The True Meaning of Christmas

The reason that this article appears on this website is because Vertius (High Priest) and an Elder (Messenger) of Oak Forest Coven decided to educate followers of different religions of the true meaning of Christmas. There are so many followers of other religions which have no idea of the origins and traditions of this holiday. In this article we hope to inform the reader of the true meaning of Christmas, past and present.

The Etymology of Christmas

The term Christmas is derived from the Old English term “Cristes maesse” and the Middle English term “Christemasse” and was first recorded in 1038, according to the Catholic Encyclopedia, meaning “Christ’s Mass” or “the Mass of Christ.” There are times when the term Christmas is abbreviated “xmas” and this abbreviation is derived from the first letter of Christ in Greek. The first letter of Christ in Greek is X (Chi) and appears in the Greek version of the New Testament.

Christmas and the Winter Solstice

There is no doubt that Christmas is derived from the ancient pagan celebration of the Winter Solstice. In the ancient Roman calendar, December 25 was the date of the Winter Solstice, the shortest day and longest night of the year until the invention of the Gregorian calendar when the Winter Solstice was moved to December 21. In the ancient Roman calendar, the feast of Dies Natalis Solis Invicti (the birthday of the Unconquered Sun) was celebrated on December 25 to signify that the Sun could not be conquered by the dark of winter when there was fewer hours of light within the day and when most, if not all, of the vegetation has died. In the Roman calendar, the festival of Saturnalia was also celebrated at this time of year, starting on December 17th and lasting until December 23rd. This feast celebrated the dedication of the Temple of Saturn by untying the ropes or chains that had bound the statue of Saturn throughout the year. Gambling was allowed and the masters and slaves reversed roles in which the masters served the slaves. Punishment of slaves was not allowed during the festival of the Saturnalia which led to the slaves disrespecting their masters. Overall, the feast of the Saturnalia was a time of merriment, with large quantities of food and presents.

According to the Bible, there are no records of the date of the birth of Jesus and historically Christmas was not even celebrated until the year 354 C.E. Traditionally, the birth of Jesus was March 28th, according to “De Pascha Computus”, a calendar of feast produced in 243 C.E. However, the birth of Christ was not celebrated because according to the theologian Origen of Alexandria “only sinners celebrated their birthdays.” In the East, the birth of Jesus was celebrated on January 6th after 354 C.E. It was only after Charlemagne was crowned Emperor on December 25th in 800 C.E. that the birth of Christ and the celebration of Christmas increased dramatically.

Christmas Traditions

There are many customs or “traditions” that are associated with Christmas, but here again most, if not all, of these customs are direct results of the pagans. The following paragraphs have been divided so that the reader can get a clear idea of the customs of Christmas and their origins.

Christmas Decorations

There are so many families in the world that celebrate Christmas by decorating their homes and churches, but most do not know where the tradition started. Many of us are familiar with the decoration of the Christmas tree, which is derived from the pagan custom of tree worship. The pagans would place a evergreen tree in their homes and decorated it with candles to symbolize the rebirth of the Sun at the Winter Solstice and since the evergreen were the only tree that appeared to “be alive” at the most darkest time of the year it became a great representation of rebirth with the candles representing the light of the Sun. The term “Christmas Tree” is first recorded in 1835 from the Germanic language. This custom was introduced to England from Germany to Queen Charlotte, wife of George III, then successfully to Prince Albert during the reign of Queen Victoria. The Germans also introduced this custom to the United States during this time. The Yule log is also Germanic in origin and was a charm against lightening and good fortune. The Yule log would be lit from a piece of the previous years log and would be dusted with the ashes of that log. In English folklore, Father Christmas is often depicted carrying a Yule log. Another custom that is derived from the pagans is the decorating with evergreens, especially with holly, ivy, and mistletoe. This custom is derived from the custom of rebirth of the Sun as described above.

Gifts

The custom of giving of gifts at Christmas is derived from many sources, most which are pagan. It is believed that one source is from the Roman feast of Saturnalia. At the feast of Saturnalia items were made and distributed among friends and family. The Germanic custom of gift given was associated with the God Odin and there is a great resemblance between Odin and Santa Claus. Below is a image of Odin the Wanderer from 1886.


The traditional gifts associated with pagans were the making and giving of dolls to the children and the making and giving of candles to the adults to remind them of the rebirth of the Sun. The candles would be lit on Yule and placed within the windows throughout the night. The lighting of the Yule log is also traditional and would remain burning throughout the feast of Yule.

Conclusion

As this article shows, Christmas is pagan in origin and is celebrated by pagans as the feast of Yule or the Winter Solstice. The customs of Yule (Winter Solstice) remind us of the everlasting wheel of transformation and the return of the Sun until it’s height at Midsummer (Summer Solstice).