Christmas was originally Pagan?
Look, the entire "It's pagan and the Christians stole it"..."Na uh, Christians had it first so it's ours" argument is ridiculous, pointless, and completely adolescent. Nobody “owns” any particular day. You can't “steal” it. Honestly, does it really matter if more then one holiday falls on the same day? Why can’t everyone just let Christians celebrate their holiday, let the Jews celebrate theirs, let the Muslims celebrate theirs, let whatever pagan religion celebrate theirs, and the rest of us can just have a beer. Everyone celebrates the holiday differently, so why can't we just let them celebrate it the way they want to?
How do christians celebrate christmas?
a nice dinner...go to church and spend time with your family
Why do non-Christians celebrate Easter and Christmas?
I celebrate Christmas and Easter as the day my Savior was born, and the day He was resurrected- even though these may not be necessarily the time they actually occurred , which by the way, should make no difference- because it is the event we are remembering. However, there are many that celebrate it only as the say the get presents and the Easter bunny brings eggs to their children.
Why is Christmas said to be Jesus' birthday?
The exact date of Jesus' birth is not known. There are no biblical references.The most popular theory of the origins of the Christmas date is that it was borrowed from pagan celebrations. The Romans had their mid-winter Saturnalia festival in late December; and people of northern and western Europe kept holidays at similar times. To top it off, December 25 was the feast day of the birth of Sol Invictus (the Unconquered Sun). Christmas, the argument goes, is really a spin-off from these pagan solar festivals. According to this theory, early Christians deliberately chose these dates to encourage the spread of Christmas and Christianity throughout the Roman world. If Christmas was celebrated on the date of a pagan holiday, more pagans would be open to both the holiday and the God whose birth it celebrated. Another reason, which also points to December 25 is the date set as Jesus's death. According to the Gospel of John, it was the 14th of Nisan which is the equivalent of March 25 on the Roman Calendar. That date was also accepted as the date of the Feast of the Annunciation, the commemoration of Jesus’ conception. Thus nine months after that date would be Jesus's birth date, December 25th. As far as Santa Claus aka Saint Nicholas, he seems to have really existed, but as St Nicholas and not Santa Claus, and his perchant to give gifts replaced the germanic feast of Yule, celebrated in late December) when children would place their boots, filled with carrots, straw, or sugar, near the chimney for Odin's flying horse, Sleipnir, to eat. Odin would then reward those children for their kindness by replacing Sleipnir's food with gifts or candy. This holiday became associated with Saint Nicholas since Christianization. What would Saint Nicholas think of the modern Santa Claus?Both celebrations, the winter solstice and yule, became Christmas and Santa Claus giving gifts. Two totally different celebrations but a good fit.
How do Seventh Day Adventists celebrate Christmas? Why do they do so?
I’ve been an Adventist since I was a teenager.There wasn’t any difference in the way we celebrated Xmas as a pseudo Catholic family as to the way we celebrated it when we became Adventists: We continued eating tamales since the beginning of December til January 6th, when the traditional Magi’s visit to the newborn babe is celebrated.We had the same Xmas tree, presents, food, and drinks. My wife is a third generation adventist and her family has always celebrated Xmas the same way as some of her relatives that are not adventists.The adventist church has no statement or guidelines in regards to how to celebrate Xmas, what to do and what not to do. Most Adventist churches have a Xmas tree decorated for the holiday and until not to long ago it was traditional to go caroling on the neighborhoods.You’ll rarely would go to an Adventist church around the holidays and not hear a sermon on the nativity and what a great opportunity it is to share the love of Christ with our neighbors during these days.We are Christians first and Adventists second. We realize that Jesus probably wasn’t born on December 25, we celebrate His birthday and the salvation that his sacrifice provided to mankind. We celebrate His birth because without it we would not had the salvation that Calvary provided.It’s during Xmas that we celebrate the fact that the great I AM loved us so much that he willingly left his divinity behind and became human. That’s what makes Xmas so special. God gave us a gift through his son.Why shouldn’t we share in the same spirit?
What is the literal meaning behind "Merry Christmas?"
After a little Googling,The origin of this practice is a little obscure. However, it’s believed that an English admiral first used the term Merry Christmas in an informal letter, way back in 1699. In the same era, the phrase was used in a non-religious Christmas song ‘We wish you a Merry Christmas’, which is still popular today. In 1843, Charles Dickens used the same phrase in “A Christmas Carol.” also in 1843 the first ever Christmas Card was produced for purchase, which contained the saying. Merry Christmas, Origin and History of the Phrase ·All Things ChristmasAs far as meaning goes “Merry” isn't commonplace the world over. In some places, people use a slight variation of the term “Merry Christmas.” In Ireland and Great Britain, some people prefer using “Happy Christmas” instead.Read more at Merry Christmas, Origin and History of the Phrase ·All Things ChristmasWhat does the ‘merry’ in ‘Merry Christmas’ mean? The following link is rather long but interesting.What does the ‘merry’ in ‘Merry Christmas’ mean? - OxfordWords blog
Is There a Difference Between Xmas and Christmas?
NO there is not, although a number of Christians are unaware of the meaning of the CHI. Chi, or X, is the Greek letter that represents Christ, used in the Chi-Rho symbol and the IXOYE symbol. It is "Christus" in Greek. So, basically the X stands for Christ in Greek, the original language used by the early church. It was also used as a secret symbol, like the fish symbol, to hide from the Romans who would kill you if they found out you were a Christ follower. So, Xmas=Christ-mas. A lot of Evangelical Christians are not familiar with the Greek language and thus believe that the X just means a way to "X out" Christ, or take Christ out of Christmas, however, that is actually not the case. Merry Christmas
For Christians:How come there aren't as many Easter songs as there are Christmas songs and carols?
He was not born on or around December 25th - but having said that, the myth of Santa Clause intertwined with His birth, commercialism, the thought of His coming was so special. What was SO special was His death and resurrection. I guess a lot of people do not grasp that. They think the birth was the thing to celebrate. It was His willingness to die that should be looked at. And yes, His resurrection. In answer to your question, I suppose so. It is nice to coo and get gushy over a birth - hard to be too upbeat when one dies.