to
correspond with the Roman solar holiday Dies Natalis Solis Invicti and was therefore a "paganization" that debased the true church. It has been argued that, on the contrary, the Emperor Aurelian, who in 274
instituted the holiday of the Dies Natalis Solis Invicti, did so partly as an attempt
to give a pagan significance to a date already important for Christians in
Rome.
Hermann Usener and others proposed that the Christians chose this
day because it was the Roman feast celebrating the birthday of Sol Invictus.
Modern scholar S. E. Hijmans, however, states that "While they were aware
that pagans called this day the 'birthday' of Sol Invictus, this did not
concern them and it did not play any role in their choice of date for
Christmas."
In the judgement of
the Church of England Liturgical Commission, the History of Religions
hypothesis has been challenged by a view based on an old tradition,
according to which the date of Christmas was fixed at nine months after April
7 [O.S. March 25], the date of the vernal equinox, on which the Annunciation was celebrated.
With regard to a
December religious feast of the sun as a god (Sol), as distinct from a solstice
feast of the (re)birth of the astronomical sun, one scholar has commented that,
"while the winter solstice on or around December 25 was well established
in the Roman imperial calendar, there is no evidence that a religious
celebration of Sol on that day antedated the celebration of Christmas". "Thomas Talley has shown that, although the Emperor Aurelian's
dedication of a temple to the sun god in the Campus Martius (C.E. 274) probably
took place on the 'Birthday of the Invincible Sun' on December 25, the cult of
the sun in pagan Rome ironically did not celebrate the winter solstice nor any
of the other quarter-tense days, as one might expect." The Oxford Companion to Christian Thought remarks on the uncertainty about the order of precedence between the
religious celebrations of the Birthday of the Unconquered Sun and of the
birthday of Jesus, stating that the hypothesis that December 25 was chosen for
celebrating the birth of Jesus on the basis of the belief that his conception
occurred on March 25 "potentially establishes 25 December as a Christian
festival before Aurelian's decree, which, when promulgated, might have provided
for the Christian feast both opportunity and challenge".
Introduction of feast
As Christmas was
unknown to the early Christian writers, it must have been introduced sometime
after 300. Irenaeus and Tertullian omit it from their lists of feasts, and
Origen writes that in the Scriptures sinners alone, not saints, celebrate their
birthday. Arnobius can still ridicule the "birthdays" of the gods. The first recorded Christmas celebration was in Rome in 336. The feast was
introduced to the Eastern Roman Empire after the death of Emperor Valens, who favored the Arian heresy, in 378.
In 245, Origen of Alexandria, writing about Leviticus 12:1–8, commented that Scripture mentions only sinners as celebrating their birthdays, namely Pharaoh, who
then had his chief baker hanged (Genesis 40:20–22), and Herod, who then had John the Baptist beheaded (Mark 6:21–27), and mentions saints as cursing the day of their birth, namely Jeremiah (Jeremiah 20:14–15) and Job (Job 3:1–16). In 303, Arnobius ridiculed the idea of celebrating the birthdays of gods, a passage cited as
evidence that Arnobius was unaware of any nativity celebration. Since Christmas does not celebrate Christ's birth "as God" but
"as man", this does not necessarily show that Christmas was not a
feast at this time.
The fact the Donatists of North Africa celebrated Christmas suggests that the feast was
established by the time that church was created in 311. The earliest known Christmas celebration is recorded in a fourth-century manuscript compiled in
Rome. This manuscript is thought to record a celebration that occurred in 336.
It was prepared privately for Filocalus, a Roman aristocrat, in 354. The
reference in question states, "VIII kal. ian. natus Christus in Betleem
Iudeæ". This reference is in a section of the
manuscript that was copied from earlier source material. The document also contains the earliest known reference to the feast of Sol
Invictus.
In Eastern Christianity the birth of Jesus was already celebrated in connection with the Epiphany on January 6. Epiphany emphasized celebration of the baptism of Jesus. The December 25
celebration was imported into the East later: in Antioch by John Chrysostom towards the end of the fourth century, probably in 388, and
in Alexandria only in the following century. Even in the West, the
January 6 celebration of the nativity of Jesus seems to have continued until
after 380.
In the East, early
Christians celebrated the birth of Christ as part of Epiphany (January 6), although Christmas was promoted in the Christian East as part
of the revival of Nicene Christianity following the death of the pro-Arian Emperor Valens at the Battle of Adrianople in 378. The feast was introduced at Constantinople in 379, and at Antioch in about 380. The feast disappeared
after Gregory of Nazianzus resigned as bishop in 381, although it was reintroduced by John Chrysostom in about 400.
Relation to concurrent
celebrations
Many popular customs
associated with Christmas developed independently of the commemoration of
Jesus' birth, with certain elements having origins in pre-Christian festivals
that were celebrated around the winter solstice by pagan populations who were
later converted to Christianity. These elements, including the Yule log from Yule and gift giving from Saturnalia, became syncretized into Christmas over the centuries. The prevailing atmosphere of Christmas
has also continually evolved since the holiday's inception, ranging from a
sometimes raucous, drunken, carnival-like state in the Middle Ages, to a tamer family-oriented and children-centered theme
introduced in a 19th-century transformation. Additionally, the
celebration of Christmas was banned on more than one occasion within certain Protestant groups, such as the Puritans, due to concerns that it was too pagan or unbiblical. Jehovah's Witnesses also reject the celebration of Christmas.
