Orange County Archives
The origin of Christmas can be traced to the pagan holidays. It was in the year 354 AD that Christians in the West began the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ on the 25th of December; before that time, it was celebrated on the 6th of January. At the time, Christians considered many of the pagan traditions and festivals of the season that was practiced in most parts of Europe and the Middle East as a means of making them increasingly irrelevant.
Christmas day or Christmas is an annual holiday that celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ. Although it is observed on different dates in some churches, it is a fact that the actual time of the birth and death of Jesus Christ has not been determined. There are many sides to the celebration of Christmas, some of which are religious and some secular, including the myth of Santa Claus, the exchange of gifts, display and decoration of Christmas tree, and religious occasions.
Christians celebrate Christmas by recreating or remembering the Nativity of Christ. While the Western Church most Christians prefer to celebrate the Advent of Christ, the Eastern Orthodox Churches engage in the Nativity fast in anticipation of the birth of Christ. Children usually sing Christmas carols that make reference to the celebration or celebrate the events of the Nativity. Some Christians place a small size recreation of the Nativity in their houses using small sculptures to display the key persons in the story of the birth of Christ.
Beau considine/flickr
The joy of bringing hope to the lives of others, bearing the burden of others, easy loads of others and filling empty lives and hearts with generous gifts is the true essence of Christmas. It is a period when people do things that they usually don’t do. Be kind to others if you have demonstrated wickedness throughout the year and such things as kindness, love and compassion are infectious. You may find yourself becoming loving and kind for the rest of your entire life which will do you a whole lot of good.
Christmas is a time of the year when we let go of the painful realities of this evil world and adopt and embrace a more real universe (heaven) which represents the ideals that we cherish and believe in but find it difficult to follow through in an unforgiving and ugly world which is inclined towards eroding the real loving nature of man.
