 |
| Glade Jul by Viggo Johansen (1891). |
For me, I find Christmas a really hard celebration to get through, and I dread it every year. I feel like Christmas has lost its meaning... Christmas has become all about presents, food and decorating a tree, and not so much about celebrating Jesus' birthday. To be honest there's no proof that Jesus was born on 25 December as no one knows what day and month Jesus was born on (The New Testament gives no reference to when Jesus was born). In the early to mid-forth century, 25 December was chosen by the date of Jesus birth by the Christian Church. There are a number of reasons why this date was chosen, one of the biggest ones is to Christianize Rome's pagan celebration of Dies Natalis Solis Invicti ("the birthday of the Unconquered Sun"), an event to celebrate the sun and the winter solstice.
Another thing that always bothers me is the whole Christmas Tree thing. No one knows when the use of fir trees where first use, and by whom. Some claim that it was the pagans who decorated their homes with fir trees, some say it was the Romans who placed fir trees in their temples at the festival of the Saturnalia. Others say it was the Christians who used it as a sign of everlasting life with God. I don't intend to insult anyone here or the culture they grew up in. I'm just writing what I think. I find it hard to to see how big a part of Christmas the tree has become. I can't help but think I grew up hearing about the Christmas tree. The pagans of Europe would dance around a fir tree, covered in lights, in a ritual that would bring the spring back.
As the weeks pass and Christmas gets closer. I think of my family. My parents and siblings. They're in South Africa this year, over 8,800 kilometres away. I'm not going to be with them but I will be thinking about the four people I love so much.
Another thing that always bothers me is the whole Christmas Tree thing. No one knows when the use of fir trees where first use, and by whom. Some claim that it was the pagans who decorated their homes with fir trees, some say it was the Romans who placed fir trees in their temples at the festival of the Saturnalia. Others say it was the Christians who used it as a sign of everlasting life with God. I don't intend to insult anyone here or the culture they grew up in. I'm just writing what I think. I find it hard to to see how big a part of Christmas the tree has become. I can't help but think I grew up hearing about the Christmas tree. The pagans of Europe would dance around a fir tree, covered in lights, in a ritual that would bring the spring back.
As the weeks pass and Christmas gets closer. I think of my family. My parents and siblings. They're in South Africa this year, over 8,800 kilometres away. I'm not going to be with them but I will be thinking about the four people I love so much.