Prior to and through
the early Christian centuries, winter festivals—especially those
centered on the winter solstice—were the most popular of the year in many European pagan cultures. Reasons
included the fact that less agricultural work needed to be done during the
winter, as well as an expectation of better weather as spring approached. Many modern Christmas customs have been directly influenced by such
festivals, including gift-giving and merrymaking from the Roman Saturnalia, greenery, lights,
and charity from the Roman New Year, and Yule logs and various foods from Germanic feasts. The Egyptian deity Horus, son to goddess Isis, was celebrated at
the winter solstice. Horus was often depicted being fed by his mother, which
also influenced the symbolism of the Virgin Mary with baby Christ.
The pre-Christian Germanic peoples—including the Anglo-Saxons
and the Norse—celebrated a winter festival called Yule, held in the late
December to early January period, yielding modern English yule, today used as a synonym for Christmas. In Germanic language-speaking areas, numerous elements of modern Christmas
folk custom and iconography stem from Yule, including the Yule log, Yule boar, and the Yule goat. Often leading a ghostly procession through the sky (the Wild Hunt), the long-bearded
god Odin is referred to as "the Yule one" and "Yule father" in
Old Norse texts, whereas the rest of the gods are referred to as "Yule
beings".
In eastern Europe
also, old pagan traditions were incorporated into Christmas celebrations, an
example being the Koleda, which was incorporated into the Christmas carol.
In the Early Middle Ages, Christmas Day was
overshadowed by Epiphany, which in western Christianity focused on the visit of the magi. But the medieval calendar was dominated by Christmas-related holidays.
The forty days before Christmas became the "forty days of St. Martin"
(which began on November 11, the feast of St. Martin of Tours), now known as
Advent. In Italy, former Saturnalian traditions were attached to Advent. Around the 12th
century, these traditions transferred again to the Twelve Days of Christmas (December 25 – January 5); a time that appears in the liturgical calendars
as Christmastide or Twelve Holy Days.
The prominence of
Christmas Day increased gradually after Charlemagne was crowned Emperor on Christmas Day in
800. King Edmund the Martyr was anointed on Christmas in 855 and
King William I of England was crowned on Christmas Day 1066.
The coronation of Charlemagne on Christmas of 800 helped promote the
popularity of the holiday
By the High Middle Ages, the holiday had
become so prominent that chroniclers routinely noted where various magnates celebrated Christmas. King Richard II of England hosted a Christmas feast in 1377 at which twenty-eight oxen and
three hundred sheep were eaten. The Yule boar was a common feature of
medieval Christmas feasts. Caroling also became popular, and was originally
a group of dancers who sang. The group was composed of a lead singer and a ring
of dancers that provided the chorus. Various writers of the time condemned
caroling as lewd, indicating that the unruly traditions of Saturnalia and Yule
may have continued in this form. "Misrule"—drunkenness, promiscuity, gambling—was also an important aspect of
the festival. In England, gifts were exchanged on New Year's Day, and there was special Christmas ale.
Christmas during the
Middle Ages was a public festival that incorporated ivy, holly, and other
evergreens. Christmas gift-giving during the Middle Ages was usually
between people with legal relationships, such as tenant and landlord. The annual indulgence in eating, dancing, singing, sporting, and card
playing escalated in England, and by the 17th century the Christmas season
featured lavish dinners, elaborate masques, and pageants. In 1607, King James I insisted that a play be acted on Christmas night and that the court indulge
in games. It was during the Reformation in 16th–17th-century Europe that many Protestants changed the gift bringer
to the Christ Child or Christkindl, and the date of
giving gifts changed from December 6 to Christmas Eve.
Reformation to the 18th
century
Following the Protestant Reformation, many of the new
denominations, including the Anglican Church and Lutheran Church, continued to
celebrate Christmas. In 1629, the Anglican poet John Milton penned On the Morning of
Christ's Nativity, a poem that has since been read by many during Christmastide. Donald Heinz, a professor at California State University, states that Martin Luther "inaugurated a period in which Germany would produce a unique culture
of Christmas, much copied in North America." Among the
congregations of the Dutch Reformed Church, Christmas was
celebrated as one of the principal evangelical feasts.
However, in 17th
century England, some groups such as the Puritans, strongly condemned the celebration of Christmas, considering it a
Catholic invention and the "trappings of popery" or the "rags of the Beast". In contrast, the established Anglican Church "pressed for a more elaborate observance of feasts, penitential
seasons, and saints' days. The calendar reform became a major point of tension
between the Anglican party and the Puritan party." The Catholic Church also responded, promoting the festival
in a more religiously oriented form. King Charles I of England directed his noblemen and gentry to return to their landed estates in
midwinter to keep up their old-style Christmas generosity. Following the Parliamentarian victory over Charles I during the English Civil War, England's Puritan
rulers banned Christmas in 1647.
Protests followed as
pro-Christmas rioting broke out in several cities and for weeks Canterbury was controlled by the rioters, who decorated doorways with holly and shouted royalist slogans. The book, The Vindication of
Christmas (London, 1652), argued against the
Puritans, and makes note of Old English Christmas traditions, dinner, roast
apples on the fire, card playing, dances with "plow-boys" and
"maidservants", old Father Christmas and carol singing.
The Restoration of King Charles II in 1660 ended the ban, but many Calvinist clergymen still disapproved of
Christmas celebration. As such, in Scotland, the Presbyterian Church of Scotland discouraged the observance of Christmas, and though James VI commanded its celebration in 1618, attendance at church was scant. The Parliament of Scotland officially abolished the observance of Christmas in 1640, claiming that the
church had been "purged of all superstitious observation of days". It was not until 1958 that Christmas again became a Scottish public
holiday.
