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The Reason For The Season..Happy Birthday Jesus!!!

fking

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Winter is a season that is celebrated around the world. It comes in many different forms with many different methods of celebration. In America, the most significant winter celebration is Christmas, observed on December 25!

 

Throughout hundreds of generations, (I'm thinking 2300 generations) the Christmas holiday has carried many traditions, from decorating Christmas trees to cooking special holiday foods.

 

Santa Claus and the Christmas tree are two of the most common traditions found every year during the holiday season. It is almost unheard of for a home to not have a Christmas tree. Likewise, Christmas just wouldn't be Christmas without Santa Claus! The question may sometimes be asked, Is Santa Claus Pagan?

 

Children all over the world go to bed early with great anticipation that Santa Claus will sneak in sometime during the night and leave presents under the Christmas tree. The two just go together, here's no doubt about it!

Old St. Nick, a name that is often loosely associated with the character of Santa Claus, was known for his charitable giving at Christmas time. While Santa Claus may just be a childhood fantasy, Old St. Nick is not!

 

St. Nicholas was a real person who was a saint and Bishop of Myra, located in modern day Turkey! He lived during the third century and had a reputation for secret gift-giving. Eventually, this charitable characteristic of St. Nicholas evolved into the fictional character of Old St. Nick, someone who left candy or coal in a sock or shoe left outside the front door on the eve of December 6.

 

This custom obviously became Americanized and modernized by the development of Santa Claus! The difference is that Santa not only fill the stockings with goodies, but also leaves gifts and toys under the Christmas tree for the sleeping children!

 

For Christians, the season is more importantly celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ the son of God. While it ids understood that December 25 is perhaps not the exact birth date of Jesus, it is the date chosen to honor the birth of mankind's Redeemer! While carrying out the traditions of the Christmas tree and Santa Claus let us not forget the real reason REASON FOR THE SEASON!

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JESUS.....Merry Christmas to all, Ho, Ho, Ho!

 

 

I will be trying to track Santa Christmas eve by the NORAD site as I do each year for the kids to follow along right to their house!!!! http://www.noradsanta.org/ Have fun!!!

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Fred,

 

In the 1600's the Puritans outlawed any mention of St. Nicolas, any gift giving on Christmas and any candle lighting at the same time. the christmas tree--a Pagan tradition was claimed and modified by Puritans. Decorated trees were a combination of religious symbols--the evergreen/eternal life--the golden apple/prosperity and fertility--shiny pieces of metal/to ward off bad spirits and light the way for good. The Puritans made changes to this by changing the golden apples to red apples and eventually to red glass balls to represent God's forgiveness toward mankind/sin. Changed the sparkly metals to candles and added angels and others until the tree we know now emerged. In the 1700's the Dutch came and brought the tradition if Sinterklaas and by 1763, he was first referred to as St. A. Claus...and eventually consolidated as Santa Claus.

 

People get bent out of shape over Christian/pagan, but to me it just shows how much alike we are regardless of the names we use. Christmas is certainly a time we can come together in peace and brotherhood instead of division and fear.

 

Jamie

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fking

Yes Jamie,

 

In the same book I got this from was the mentioning of the Puritans why I say I'm thinking 2300 generations I got from another book I had a long, long time! So I wrote back and forth between the two books to get the story with meaning for all to read!!

 

I didn't mention much about the Pagan situation I just mentioned the question may be asked!! My health care lady's religion requires them to not celebrate any holidays like I do doing the whole year!!!

 

Most of it is how it was with me as a kid growing up so no mention of Santa coming down the chimney and finding milk and cookies!!

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