It’s a widely known fact that the tradition of Christmas is descended from ancient Pagan rituals, notably the Fertility Festival. This celebration, involving copious food, drink and orgies a‘plenty, fell on the 24th of December, the shortest day of the year. December 25 was venerated as the “birth” of the sun, or the start of the days growing progressively longer. As I’m sure most of us are now aware, December 25 was NOT the actual birth of Christ (which is believed to fall somewhere in July), yet in 350 A.D. Pope Julius I decreed that it would be celebrated on that date. A shrewd decision, as it combined the Pagan and Christian festivals (essentially making the Sun and the Son one and the same) and appears to have succeeded in inspiring people to join the Catholic Church--apparently the Pope’s main goal all along. Incidentally, the tradition of Yuletide cookie making reportedly began in Finland with eight carefully cut cookies, including one whose shape (representing the power “Hel”) corresponds directly to that of the present-day swastika! Also look up Tree worship to see the reason behind the tree for Christmas.
Posted on: Wed, 04 Dec 2013 06:37:56 +0000
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