Following the
Restoration of Charles II, Poor Robin's Almanack contained the lines: "Now thanks to God for Charles return, / Whose
absence made old Christmas mourn. / For then we scarcely did it know, / Whether
it Christmas were or no." The diary of James Woodforde, from the
latter half of the 18th century, details the observance of Christmas and
celebrations associated with the season over a number of years.
In Colonial America, the Pilgrims of New England shared radical Protestant disapproval of Christmas. The Plymouth Pilgrims put their loathing for the day into practice in 1620
when they spent their first Christmas Day in the New World working – thus
demonstrating their complete contempt for the day. Non-Puritans in New England deplored the loss of the holidays enjoyed by
the laboring classes in England. Christmas observance
was outlawed in Boston in 1659. The ban by the
Puritans was revoked in 1681 by English governor Edmund Andros, however it was not until the mid-19th century that celebrating Christmas
became fashionable in the Boston region.
At the same time,
Christian residents of Virginia and New York observed the holiday freely. Pennsylvania German Settlers, pre-eminently the Moravian settlers of Bethlehem, Nazareth and Lititz in Pennsylvania and the Wachovia Settlements in North Carolina, were enthusiastic celebrators of Christmas.
The Moravians in Bethlehem had the first Christmas trees in America as well as
the first Nativity Scenes. Christmas fell out of favor in the
United States after the American Revolution, when it was
considered an English custom. George Washington attacked Hessian (German) mercenaries on the day after Christmas during the Battle of Trenton on December 26, 1776, Christmas being much more popular in Germany than in
America at this time.
With the atheistic Cult of Reason in power during the era of Revolutionary France, Christian Christmas religious services were banned and the three kings cake was forcibly renamed the "equality
cake" under anticlerical government policies.
19th century
In the early 19th
century, writers imagined Tudor Christmas as a time of heartfelt
celebration. In 1843, Charles Dickens wrote the novel A Christmas Carol that helped revive the "spirit" of Christmas and seasonal
merriment. Its instant popularity played a major
role in portraying Christmas as a holiday emphasizing family, goodwill, and
compassion.
Dickens sought to
construct Christmas as a family-centered festival of generosity, linking
"worship and feasting, within a context of social reconciliation." Superimposing his humanitarian vision of the holiday, in what has been
termed "Carol Philosophy", Dickens influenced
many aspects of Christmas that are celebrated today in Western culture, such as
family gatherings, seasonal food and drink, dancing, games, and a festive
generosity of spirit. A prominent phrase from the tale, "Merry Christmas", was popularized
following the appearance of the story. This coincided with
the appearance of the Oxford Movement and the growth of Anglo-Catholicism, which led a revival
in traditional rituals and religious observances.
The term Scrooge became a synonym for miser, with "Bah! Humbug!" dismissive of the
festive spirit. In 1843, the first commercial Christmas card was produced by Sir Henry Cole. The revival of the Christmas Carol began with William Sandys's "Christmas
Carols Ancient and Modern" (1833), with the first appearance in print of
"The First Noel", "I Saw Three Ships", "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" and "God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen", popularized in
Dickens' A Christmas Carol.
In Britain, the Christmas tree was introduced in the early 19th century following the personal union with
the Kingdom of Hanover by Charlotte of
Mecklenburg-Strelitz, wife of King George III. In 1832, the future Queen Victoria wrote about her delight at having a Christmas tree, hung with lights, ornaments, and presents placed round it. After her marriage to her German cousin Prince Albert, by 1841 the custom
became more widespread throughout Britain.
An image of the
British royal family with their Christmas tree at Windsor Castle created a
sensation when it was published in the Illustrated London News in 1848. A modified version of this image was published in the United
States in 1850. By the 1870s, putting up a Christmas
tree had become common in America.
In America, interest
in Christmas had been revived in the 1820s by several short stories by Washington Irving which appear in his The Sketch Book of
Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. and "Old Christmas". Irving's
stories depicted harmonious warm-hearted English Christmas festivities he
experienced while staying in Aston Hall, Birmingham, England, that had largely been abandoned, and he used the tract Vindication of Christmas (1652) of Old English Christmas traditions, that he had transcribed into
his journal as a format for his stories.
In 1822, Clement Clarke Moore wrote the poem A Visit From St. Nicholas (popularly known by its first line: Twas the Night Before
Christmas). The poem helped popularize the tradition
of exchanging gifts, and seasonal Christmas shopping began to assume economic
importance. This also started the cultural conflict
between the holiday's spiritual significance and its associated commercialism that some see as corrupting the holiday. In her 1850 book The First Christmas in New England, Harriet Beecher Stowe includes a character who complains that the true meaning of Christmas was lost in a shopping spree.
While the celebration
of Christmas was not yet customary in some regions in the U.S., Henry Wadsworth Longfellow detected "a transition state about Christmas here in New England"
in 1856. "The old puritan feeling prevents it from being a cheerful,
hearty holiday; though every year makes it more so." In Reading, Pennsylvania, a newspaper remarked
in 1861, "Even our presbyterian friends who have hitherto steadfastly
ignored Christmas—threw open their church doors and assembled in force to
celebrate the anniversary of the Savior's birth."
The First Congregational
Church of Rockford, Illinois, "although of genuine Puritan stock", was 'preparing for a grand
Christmas jubilee', a news correspondent reported in 1864. By 1860, fourteen states including several from New England had adopted Christmas as a legal holiday. In 1875, Louis Prang introduced the Christmas card to Americans. He has been called the "father of the American Christmas
card". On June 26, 1870, Christmas was formally
declared a United States federal
holiday.
