The first surviving reference to the Christmas celberation comes in 200 A.D., but the December 25th date was not fixed until 354 A.D., by Bishop Liberus of Rome. The date remains the standard in the Western tradition, although Christmas, or "The Feast of Nativity," is celebrated on January 6th by Armenian Orthodox Church and on the 7th by the Ethiopian, Russian, and Ukrainian Orthodox.
The Bible, of course, tells us neither the date nor time of year when Christ was born. But, as Alexander Hislop points out, it was unlikely to have been winter, for the shepherds were tending their flocks by night. "The cold of the night," writes Hislop, from December to February, is very piercing, and it was not the custom for the shepherds of Judea to watch their flocks in the open fields later than about the end of October."
So why did the Western Church chose December 25th? The decision may have been aimed at displacing pagan worship. Throughout history, many pagan celebrations have falle
2006-12-19
22:45:31
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