It seems like during this time, every year, instead of being thankful, thinking of family and friends and helping others less fortunate than us, there is some ludicrous campaign about how there is an “attack on Christmas”. Really? Wishing someone “Happy Holidays” is going to destroy the whole fabric of Christianity and therefore the fabric of America? Really!?!
This is a very divisive stance to take and let’s face it … we are not a country that needs anymore division.
The interesting thing about this view is that it is rarely what it seems on the surface.
Steve Kellmeyer writes:
The first holy day to be expunged from the Christian calendar, the first law of prayer to die, was All Holy Eve now known as Halloween. The man who murdered it? Martin Luther. In 1517, he chose All Holy Eve, the vigil of All Saint’s Day, to attack the idea that those who had died deserved any respect or care from those who lived. According to Luther, prayer afforded no one grace. [...]
How many people remember Candlemas? It is the Mass celebrating the Presentation of the Child Jesus in the Temple and the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Offered forty days after Christmas, Candlemas marks the end of the Christmas season... By the late 1800’s, Americans had transformed this most ancient feast in honor of the Virgin Mary into Groundhog Day — a signal accomplishment in the continuing Protestant attempt to separate Catholic Church and state.
Michaelmas, the Mass offered on September 29th in celebration of St. Michael’s victory over Satan, became the day to settle rents and collect accounts. By the late 1800’s, it too had been stripped of all the celebratory hospitality that had marked it as a major feast of the Catholic Middle Ages.
Childermas, the December 28th Mass commemorating the Feast of the Holy Innocents slaughtered by Herod, was not replaced by another event so much as it was simply overcome by the commercialization of the holiday. It slipped into oblivion. America had won the war against nearly every major Mass in the liturgical calendar.
I don’t even like the majority of Mr. Kellmeyer’s (a Catholic/conservative author and speaker) views or politics. However, his point is that over the past few hundred years (and much more), the Catholics have complained that the Protestants have been stripping out the “mass” in Christmas and the Protestants have been complaining that the “atheists”, “seculars” or who ever will strip out Christmas from the calendar.
Then there is the date, December 25th, representing the birth of Christ. Biblical description has Jesus born sometime in September, 6 months after Passover. Pagan origins of Christmas date back to ancient Babylon when, on December 25th, the feast of the Son of Isis (Goddess of Nature) was celebrated with … wait for it … raucous partying, gluttonous eating/drinking and gift giving were traditions of the feast.
In Rome, many years before Christ was born, the tradition of the Murmmers was born. The Murmmers were costumed dancers and singers who traveled from house to house entertaining their neighbors with song and dance. Sound familiar?
It was not until the year 350 that Pope Julius declared that Christ's birthday would be December 25. This was done to make the conversion to Christianity as painless as possible for the pagan Romans, who where the majority at the time. The Romans could still have their celebrations, for now, while they “converted” to their new religion.
Even the beloved song, “The 12 Days of Christmas” should give us a clue that Christmas is celebrated over many days, from the evening of December 25th until the morning of January 6th (Epiphany)
If you want to complain about saying/hearing “Happy Holidays” than you should:
- Not put up anything (Christmas trees, lights, etc) or buy gifts until Christmas Eve
- This is how it was before World War II. We started to get a jump on Christmas during World War II in order to get gifts to the soldiers on time.
- Put the Mass back in Christmas
- Protestants compounded the words “Christ’s” “Mass” sometime around 1038, to the dismay of the Catholic church.
- Restore Michaelmas
- Restore Candlemas
- Restore Childermas
- Restore the Feast of the Epiphany
- Christian feast celebrating the 'shining forth' or revelation of God to mankind in human form, in the person of Jesus Christ.
- Restore the Advent season
- Historically, Advent is a period of fasting, repentance, and preparation for Christ's second coming and the Day of Judgment. It begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas Day, which is the Sunday nearest November 30, and ends on Christmas Eve (Dec 24).
- And so on and so forth …
I’m not saying that setting the clock back to different times is the answer to why some are so hard on everyone else for enjoying the “season”. I just think that we should remind ourselves of our own histories when we hear others bark about what is best for the rest of us.
Besides, if I see one more bumper sticker that says, “Christ Is The Reason for The Season”, I’m chocking somebody.
Cheers Everyone!
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