20th century
Up to the 1950s, in
the UK, many Christmas customs were restricted to the upper classes and
better-off families. The mass of the population had not adopted many of the
Christmas rituals that later became general. The Christmas tree was rare. Christmas dinner might be
beef—certainly not turkey. In their stockings children might get an apple,
orange and sweets. Full celebration of a family Christmas with all the
trimmings only became widespread with increased prosperity from the 1950s. National papers were published on Christmas Day until 1912. Post was still
delivered on Christmas Day until 1961. League football matches continued in
Scotland until the 1970s while in England they ceased at the end of the 1950s.
Under the state atheism of the Soviet Union, after its foundation in 1917, Christmas
celebrations—along with other Christian holidays—were prohibited in public. During the 1920s, 30s and 40s, the League of Militant Atheists encouraged school pupils to campaign against Christmas traditions, such as
the Christmas tree, as well as other Christian holidays, including Easter; the
League established an antireligious holiday to be the 31st of each month as a
replacement. At the height of this persecution, in
1929, on Christmas Day, children in Moscow were encouraged to spit on crucifixes as a protest against the holiday. It was not until the dissolution of the
Soviet Union in 1991 that the persecution ended and Orthodox Christmas became a state holiday again for the first
time in Russia after seven decades.
European History
Professor Joseph Perry wrote that likewise, in Nazi Germany, "because Nazi ideologues saw organized religion as an enemy of the
totalitarian state, propagandists sought to deemphasize—or eliminate altogether—the
Christian aspects of the holiday" and that "Propagandists tirelessly
promoted numerous Nazified Christmas songs, which replaced Christian themes
with the regime's racial ideologies."
As Christmas
celebrations began to be held around the world even outside traditional
Christian cultures in the 20th century, some Muslim-majority countries have
banned the practice of Christmas, claiming it undermines Islam.
Customs and traditions
Christmas Day is
celebrated as a major festival and public holiday in countries around the world, including
many whose populations are mostly non-Christian. In some non-Christian areas,
periods of former colonial rule introduced the celebration (e.g. Hong Kong); in others,
Christian minorities or foreign cultural influences have led populations to
observe the holiday. Countries such as Japan, where Christmas is popular
despite there being only a small number of Christians, have adopted many of the
secular aspects of Christmas, such as gift-giving, decorations, and Christmas
trees.
Countries in which
Christmas is not a formal public holiday include Afghanistan, Algeria,
Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bhutan, Cambodia, China (excepting Hong Kong and Macao), Comoros, Iran,
Israel, Japan, Kuwait, Laos, Libya, Maldives, Mauritania, Mongolia, Morocco,
North Korea, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, Saudi
Arabia, Somalia, Tajikistan, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, United
Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, and Yemen. Christmas celebrations around
the world can vary markedly in form, reflecting differing cultural and national
traditions.
Among countries with a
strong Christian tradition, a variety of Christmas celebrations have developed
that incorporate regional and local cultures. For Christians, participating in
a religious service plays an important part in the recognition of the season.
Christmas, along with Easter, is the period of highest annual church
attendance. In Catholic countries, people hold religious
processions or parades in the days preceding Christmas. In
other countries, secular processions or parades featuring Santa Claus and other
seasonal figures are often held. Family reunions and the exchange of gifts are
a widespread feature of the season. Gift giving takes place on Christmas Day in
most countries. Others practice gift giving on December 6, Saint Nicholas Day,
and January 6, Epiphany.
Decorations
The practice of
putting up special decorations at Christmas has a long history. In the 15th
century, it was recorded that in London it was the custom at Christmas for
every house and all the parish churches to be "decked with holm, ivy, bays, and whatsoever the season of the year
afforded to be green". The heart-shaped leaves of ivy were said to symbolize the coming to
earth of Jesus, while holly was seen as protection against pagans and witches, its thorns and red
berries held to represent the Crown of Thorns worn by Jesus at the crucifixion and the
blood he shed.
Nativity scenes are
known from 10th-century Rome. They were popularised by Saint Francis of Asissi from 1223, quickly spreading across Europe. Different types of
decorations developed across the Christian world, dependent on local tradition
and available resources, and can vary from simple representations of the crib
to far more elaborate sets – renowned manger scene traditions include the
colourful Kraków szopka in Poland, which imitate Kraków's historical
buildings as settings, the elaborate Italian presepi (Neapolitan, Genoese and Bolognese) or the Provençal crèches in southern France, using hand-painted terracotta
figurines called santons. In certain parts of the world, notably Sicily, living nativity scenes following the tradition of Saint Francis are a
popular alternative to static crèches. The first commercially
produced decorations appeared in Germany in the 1860s, inspired by paper chains
made by children. In countries where a representation of
the Nativity scene is very popular, people are encouraged
to compete and create the most original or realistic ones. Within some
families, the pieces used to make the representation are considered a valuable
family heirloom.
The traditional colors
of Christmas decorations are red, green, and gold. Red symbolizes the blood of Jesus, which was shed in his crucifixion, while green
symbolizes eternal life, and in particular the evergreen tree, which does not
lose its leaves in the winter, and gold is the first color associated with
Christmas, as one of the three gifts of the Magi, symbolizing royalty.
The Christmas tree is considered by some as Christianisation of pagan tradition and ritual surrounding the Winter Solstice, which included the use of evergreen boughs, and an adaptation of pagan tree worship; according to eighth-century biographer Æddi Stephanus, Saint Boniface (634–709), who was a missionary in Germany, took an axe to an oak tree
dedicated to Thor and pointed out a fir tree, which he stated was a more fitting object of reverence because it pointed
to heaven and it had a
triangular shape, which he said was symbolic of the Trinity. The English language phrase "Christmas tree" is
first recorded in 1835 and represents an importation from the German language. The modern Christmas
tree tradition is believed to have begun in Germany in the 18th century though many argue that Martin Luther began the tradition in the 16th century.
