guys... the gift-giving aspect of this holiday traces far back in history to the European, Celtic and Scandinavian tribes living in cold regions.
It became the custom at Midwinter (the Winter Solstice, Dec. 21) to go and check on family members and anyone living in isolated areas taking care of the herds.
The chief of the tribe would organize the others to gather up food, warm clothes, furs, etc. for anyone in need to make sure they could get through the rest of the winter. There might even be a few toys included to keep the children amused during the long dark days.
The king/chief was often an older man with grey/white hair and a beard, and as king would wear the finest furs. In some places he might use a reindeer to pull a sledge to get everything through the forest.
If you've ever heard the Christmas carol Good King Wenceslas - that's exactly what it's about. (He spotted a farmer who was in need, so he got a page - a young helper - and they took supplies to the farmer.)
This is where the Santa Claus legends come from. It's a very, very old tradition and explains why we give gifts at Christmas time and why we have such a strong custom of going home for Christmas.
There is certainly nothing sinister about this. These people were your ancestors and were taking care of everyone in need 3,000 years ago or more. They sound kind of ok to me.
I do like our blend of ancient Christian and European traditions. I vote to keep Christmas. Santa Claus also seems to be a blend of the real-life 4th century Saint Nicholas, bishop of Myra in Anatolia, who according to legend secretly put dowries for poor young women in their shoes, and the King Wenceslas traditions you mention.
Thank you. For anyone whose ancestry traces back to what is now the British Isles, Europe, Scandinavia, and Russia: People lived in those regions long before Christianity came to them. They had a remarkably well-organized civilization (see Brehon Law in Ireland, for one) and were not ignorant savages living in degeneracy. They would not have survived those climates for long if they were. They had to work together, look out for their own, and understand the world around them (natural science) if they were going to make it through, and they did.
The beautiful objects they made survive today in museums. Their customs and traditions became a part of Western civilization, and one of those customs was taking care of everyone at the middle of winter - the Winter Solstice.
That is where our customs of gift-giving and going home at Christmas come from. Be proud of your brave and generous long-ago ancestors who created such ways of living.
This probably explains why, for the most part, Christianity did not have to be forced on these people. It made sense to them and it was easily combined with their other traditions, like the one about gift-giving on the Solstice. So that's what they did. As we still do today.
guys... the gift-giving aspect of this holiday traces far back in history to the European, Celtic and Scandinavian tribes living in cold regions.
It became the custom at Midwinter (the Winter Solstice, Dec. 21) to go and check on family members and anyone living in isolated areas taking care of the herds.
The chief of the tribe would organize the others to gather up food, warm clothes, furs, etc. for anyone in need to make sure they could get through the rest of the winter. There might even be a few toys included to keep the children amused during the long dark days.
The king/chief was often an older man with grey/white hair and a beard, and as king would wear the finest furs. In some places he might use a reindeer to pull a sledge to get everything through the forest.
If you've ever heard the Christmas carol Good King Wenceslas - that's exactly what it's about. (He spotted a farmer who was in need, so he got a page - a young helper - and they took supplies to the farmer.)
This is where the Santa Claus legends come from. It's a very, very old tradition and explains why we give gifts at Christmas time and why we have such a strong custom of going home for Christmas.
There is certainly nothing sinister about this. These people were your ancestors and were taking care of everyone in need 3,000 years ago or more. They sound kind of ok to me.
I do like our blend of ancient Christian and European traditions. I vote to keep Christmas. Santa Claus also seems to be a blend of the real-life 4th century Saint Nicholas, bishop of Myra in Anatolia, who according to legend secretly put dowries for poor young women in their shoes, and the King Wenceslas traditions you mention.
Thank you. For anyone whose ancestry traces back to what is now the British Isles, Europe, Scandinavia, and Russia: People lived in those regions long before Christianity came to them. They had a remarkably well-organized civilization (see Brehon Law in Ireland, for one) and were not ignorant savages living in degeneracy. They would not have survived those climates for long if they were. They had to work together, look out for their own, and understand the world around them (natural science) if they were going to make it through, and they did.
The beautiful objects they made survive today in museums. Their customs and traditions became a part of Western civilization, and one of those customs was taking care of everyone at the middle of winter - the Winter Solstice.
That is where our customs of gift-giving and going home at Christmas come from. Be proud of your brave and generous long-ago ancestors who created such ways of living.
This probably explains why, for the most part, Christianity did not have to be forced on these people. It made sense to them and it was easily combined with their other traditions, like the one about gift-giving on the Solstice. So that's what they did. As we still do today.