| 3550 Southwest Loop 820, Fort Worth, TX 76133 Phone: 817-926-8277 -- Fax: 817-926-8278 Preschool: 817-923-2040 email: st.christophers@att.net |
St. Christopher Episcopal Church
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To Know Christ and Make Him Known
| A Look at Our Church Seasons and Holy Days - Christmas |
Christmas as a holiday needs no introduction for most of us—it has so much tradition that we
may forget that the central event for Christians is not Christmas but Easter. In the early
church the birth of Christ was commemorated, but not as a festival. As Christianity grew and
became organized as a church, and as its mission spread, interaction with possible converts
became important. The church then acknowledged many pagan customs rather than
opposing them.
The celebration of the birth of Christ on December 25 was set in the 4th century, adopting
the dates of the Roman Saturnalia on December 17, and the birth of the Iranian god Mithras
on December 25, together with ancient celebrations of the winter solstice. Other Christmas
customs have origins outside of church history: the Romans decorated their houses with
greenery and gave gifts in January (the custom was resurrected in 19th century Germany and
brought to England by Prince Albert). The Romans also had a festival of family and children
with exchange of gifts. The singing of carols began with the singing popular religious folk
songs at all festivals.
Later Christian customs were crêches, invented by St. Francis of Assisi, and our present
midnight service on Christmas Eve, which is a relic of the medieval custom of three masses,
at midnight, dawn, and midmorning. At the time of the Reformation many Christians believed
that Christmas was entirely a pagan and sacrilegious celebration and some Protestants,
notably the Puritans in new England, abolished it. Perhaps this was taking concerns about the
secularization of Christmas to the extreme.
Today it is all too easy for us to get caught up in being “pagans” in our Christmas activities,
but we are brought back to the true glory of the season in our opportunities for worship. Our
4th century church was right in its decision to include all peoples’ ways of showing joy, at the
festival time of Christ’s coming in glory.
may forget that the central event for Christians is not Christmas but Easter. In the early
church the birth of Christ was commemorated, but not as a festival. As Christianity grew and
became organized as a church, and as its mission spread, interaction with possible converts
became important. The church then acknowledged many pagan customs rather than
opposing them.
The celebration of the birth of Christ on December 25 was set in the 4th century, adopting
the dates of the Roman Saturnalia on December 17, and the birth of the Iranian god Mithras
on December 25, together with ancient celebrations of the winter solstice. Other Christmas
customs have origins outside of church history: the Romans decorated their houses with
greenery and gave gifts in January (the custom was resurrected in 19th century Germany and
brought to England by Prince Albert). The Romans also had a festival of family and children
with exchange of gifts. The singing of carols began with the singing popular religious folk
songs at all festivals.
Later Christian customs were crêches, invented by St. Francis of Assisi, and our present
midnight service on Christmas Eve, which is a relic of the medieval custom of three masses,
at midnight, dawn, and midmorning. At the time of the Reformation many Christians believed
that Christmas was entirely a pagan and sacrilegious celebration and some Protestants,
notably the Puritans in new England, abolished it. Perhaps this was taking concerns about the
secularization of Christmas to the extreme.
Today it is all too easy for us to get caught up in being “pagans” in our Christmas activities,
but we are brought back to the true glory of the season in our opportunities for worship. Our
4th century church was right in its decision to include all peoples’ ways of showing joy, at the
festival time of Christ’s coming in glory.