From Germany the
custom was introduced to Britain, first via Queen Charlotte, wife of George III, and then more successfully by Prince Albert during the reign of Queen Victoria. By 1841 the
Christmas tree had become even more widespread throughout Britain. By the 1870s, people in the United States had adopted the custom of putting
up a Christmas tree. Christmas trees may be decorated with lights and ornaments.
Since the 19th
century, the poinsettia, a native plant from Mexico, has been associated with Christmas. Other
popular holiday plants include holly, mistletoe, red amaryllis, and Christmas cactus. Along with a Christmas tree, the interior of a home may be decorated with
these plants, along with garlands and evergreen foliage. The display of Christmas villages has also become a tradition in many homes during this season. The outside
of houses may be decorated with lights and sometimes with illuminated sleighs, snowmen, and other Christmas figures.
Other traditional
decorations include bells, candles, candy canes, stockings, wreaths, and angels. Both the displaying of wreaths and candles in each window are a more
traditional Christmas display. The concentric assortment of leaves, usually
from an evergreen, make up Christmas wreaths and are designed to prepare Christians for the Advent season. Candles in each window are meant to demonstrate the
fact that Christians believe that Jesus Christ is the ultimate light of the
world.
Christmas lights and
banners may be hung along streets, music played from speakers, and Christmas
trees placed in prominent places. It is common in many
parts of the world for town squares and consumer shopping areas to sponsor and
display decorations. Rolls of brightly colored paper with secular or religious
Christmas motifs are manufactured for the purpose of wrapping gifts. In some
countries, Christmas decorations are traditionally taken down on Twelfth Night, the evening of
January 5.
Music and carols
The earliest extant
specifically Christmas hymns appear in 4th-century Rome. Latin hymns such as "Veni redemptor gentium", written by Ambrose, Archbishop of Milan, were austere statements of the theological doctrine
of the Incarnation in opposition to Arianism.
"Corde natus ex Parentis" ("Of the Father's love begotten")
by the Spanish poet Prudentius (d. 413) is still sung in some churches today.
In the 9th and 10th
centuries, the Christmas "Sequence" or "Prose" was introduced
in North European monasteries, developing under Bernard of Clairvaux into a sequence of rhymed stanzas. In the 12th century the Parisian monk Adam of St. Victor began to derive
music from popular songs, introducing something closer to the traditional Christmas carol.
By the 13th century,
in France, Germany, and particularly, Italy, under the influence of Francis of Asissi, a strong tradition
of popular Christmas songs in the native language developed. Christmas carols in English first appear in a 1426 work of John Awdlay, a Shropshire chaplain, who lists twenty-five "caroles of Cristemas", probably
sung by groups of wassailers, who went
from house to house.
The songs we know
specifically as carols were originally communal folk songs sung during
celebrations such as "harvest tide" as well as Christmas. It was only
later that carols began to be sung in church. Traditionally, carols have often
been based on medieval chord patterns, and it is this that
gives them their uniquely characteristic musical sound. Some carols like "Personent hodie",
"Good King Wenceslas", and "The Holly and the Ivy" can be traced
directly back to the Middle Ages. They are among the oldest musical compositions still regularly sung.
"Adeste
Fideles" (O Come all ye faithful) appears in its current form
in the mid-18th century, although the words may have originated in the 13th
century.
Singing of carols
initially suffered a decline in popularity after the Protestant Reformation in northern Europe, although some Reformers, like Martin Luther, wrote carols and
encouraged their use in worship. Carols largely survived in rural communities
until the revival of interest in popular songs in the 19th century. The
18th-century English reformer Charles Wesley understood the importance of music to
worship. In addition to setting many psalms to melodies, which were influential
in the Great Awakening in the United States, he wrote texts for
at least three Christmas carols. The best known was originally entitled
"Hark! How All the Welkin Rings", later renamed "Hark! the Herald Angels Sing".
Felix Mendelssohn wrote a melody adapted to fit Wesley's
words. In Austria in 1818 Mohr and Gruber made a major addition to the genre
when they composed "Silent Night" for the St. Nicholas Church, Oberndorf. William Sandys' Christmas Carols Ancient and Modern (1833) contained the
first appearance in print of many now-classic English carols, and contributed
to the mid-Victorian revival of the festival.
Completely secular
Christmas seasonal songs emerged in the late 18th century. "Deck the Halls" dates from 1784, and the American "Jingle Bells" was copyrighted in 1857. In the 19th and 20th century, African
American spirituals and songs about Christmas, based in their tradition of
spirituals, became more widely known. An increasing number of seasonal holidays
songs were commercially produced in the 20th century, including jazz and blues
variations. In addition, there was a revival of interest in early music, from
groups singing folk music, such as The Revels, to performers of early medieval
and classical music.
Traditional cuisine
A special Christmas family meal is traditionally an important part of the holiday's celebration, and the
food that is served varies greatly from country to country. Some regions, such
as Sicily, have special meals for Christmas Eve, when 12 kinds of fish are served.
In the United Kingdom and countries influenced by its traditions, a standard
Christmas meal includes turkey, goose or other large bird, gravy, potatoes,
vegetables, sometimes bread and cider. Special desserts are also prepared, such
as Christmas pudding, mince pies, fruit cake and Yule log cake.
