So I know I am gonna get SOMEONE's panties in a twist reading this blog, but I urge you to read the WHOLE blog and please keep in mind that this is simply the ramblings of myself. As in this is my blog and I can write pretty much what I want to and if you don't like or agree with it fine no skin off my teeth.
It is NO secret that I am a cradle Catholic, born and raised and damn proud of it. I love my faith and I plan on raising my children in the same fashion I was. So obliviously I am going to celebrate Christmas as in the birth of Christ. I am going to dawn my house with an Advent wreath, Christmas Tree, lights, and as of yesterday my Nativity scene. On Christmas Eve we will attend Mass, come home open two presents for Grace one of which will be her Christmas Jammies and the second a book some how related to CHRISTMAS. We will place cookies by the tree, put her to bed and patiently wait for Santa. The next morning we will wake her to the wonderful magic that Santa Clause somehow broke into our house without a chimney and place tons (and I do mean tons HELLO first Grandchild) of presents under the tree and filled her stocking. Then we will ready the story of the Nativity and the true meaning behind OUR CHRISTmas. This is how CHRISTMAS (or the Christ's Mass) will be celebrated in this HOUSE, because this is our faith and this is our belief.
Are you panties wadded yet? For most of you no, because a lot of my friends and family will agree with what I just wrote and say that they practice similar things in their home. So here's where it's gonna get sticky. Let's do a little history lesson into Christmas. Alright Christian love ones...Why do we celebrate Christmas in December? If you said that is because that is when Jesus was born you would be wrong. Sorry. The Bible actually does not state when Jesus was born in either of the Gospels that his birth is mentioned. In fact evidence points toward Christ actually being born in the spring, I mean why are Shepherds herding sheep in the middle of winter? Even in the "middle east" it gets darn chilly in the winter. So back to my original question why do we celebrate it in the winter then? In the early years of Christianity we did not celebrate the birth of Christ. In fact the big holiday for us Christian's was Easter. Somewhere in the mid fourth century however, church officials decided to institute the birth of Christ as a holiday. Pope Julius I chose the date December 25th. It's actually believed this time was chosen to in an effort to adopt and absorb the traditions of pagan festivals such as Winter Solstice, Satunalia, Juvenalia, and the celebrations of pagan gods such as Yule and Oden. By holding Christmas at the same time as traditional winter solstice festivals it increased the chances that Christmas would be embraced. In the Middle Ages Christmas was actually celebrated much differently then we do now. On Christmas believers would attend church and then celebrate much the same way we celebrate Mardi Gras without the beads of course. Through out the centuries the traditions have morphed into the more family friendly modern Christmas that we celebrate today. So you may ask ok what's your point? My point is that YES there were festivals and "holidays" that were celebrated in winter LONG before we Christians made the whole month about the birth of our Savior. This is a fact I know and understand, but that being said I have another point to make.
Don't tell me that you Celebrate Christmas but don't believe it had anything to do with the birth of Christ. How does that even make sense? Even you don't believe Jesus was the son of God there is ligament proof that a man named Jesus walked the Earth and preached to everyone he was the Son of God. It is because of this man and his teachings that the Holiday even exist. I don't believe there was a god named Odin who flew around in winter deciding who was worthy enough to keep alive and who was going to parish the next spring, but the story of Santa Clause is loosely based on this pagan belief although with the Catholic Bishop named Nicholas and a 1930s Coco-Cola Ad. The reality is that you can not celebrate one belief without accepting the understanding of the other. I am not saying that you have to celebrate Christmas like I do, but what I am saying is that you have to accept that Christmas as in the Holiday that we recognize on December 25th is in fact BASED on the birth of a man a Jesus Christ. Weather you chose to celebrate the religious holiday or the commercialized version of the holiday that is up to you and your household. The one thing I love the most about living in the United States that we are free to believe what we want and NONE of us should be judge on that, and for goodness sakes call it a Christmas Tree or a Yule-Tree but none of this Holiday Tree CRAP. If it looks like a duck, quacks like duck, it's a freaking duck!!!
Dismount Soap Box.
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