The Roman holiday "Saturnalia" eventually became Christmas sometime in the fourth century AD.
2006-12-18 16:18:45
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answer #1
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answered by Anonymous
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Christmas as we celebrate it today is a mixture of various customs, mainly of Roman Pagan origin. Other traditions can be traced back to Mesopotamia and started about 2000 years before Jesus the man was born. Below are a couple of great sites that gives a full history.
2006-12-19 02:35:12
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answer #2
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answered by SDTerp 5
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Jesus was born in Bethlehem, not Jerusalem.
Also, Christmas originated as a pagan holiday, since no one actually knows when Jesus was born.
"In ancient Babylon, the feast of the Son of Isis (Goddess of Nature) was celebrated on December 25. Raucous partying, gluttonous eating and drinking, and gift-giving were traditions of this feast.
In Rome, the Winter Solstice was celebrated many years before the birth of Christ. The Romans called their winter holiday Saturnalia, honoring Saturn, the God of Agriculture. In January, they observed the Kalends of January, which represented the triumph of life over death. This whole season was called Dies Natalis Invicti Solis, the Birthday of the Unconquered Sun. The festival season was marked by much merrymaking. It is in ancient Rome that the tradition of the Mummers was born. The Mummers were groups of costumed singers and dancers who traveled from house to house entertaining their neighbors. From this, the Christmas tradition of caroling was born.
In northern Europe, many other traditions that we now consider part of Christian worship were begun long before the participants had ever heard of Christ. The pagans of northern Europe celebrated the their own winter solstice, known as Yule. Yule was symbolic of the pagan Sun God, Mithras, being born, and was observed on the shortest day of the year. As the Sun God grew and matured, the days became longer and warmer. It was customary to light a candle to encourage Mithras, and the sun, to reappear next year.
Huge Yule logs were burned in honor of the sun. The word Yule itself means “wheel,” the wheel being a pagan symbol for the sun. Mistletoe was considered a sacred plant, and the custom of kissing under the mistletoe began as a fertility ritual. Hollyberries were thought to be a food of the gods.
The tree is the one symbol that unites almost all the northern European winter solstices. Live evergreen trees were often brought into homes during the harsh winters as a reminder to inhabitants that soon their crops would grow again. Evergreen boughs were sometimes carried as totems of good luck and were often present at weddings, representing fertility. The Druids used the tree as a religious symbol, holding their sacred ceremonies while surrounding and worshipping huge trees.
In 350, Pope Julius I declared that Christ’s birth would be celebrated on December 25. There is little doubt that he was trying to make it as painless as possible for pagan Romans (who remained a majority at that time) to convert to Christianity. The new religion went down a bit easier, knowing that their feasts would not be taken away from them.
Christmas (Christ-Mass) as we know it today, most historians agree, began in Germany, though Catholics and Lutherans still disagree about which church celebrated it first."
2006-12-19 00:05:44
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answer #3
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answered by Fiona 1
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South Korean
2006-12-18 23:36:44
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answer #4
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answered by andypc14 2
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Afghanistan
2006-12-18 23:40:07
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answer #5
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answered by Anonymous
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don't listen to these morons.. christmas is a pagan holiday that is rooted in europe.
this was long before the crusaders came back from the mediterranian region with that christianity crap.
2006-12-18 23:38:55
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answer #6
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answered by Anonymous
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Judea
2006-12-18 23:37:45
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answer #7
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answered by Nora Explora 6
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Fantasyland.
2006-12-18 23:33:21
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answer #8
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answered by Anonymous
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Jerusalem. Thats where Christ was born. that day was the first christmas day.... :-)
2006-12-18 23:35:03
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answer #9
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answered by Swathi Rao 3
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NORWAY I THINK
2006-12-18 23:33:03
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answer #10
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answered by free-spirit 5
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