In Poland and other
parts of eastern Europe and Scandinavia, fish often is used for the traditional
main course, but richer meat such as lamb is increasingly served. In Sweden it
is common with a special variety of smörgåsbord, where
ham, meatballs and herring play a prominent role. In Germany, France, and
Austria, goose and pork are favored. Beef, ham, and chicken in various recipes
are popular throughout the world. The Maltese traditionally serve Imbuljuta
tal-Qastan, a chocolate and chestnuts beverage, after Midnight Mass and throughout the Christmas season. Slovaks prepare the traditional
Christmas bread potica, bûche
de Noël in France, panettone in Italy, and elaborate tarts and cakes. The eating of sweets and
chocolates has become popular worldwide, and sweeter Christmas delicacies
include the German stollen, marzipan cake or candy, and Jamaican rum fruit cake. As one of the few fruits
traditionally available to northern countries in winter, oranges have been long
associated with special Christmas foods. Eggnog is a sweetened dairy-based beverage traditionally made with milk, cream, sugar, and whipped eggs (which gives
it a frothy texture). Spirits such as brandy, rum or bourbon are often added. The finished serving is
often garnished with a sprinkling of ground cinnamon or nutmeg.
Cards
Christmas cards are
illustrated messages of greeting exchanged between friends and family members
during the weeks preceding Christmas Day. The traditional greeting reads
"wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year", much like that
of the first commercial Christmas card, produced by Sir Henry Cole in London in 1843. The custom of sending them has become
popular among a wide cross-section of people with the emergence of the modern
trend towards exchanging E-cards.
Christmas cards are
purchased in considerable quantities, and feature artwork, commercially
designed and relevant to the season. The content of the design might relate
directly to the Christmas narrative with depictions of the Nativity of Jesus, or Christian symbols such as the Star of Bethlehem, or a white dove which can represent both the Holy Spirit and Peace on Earth. Other Christmas cards are more secular and can depict Christmas traditions, mythical figures
such as Santa Claus, objects directly associated with Christmas such as candles, holly and
baubles, or a variety of images associated with the season, such as
Christmastide activities, snow scenes and the wildlife of the northern winter.
There are even humorous cards and genres depicting nostalgic scenes of the past
such as crinolined shoppers in idealized 19th century streetscapes.
Some prefer cards with
a poem, prayer, or Biblical verse; while others distance themselves from religion with an all-inclusive
"Season's greetings".
Commemorative stamps
A number of nations
have issued commemorative stamps at Christmastide. Postal customers will often use these stamps to mail Christmas cards, and they are popular
with philatelists. These stamps are regular postage stamps, unlike Christmas seals, and are valid for postage year-round. They usually go on sale some time
between early October and early December, and are printed in considerable
quantities.
In 1898 a Canadian
stamp was issued to mark the inauguration of the Imperial Penny Postage rate.
The stamp features a map of the globe and bears an inscription "XMAS
1898" at the bottom. In 1937, Austria issued two "Christmas greeting
stamps" featuring a rose and the signs of the zodiac. In 1939, Brazil issued four semi-postal stamps with designs featuring the three kings and a star of Bethlehem, an angel and child, the Southern Cross and a child, and a mother and child.
Both the US Postal Service and the United Kingdom's Royal Mail regularly issue Christmas-themed stamps
each year.
Gift giving
The exchanging of gifts is one of the core aspects of the modern
Christmas celebration, making it the most profitable time of year for retailers and businesses throughout the world. On
Christmas, people exchange gifts based on the Christian tradition associated
with St. Nicholas, and the gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh which
were given to the baby Jesus by the Magi. The practice of gift giving in the Roman celebration of Saturnalia may have influenced Christian Christian customs, but on the other hand the
Christian "core dogma of the Incarnation, however, solidly
established the giving and receiving of gifts as the structural principle of
that recurrent yet unique event", because it was the Biblical Magi,
"together with all their fellow men, who received the gift of God through
man's renewed participation in the divine life."
Gift-bearing figures
A number of figures
are associated with Christmas and the seasonal giving of gifts. Among these are Father Christmas, also known as Santa Claus (derived from the Dutch for Saint Nicholas), Père Noël, and the Weihnachtsmann; Saint Nicholas or Sinterklaas; the Christkind; Kris
Kringle; Joulupukki; tomte; Babbo Natale; Saint Basil; and Ded Moroz. The
Scandinavian tomte is sometimes depicted as a gnome instead of Santa Claus.
The best known of
these figures today is red-dressed Santa Claus, of diverse origins. The name
Santa Claus can be traced back to the Dutch Sinterklaas, which means simply
Saint Nicholas. Nicholas was a 4th-century Greek bishop of Myra, a city in the Roman province of Lycia, whose ruins are 3
kilometres (1.9 mi) from modern Demre in southwest Turkey. Among other saintly attributes, he was noted for the care of children,
generosity, and the giving of gifts. His feast day, December 6, came to be
celebrated in many countries with the giving of gifts.
Saint Nicholas traditionally
appeared in bishop's attire, accompanied by helpers, inquiring about the
behaviour of children during the past year before deciding whether they
deserved a gift or not. By the 13th century, Saint Nicholas was well known in
the Netherlands, and the practice of gift-giving in his name spread to other
parts of central and southern Europe. At the Reformation in 16th–17th-century Europe, many Protestants changed the gift bringer to
the Christ Child or Christkindl, corrupted in English
to Kris Kringle, and the date of giving gifts changed from December 6 to
Christmas Eve.
The modern popular
image of Santa Claus, however, was created in the United States, and in
particular in New York. The transformation was accomplished with the aid of
notable contributors including Washington Irving and the German-American cartoonist Thomas Nast (1840–1902). Following the American Revolutionary War, some of the
inhabitants of New York City sought out symbols of the city's non-English past.
