Christmas in History sheds light on the origin of Christmas as one of the major festivals in the world and how it has evolved over the centuries. The earliest English reference to Christmas Day on 25th December was in 1043 AD. Christmas is all about celebrating the birth of the messiah, Lord Jesus.
It is also about remembering his message of love, peace and goodwill towards fellow human beings. Christmas in history tells us that the middle of the winter season had some pagan or pre-Christian festivals. The Romans had their Saturnalia festival and the Norse in Scandinavia had Yule festival. In Germany, the pagan god Oden was honored through a mid winter festival.
There are many opinions on the origin of Christmas and most unfortunately, the Bible does not mention the birthday of Jesus Christ. Pope Julius I chose December 25th as Christmas Day and according to some, this was done to take in the pagan customs and rituals prevalent at that time within the folds of Christianity. It is an interesting fact that the Christmas Day was first known as the Feast of Nativity. By the end of the sixth century, England celebrated this day and by the end of eighth century, the Christian celebration had spread to Scandinavia. Even in the modern times, the Greek and Russian Orthodox church celebrates Christmas on the Epiphany day or the Three Kings day. This was the day on which the three wise men found the Christ baby in the barn. Epiphany is the 13th day after 25th December.
Christmas in history also makes it apparent that the church opposed the way Christmas was initially celebrated for lots of rituals had their origin in the pagan festivals. Later of course, this opposition was removed. More on this, from Christmas Carnivals
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