DEFINITION
Christmas, Christian festival celebrating the birth of Jesus.
The English term Christmas (“mass on Christ’s day”) is of fairly
recent origin. The earlier term Yule may have derived from the
Germanic jōl or the Anglo-Saxon geōl, which referred to the
feast of the winter solstice.
The corresponding terms in other languages—Navidad in
Spanish, Natale in Italian, Noël in French—all probably denote
nativity. The German word Weihnachten denotes “hallowed
night.” Since the early 20th century, Christmas has also been a
secular family holiday, observed by Christians and non-
Christians alike, devoid of Christian elements, and marked by
an increasingly elaborate exchange of gifts.
In this secular Christmas celebration, a mythical figure named
Santa Claus plays the pivotal role. Christmas is celebrated on
Friday, December 25, 2020.
ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT
The early Christian community distinguished between the
identification of the date of Jesus’ birth and the liturgical
celebration of that event. The actual observance of the day of
Jesus’ birth was long in coming. In particular, during the first
two centuries of Christianity there was strong opposition to
recognizing birthdays of martyrs or, for that matter, of Jesus.
Numerous Church Fathers offered sarcastic comments about
the pagan custom of celebrating birthdays when, in fact, saints
and martyrs should be honoured on the days of their
martyrdom—their true “birthdays,” from the church’s
perspective.
The precise origin of assigning December 25 as the birth date
of Jesus is unclear. The New Testament provides no clues in
this regard. December 25 was first identified as the date of
Jesus’ birth by Sextus Julius Africanus in 221 and later became
the universally accepted date.
One widespread explanation of the origin of this date is that
December 25 was the Christianizing of the dies solis invicti
nati (“day of the birth of the unconquered sun”), a popular
holiday in the Roman Empire that celebrated the winter
solstice as a symbol of the resurgence of the sun, the casting
away of winter and the heralding of the rebirth of spring and
summer.
Indeed, after December 25 had become widely accepted as
the date of Jesus’ birth, Christian writers frequently made the
connection between the rebirth of the sun and the birth of the
Son. One of the difficulties with this view is that it suggests a
nonchalant willingness on the part of the Christian church to
appropriate a pagan festival when the early church was so
intent on distinguishing itself categorically from pagan beliefs
and practices.
A second view suggests that December 25 became the date of
Jesus’ birth by a priori reasoning that identified the spring
equinox as the date of the creation of the world and the fourth
day of creation, when the light was created, as the day of
Jesus’ conception (i.e., March 25). December 25, nine months
later, then became the date of Jesus’ birth. For a long time the
celebration of Jesus’ birth was observed in conjunction with
his baptism, celebrated January 6.
Christmas began to be widely celebrated with a specific liturgy
in the 9th century but did not attain the liturgical importance
of either Good Friday or Easter, the other two major Christian
holidays.
Roman Catholic churches celebrate the first Christmas mass
at midnight, and Protestant churches have increasingly held
Christmas candlelight services late on the evening of
December 24.
A special service of “lessons and carols” intertwines
Christmas carols with Scripture readings narrating salvation
history from the Fall in the Garden of Eden to the coming of
Christ. The service, inaugurated by E.W. Benson and adopted
at the University of Cambridge, has become widely popular.
SIGNIFICANCE/IMPORTANCE
Toward the end of the 18th century the practice of giving gifts
to family members became well established.
Theologically, the feast day reminded Christians of God’s gift
of Jesus to humankind even as the coming of the Wise Men,
or Magi, to Bethlehem suggested that Christmas was
somehow related to giving gifts.
The practice of giving gifts, which goes back to the 15th
century, contributed to the view that Christmas was a secular
holiday focused on family and friends. This was one reason
why Puritans in Old and New England opposed the celebration
of Christmas and in both England and America succeeded in
banning its observance.
The tradition of celebrating Christmas as a secular family
holiday is splendidly illustrated by a number of English
“Christmas” carols such as “Here We Come A-Wassailing” or
“Deck the Halls.” It can also be seen in the practice of sending
Christmas cards, which began in England in the 19th century.
Moreover, in countries such as Austria and Germany, the
connection between the Christian festival and the family
holiday is made by identifying the Christ Child as the giver of
gifts to the family.
In some European countries, St. Nicholas appears on his feast
day (December 6) bringing modest gifts of candy and other
gifts to children.
In North America the pre-Christmas role of the Christian saint
Nicholas was transformed, under the influence of the poem “A
Visit from St. Nicholas” (or “ ’Twas the Night Before
Christmas”), into the increasingly central role of Santa Claus
as the source of Christmas gifts for the family. While both
name and attire—a version of the traditional dress of bishop—
of Santa Claus reveal his Christian roots, and his role of
querying children about their past behaviour replicates that of
St. Nicholas, he is seen as a secular figure.
In Australia, where people attend open-air concerts of
Christmas carols and have their Christmas dinner on the
beach, Santa Claus wears red swimming trunks as well as a
white beard.
In most European countries, gifts are exchanged on Christmas
Eve, December 24, in keeping with the notion that the baby
Jesus was born on the night of the 24th.
The morning of December 25, however, has become the time
for the exchange of gifts in North America. In 17th- and 18th-
century Europe the modest exchange of gifts took place in the
early hours of the 25th when the family returned home from
the Christmas mass.
When the evening of the 24th became the time for the
exchange of gifts, the Christmas mass was set into the late
afternoon of that day.
In North America the centrality of the morning of the 25th of
December as the time for the family to open presents has led,
with the exception of Catholic and some Lutheran and
Episcopal churches, to the virtual end of holding church
services on that day, a striking illustration of the way societal
customs influence liturgical practices.
Given the importance of Christmas as one of the major
Christian feast days, most European countries observe, under
Christian influence, December 26 as a second Christmas
holiday.
This practice recalls the ancient Christian liturgical notion that
the celebration of Christmas, as well as that of Easter and of
Pentecost, should last the entire week.
The weeklong observance, however, was successively reduced
to Christmas day and a single additional holiday on December
26.
Japan serves as illustration of a different sort. In that
predominantly Shintō and Buddhist country, the secular
aspects of the holiday—Christmas trees and decorations, even
the singing of Christmas songs such as “Rudolph the Red-
Nosed Reindeer” or “White Christmas”—are widely observed
instead of the religious aspects.
Merry Christmas Everyone!!!