New York had originally been established as the Dutch colonial town of New Amsterdam and the Dutch Sinterklaas tradition was reinvented as Saint Nicholas.
In 1809, the New-York Historical Society convened and retroactively named Sancte Claus the patron saint of Nieuw Amsterdam, the Dutch name for New York City.[199] At his first American appearance in
1810, Santa Claus was drawn in bishops' robes. However, as new artists took
over, Santa Claus developed more secular attire. Nast drew a new image
of "Santa Claus" annually, beginning in 1863. By the 1880s, Nast's
Santa had evolved into the modern vision of the figure, perhaps based on the
English figure of Father Christmas. The image was standardized by advertisers
in the 1920s and continues through the present day.
Father Christmas, a
jolly, stout, bearded man who typified the spirit of good cheer at Christmas,
predates the Santa Claus character. He is first recorded in early 17th century
England, but was associated with holiday merrymaking and drunkenness rather than the bringing of gifts. In Victorian Britain, his image was remade
to match that of Santa. The French Père Noël evolved along similar lines, eventually adopting the Santa image. In Italy,
Babbo Natale acts as Santa Claus, while La Befana is the bringer of gifts and arrives on
the eve of the Epiphany. It is said that La
Befana set out to bring the baby Jesus gifts, but got lost along the way. Now,
she brings gifts to all children. In some cultures Santa Claus is accompanied
by Knecht
Ruprecht, or Black Peter. In other versions, elves make the toys. His wife is referred to as Mrs. Claus.
There has been some
opposition to the narrative of the American evolution of Saint Nicholas into
the modern Santa. It has been claimed that the Saint Nicholas Society was not
founded until 1835, almost half a century after the end of the American War of
Independence.[204] Moreover, a study of the "children's
books, periodicals and journals" of New Amsterdam by Charles Jones
revealed no references to Saint Nicholas or Sinterklaas. However, not all scholars agree with Jones's findings, which he reiterated
in a book-length study in 1978; Howard G. Hageman, of New Brunswick
Theological Seminary, maintains that the tradition of celebrating Sinterklaas
in New York was alive and well from the early settlement of the Hudson Valley on.
Current tradition in
several Latin American countries (such as Venezuela and
Colombia) holds that while Santa makes the toys, he then gives them to the Baby
Jesus, who is the one who actually delivers them to the children's homes, a
reconciliation between traditional religious beliefs and the iconography of Santa Claus imported from the United
States.
In South Tyrol (Italy), Austria, Czech Republic, Southern Germany, Hungary, Liechtenstein,
Slovakia, and Switzerland, the Christkind (Ježíšek in Czech, Jézuska in Hungarian and Ježiško in Slovak) brings the presents.
Greek children get their presents from Saint Basil on New Year's Eve, the eve of that
saint's liturgical feast. The German St. Nikolaus is not identical
with the Weihnachtsmann (who is the German version of Santa Claus / Father
Christmas). St. Nikolaus wears a bishop's dress and still brings small gifts (usually candies, nuts, and fruits)
on December 6 and is accompanied by Knecht Ruprecht.
Although many parents around the world routinely teach their children about
Santa Claus and other gift bringers, some have come to reject this practice,
considering it deceptive.
Date according to Julian
calendar
Some jurisdictions of
the Eastern Orthodox Church, including those of Russia, Georgia, Ukraine, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and Jerusalem, mark feasts using
the older Julian calendar. As of 2016, there is a difference of 13 days between the Julian calendar
and the modern Gregorian calendar, which is used
internationally for most secular purposes. As a result, December 25 on the
Julian calendar currently corresponds to January 7 on the calendar used by most
governments and people in everyday life. Therefore, the aforementioned Orthodox
Christians mark December 25 (and thus Christmas) on the day that is
internationally considered to be January 7.
However, other Orthodox
Christians, such as those belonging to the jurisdictions of Bulgaria, Greece, Romania, Constantinople, Antioch, Alexandria, Albania, Cyprus, Finland, and the Orthodox Church in America, among others, began using
the Revised Julian calendar in the early 20th century, which at present corresponds exactly to the
Gregorian calendar. Therefore, these Orthodox Christians
mark December 25 (and thus Christmas) on the same day that is internationally
considered to be December 25, and which is also the date of Christmas among
Western Christians.
A further complication
is added by the fact that the Armenian Apostolic Church continues the original ancient Eastern Christian practice of celebrating the birth of Christ not as a separate holiday, but
on the same day as the celebration of his baptism (Theophany),
which is on January 6. This is a public holiday in Armenia, and it is held on
the same day that is internationally considered to be January 6, because the
Armenian Church in Armenia uses the Gregorian calendar.
However, there is also
a small Armenian Patriarchate
of Jerusalem, which maintains the traditional Armenian custom of celebrating the birth
of Christ on the same day as Theophany (January 6), but uses the Julian calendar for the determination of that
date. As a result, this church celebrates "Christmas" (more properly
called Theophany) on the day that is considered January 19 on the Gregorian
calendar in use by the majority of the world.
In summary, there are
four different dates used by different Christian groups to mark the birth of
Christ, given in the table below.
