|
Ancient Celebrations Of The Christmas Holiday
Christmas may very well be the oldest holiday that is shared across many cultures
in the world.
It is traditionally celebrated during the winter season (or even the warm summer season if you count Australia, where Christmas is celebrated as an official holiday).
Before Christmas was celebrated, people celebrated in Europe during the winter holiday, before the birth of Jesus Christ ever even occurred!
|
|
The Winter Solstice has always
been a time to celebrate and rejoice. It is celebrated on
December 21 in the northern hemisphere, and it was after the
Winter Solstice that the worst part of the year was behind
them. It was at that point during the year that the days
began to get longer, giving the people more time to spend
outside and tending to their animals.
In Scandinavia during the Winter Solstice, men and their
sons used to go into the woods to cut a tree down. Then, a
nicely sized log was cut out of it, and the men would carry
the log back home. This log was dubbed a Yule log, and the
Yule log was burned in the fireplace. The entire time the
Yule log burned, the family would feast. Often times the
Yule log might burn for a whole twelve days! Of course, as
the Yule log burned it sent sparks out of the hearth and as
the sparks flew out of the fire place, the family would
count the sparks and each spark stood for a farm animal (a
cow, a goat, a pig, etc) that would be born on their
property that year. It is important to note that farm
animals were signs of wealth back then.
Saturnalia is a celebration of the Winter Solstice that
occurred in ancient pagan Rome. Saturnalia was celebrated in
honor of the god of agriculture, who was named Saturn.
During the time of Saturnalia, the entire Roman empire is in
a state of social disarray. Servants and peasants celebrate
the holiday with people of higher classes, which was quite
unusual back then.
The Saturnalia festival in itself can last as long as an
entire week in Rome. During that time, people rejoice all
over the country of Rome. The phrase ‘eat, drink, and be
merry’ was played out to its fullest. Shops and businesses
are closed during the Festival of Saturnalia. Following the
first week of Saturnalia, the festival itself usually ends,
but the Saturnalia period itself does not end.
In addition to Saturn, the Roman god of agriculture, the
Romans also worshipped an infant type god named Methra, who
was carved out of a rock. On Mithra’s birthday, people
also rejoiced, just as they did during Saturnalia. The day
of this rock god’s birthday was one of the most sacred
days of the year for the Roman people. It was a time for
celebration and togetherness and family.
|
