Antonio FatenSurprise! Just like clockwork, the holidays are steadily sneaking up on us, meaning you better get your Christmas shopping in order, light your cozy fires, and prepare for every child to be high with anticipation for their festive gifts. Many probably think, “What’s the point of doing all this gift shopping?” Given the time, money, and other resources we pour into this occasion, it poses an excellent question. What is the story behind the festivities?
The Birth of Christ
Perhaps some context of the matter is in order. Firstly, with the obvious reasoning behind the name “Christmas.” The term itself is written to describe the gathering of “Christ Day,” which many have connected to the birth of Jesus, himself. Before this, though, there was strong opposition when it came to acknowledging him as a martyr. It’s unclear when Christmas would be coined on the 25th of December, along with Jesus’ birth.
The only account of his birth comes from Sextus Julius Africanus, a Christian historian known for creating universal chronology. Another widespread explanation is that the 25th was the Christianization of the popular holiday celebrated by the Roman Empire called “dies solis invicti nati” (day of the birth of the unconquered sun), which celebrates the return of the sun during the winter solstice. After establishing the date as the birth of Jesus, Christian scholars made the connection between the rebirth of the sun and the actual birth of the Son.
Let There Be Light
Another possible explanation is that his birth corresponds with the “spring equinox,” the date of creation where on the fourth day, light was created. Because of this, scholars marked the 25th of December as the date of Jesus’ birth. Around the 9th century, Christmas was celebrated, though not as vehemently as Good Friday or Easter. Roman Catholic churches celebrated the holiday at midnight, while other Protestant churches held Christmas candlelight services on the 24th of December. Soon after, “lessons of services and carols would combine with Christmas carols, with scripture reading retelling the Fall in the Garden of Eden and the birth of Christ.
The service would be initiated by E.W. Benson, an archbishop in Canterbury at the University of Cambridge. Today, Christmas started developing its traditions by lighting up trees, decorating homes with color, and giving many gifts to our neighbors. Because of this, it would soon spark the mind of the famous children’s book author, Dr. Seuss into creating a story and character that would embody the ideals of Christmas, How The Grinch Stole Christmas. The story revolves around the titular character disgruntled with the holiday festivities and seeks to put a stop to it all by stealing all of the inhabitants’ decorations and gifts. But in the end, he learns that Christmas isn’t about shopping and gifts, but about spreading joy to your neighbors.
Joy to the world
With the success of the book, decades later, a film adaptation would be produced by Universal Studios and would reel in the likes of stand-up comedian, Jim Carrey, to fill in the role of the Grinch, adding his twist and spin on the character. Not only that, but the 2000 film also expanded the original story by adding more depth and immersion, making it a cult classic to the audience. Since then, many studios, including Illumination Animation Studios would produce their iterations of the titular character, formulating a sort of nuance tradition for the holiday. As you can see, Christmas possibly started as a Roman national holiday, only to be inaugurated into the Christian celebration of the birth of Christ and transformed into a holiday of spreading joy to the world. So, in the spirit of the holiday, play nice and continue to make others happy through the act of giving.
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Works Cited
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Dr-Seuss
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Edward-White-Benson