Listing
Church or section
|
Date
|
Calendar
|
Gregorian date
|
Note
|
January 6
|
Julian calendar
|
January 19
|
Correspondence between
Julian January 6 and Gregorian January 19 holds until 2100; in the following
century the difference will be one day more.
|
|
January 6
|
Gregorian calendar
|
January 6
|
||
Eastern Orthodox Church jurisdictions, including those of Bulgaria, Greece, Romania, Constantinople, Antioch, Alexandria, Albania, Cyprus, and the Orthodox Church in America
|
December 25
|
December 25
|
Revised Julian
calendar usage started in the early 20th century
|
|
December 25
|
Julian calendar
|
January 7
|
Correspondence between Julian December 25 and Gregorian January 7 of the
following year holds until 2099; from 2100 to 2199 the difference will be one
day more.
|
|
January 7 or 8
|
Since the Coptic calendar's leap day is inserted in what the Julian
calendar considers September, the following Koiak 29 falls one day later than
usual in the Julian and Gregorian calendars
|
|||
January 7
|
After the Ethiopian insertion of a leap day in what for the Julian
calendar is September, Christmas is celebrated on Tahsas 28 in order to
maintain the exact interval of 9 30-day months and 5 days of the child's
gestation.[210] The Eritrean Orthodox
Tewahedo Church uses the same calendar but, like the
Coptic Church, does not make this adjustment.
|
|||
December 25
|
Gregorian calendar
|
December 25
|
Economy
Christmas is typically
a peak selling season for retailers in many nations around the world. Sales
increase dramatically as people purchase gifts, decorations, and supplies to
celebrate. In the U.S., the "Christmas shopping season" starts as
early as October. In Canada, merchants begin advertising
campaigns just before Halloween (October 31), and step up their
marketing following Remembrance Day on November 11. In the UK and Ireland, the
Christmas shopping season starts from mid November, around the time when high
street Christmas lights are turned on. In the United States, it has been calculated that a quarter of all personal
spending takes place during the Christmas/holiday shopping season. Figures from the U.S. Census Bureau reveal that expenditure in department stores nationwide rose from $20.8
billion in November 2004 to $31.9 billion in December 2004, an increase of 54
percent. In other sectors, the pre-Christmas increase in spending was even
greater, there being a November–December buying surge of 100 percent in
bookstores and 170 percent in jewelry stores. In the same year employment in
American retail stores rose from 1.6 million to 1.8 million in the two months
leading up to Christmas. Industries completely dependent on Christmas
include Christmas cards, of which 1.9 billion are sent in the United States each year, and live
Christmas Trees, of which 20.8 million were cut in the U.S. in 2002. In the UK in 2010, up to £8 billion was expected to be spent online at
Christmas, approximately a quarter of total retail festive sales.
In most Western
nations, Christmas Day is the least active day of the year for business and
commerce; almost all retail, commercial and institutional businesses are
closed, and almost all industries cease activity (more than any other day of
the year), whether laws require such or not. In England and Wales, the Christmas Day
(Trading) Act 2004 prevents all large shops from trading on
Christmas Day. Scotland is currently planning similar legislation. Film studios release many high-budget movies during the holiday season, including
Christmas films, fantasy movies or high-tone dramas with high
production values to hopes of maximizing the chance of nominations for the Academy Awards.
One economist's analysis calculates
that, despite increased overall spending, Christmas is a deadweight loss under orthodox microeconomic theory, because of the
effect of gift-giving. This loss is calculated as the difference between what
the gift giver spent on the item and what the gift receiver would have paid for
the item. It is estimated that in 2001, Christmas resulted in a $4 billion
deadweight loss in the U.S. alone. Because of
complicating factors, this analysis is sometimes used to discuss possible flaws
in current microeconomic theory. Other deadweight losses include the effects of
Christmas on the environment and the fact that material gifts are often
perceived as white elephants, imposing cost for upkeep and storage and contributing to clutter.
Controversies
Christmas has at times
been the subject of controversy and attacks from various sources. Historically
it was prohibited by Puritans when they briefly held power in England
during the English Interregnum (1649–1660), and in Colonial America where the Puritans outlawed the
celebration of Christmas in 1659. The Parliament of Scotland, which was dominated
by Presbyterians, passed a series of acts outlawing the observance of Christmas between
1637 and 1690; Christmas Day did not become a public holiday in Scotland until 1958. Christmas celebrations have also been prohibited by atheist states such as the Soviet Union and more recently majority Muslim states
such as Somalia, Tajikistan and Brunei.
Modern scholars such
as E. P. Sanders, Geza
Vermes and Marcus Borg consider both Gospel narratives of the
birth of Jesus to be non-historical, arguing that there are contradictions
between them. Many biblical scholars view the
discussion of historicity as secondary, given that gospels were primarily
written as theological documents rather than historical accounts.
Allegations of political
correctness
Some Christians and
organizations such as Pat Robertson's American Center for
Law and Justice cite alleged attacks on Christmas
(dubbing them a "war on Christmas"). Such groups claim that
any specific mention of the term "Christmas" or its religious aspects
is being increasingly censored, avoided, or discouraged by a number of advertisers, retailers, government
(prominently schools), and other public and private organizations. One
controversy is the occurrence of Christmas trees being renamed Holiday trees. In the U.S. there has been a tendency to replace the greeting Merry Christmas with Happy Holidays, which is considered
inclusive at the time of the Jewish celebration of Hanukkah. In the U.S. and Canada, where the use of the term "Holidays" is
most prevalent, opponents have denounced its usage and avoidance of using the
term "Christmas" as being politically correct. Groups such as the American Civil
Liberties Union have initiated court cases to bar the
display of images and other material referring to Christmas from public
property, including schools. Such groups argue that government-funded
displays of Christmas imagery and traditions violate the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, which prohibits the
establishment by Congress of a national religion. In 1984, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Lynch v. Donnelly that a Christmas display (which included
a Nativity scene) owned and displayed by the city of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, did not violate the
First Amendment. In November 2009, the federal appeals court in Philadelphia upheld a school district's ban on the singing of Christmas
carols. The Supreme Court of the
United States declined to hear an appeal.
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