WHY IS CHRISTMAS, of all the Christian festivals, so popular?
True, it marks the birth of Jesus, but Easter marks his Resurrection, arguably a more significant event.
A clue: the Catholic rosary assigns the Resurrection to the glorious mysteries while the Nativity is placed among the joyful mysteries.
The joy of Christmas has simply bubbled over.
Even non-believers celebrate Christmas in some form or fashion, whether by the exchange of gifts or putting up Christmas trees or merrymaking.
Now, this is a point that many devout Christians, and even entire denominations, lament. They argue that mingling secular trappings with the religious celebration destroys the true meaning of Christmas.
Indeed, after the English Civil War, the victorious Puritans, led by Cromwell, banned all Christmas celebrations in 1647, decreeing instead a day of fasting and prayer. No roast goose, no Christmas tree, no carols, no plum pudding, and definitely no wassailing.
The ban provoked riots across the country but remained in effect until the restoration of Charles II in 1660.
Let's face it: the Puritans were a bunch of gloomy killjoys.
The fact is that Christmas from the beginning has been inclusive of the non-Christian and the secular.
The church in the fourth century fixed on the 25th December to celebrate Christmas.
This fell during the Roman festival of Saturnalia and no doubt made it easier to convert pagan Romans to Christianity.
Christmas also coincided with the winter solstice celebrated in northern Europe.
In pagan Scandinavia, people celebrated the joyful festival of Yule in December.
But going even further back, Matthew and Luke felt compelled by sheer joy to embellish the story of the Nativity with angels, shepherds and magi bearing symbolic gifts.
From its inception, the Christmas celebration borrowed many elements, rich in symbolism: mistletoe (ancient symbol of life and fertility), holly (eternal life and the circle of family), Santa Claus (Saint Nicholas, generous giver), Christmas tree (symbolising life and God's creation), candles (the Light of the World), bells (that both summon us and, like sheep, guide us), carols (musical expressions of joy), and candy canes (the staff of the Good Shepherd).
How did poinsettia become associated with Christmas? A Mexican legend has it that one Christmas Eve a poor little girl had no money to buy a gift to lay beside the baby Jesus in the nativity scene. So, on her way to church she gathered some branches from a shrub beside the road.
As she laid them by the crib, the top leaves blossomed into bright red stars. The poinsettia was henceforth known as "the flower of the Holy Night".
There is great joy in hope; and hope, trumpeted by the birth of the Christ Child, is what we especially celebrate at Christmas: the hope of peace and goodwill among all humans.
This world has so much evil, sorrow and tragedy that we often forget that it is a world "charged with the grandeur of God", in the words of the poet Gerard Manley Hopkins; a world of wonder and delight, brimming with signs of grace; a world in which we are called to work in love and hope for peace and justice.
It's not surprising, therefore, that Christmas mingles the sacred with the secular.
We spruce up the house and yard. We shop. We decorate the Christmas tree.
We make our sorrel, black cake and jug jug. We sing carols. We wait eagerly during Advent; we celebrate joyfully at Christmas. We eat, drink, and are merry.
And there's absolutely nothing wrong with all this, unless you're a puritan.
Charles Dickens, in A Christmas Carol, published in 1843, captured for all time the spirit of goodwill, compassion and good cheer that we associate with Christmas.
So don't be a Scrooge: have a merry, hopeful and joyous Christmas.
A clue: the Catholic rosary assigns the Resurrection to the glorious mysteries while the Nativity is placed among the joyful mysteries.
The joy of Christmas has simply bubbled over.
Even non-believers celebrate Christmas in some form or fashion, whether by the exchange of gifts or putting up Christmas trees or merrymaking.
Now, this is a point that many devout Christians, and even entire denominations, lament. They argue that mingling secular trappings with the religious celebration destroys the true meaning of Christmas.
Indeed, after the English Civil War, the victorious Puritans, led by Cromwell, banned all Christmas celebrations in 1647, decreeing instead a day of fasting and prayer. No roast goose, no Christmas tree, no carols, no plum pudding, and definitely no wassailing.
The ban provoked riots across the country but remained in effect until the restoration of Charles II in 1660.
Let's face it: the Puritans were a bunch of gloomy killjoys.
The fact is that Christmas from the beginning has been inclusive of the non-Christian and the secular.
The church in the fourth century fixed on the 25th December to celebrate Christmas.
This fell during the Roman festival of Saturnalia and no doubt made it easier to convert pagan Romans to Christianity.
Christmas also coincided with the winter solstice celebrated in northern Europe.
In pagan Scandinavia, people celebrated the joyful festival of Yule in December.
But going even further back, Matthew and Luke felt compelled by sheer joy to embellish the story of the Nativity with angels, shepherds and magi bearing symbolic gifts.
From its inception, the Christmas celebration borrowed many elements, rich in symbolism: mistletoe (ancient symbol of life and fertility), holly (eternal life and the circle of family), Santa Claus (Saint Nicholas, generous giver), Christmas tree (symbolising life and God's creation), candles (the Light of the World), bells (that both summon us and, like sheep, guide us), carols (musical expressions of joy), and candy canes (the staff of the Good Shepherd).
How did poinsettia become associated with Christmas? A Mexican legend has it that one Christmas Eve a poor little girl had no money to buy a gift to lay beside the baby Jesus in the nativity scene. So, on her way to church she gathered some branches from a shrub beside the road.
As she laid them by the crib, the top leaves blossomed into bright red stars. The poinsettia was henceforth known as "the flower of the Holy Night".
There is great joy in hope; and hope, trumpeted by the birth of the Christ Child, is what we especially celebrate at Christmas: the hope of peace and goodwill among all humans.
This world has so much evil, sorrow and tragedy that we often forget that it is a world "charged with the grandeur of God", in the words of the poet Gerard Manley Hopkins; a world of wonder and delight, brimming with signs of grace; a world in which we are called to work in love and hope for peace and justice.
It's not surprising, therefore, that Christmas mingles the sacred with the secular.
We spruce up the house and yard. We shop. We decorate the Christmas tree.
We make our sorrel, black cake and jug jug. We sing carols. We wait eagerly during Advent; we celebrate joyfully at Christmas. We eat, drink, and are merry.
And there's absolutely nothing wrong with all this, unless you're a puritan.
Charles Dickens, in A Christmas Carol, published in 1843, captured for all time the spirit of goodwill, compassion and good cheer that we associate with Christmas.
So don't be a Scrooge: have a merry, hopeful and joyous Christmas.