The Christians Who Stole Christmas

As Christianity spread out into the pagan regions of Europe, mainly the British Isles, it assimilated the traditions of those pagan religions in order to better compel the people to join. As long as people celebrated the same festivals during the same time of year, what did it matter what God they worshipped? There are two major Christian Holidays that borrow freely from pagan tradition, Easter and Christmas.

Easter, or Ostara, was originally took place during the Spring equinox with festivals to celebrate fertility and rebirth. As the crops grow, and the livestock breed, there is a promise of bounty. This translates to interpersonal relationships as well, the "Spring Fever" that comes over the young. Love and sexuality are very much part and parcel with this time of year. The pagan traditions illustrate this. The may pole is a phallic symbol, a monument of masculine generative power. The egg, painted or not, is a more feminine symbol of generative power. Moreover, the egg is a symbol of immortality. The chicken hatches from an egg, grows old, and then lays an egg. The easter dress, too, suggests a kind of rebirth. By donning a new outfit, young girls are transformed, shedding the old skin. The easter bunny embodies the spirit of Ostara. Rabbits are known for their accelerated rate of multiplication. The bunny is a symbol of sexuality, fertility, and bounty.

Christians adopted, or rather permitted, the continued celebrations of eggs and bunnies. However, instead of being a celebration of fertility, Easter is to acknowledge the resurrection of Christ. Just as vegetation grows once more after the winter thaw, Jesus rises from the dead. Rebirth is the focus. Few Christians look too closely at the deeper meaning of these traditions.

Christmas, or Yule, originally took place during the winter solstice to celebrate the return of the light. Taking place during the shortest day of the year, Yule celebrates not only surviving the worst of winter, but embracing the coming spring. Christmas goes as far back as ancient Rome and the worship of the god, Mythras. Though little is known about this god, there is some suggestion that Mythras may be a divine representative of the sun. A festival to embrace the return of the sun on the winter solstice is self-evident. Christianity adopting this holiday is equally self-explanatory. Celebrating the coming sun, or the return of light and celebrating the birth of the son (sun) of God are very similar. Take for instance the star of Bethlehem, a guiding light in the darkness. The burning of candles or a Yule log is a symbolic gesture emulating the return of the sun. One may go so far as to equate the pagan belief in fairies with the Christian belief in angels, another symbol of Christmas.

Other Christmas traditions borrow heavily from Druidism, namely the fir tree, holly, mistletoe, and wreaths. Mistletoe was used by druids for magical, healing purposes. It is also a symbol of peace. Holly is a particularly hard wood that was used for carvings and as winter fodder. The wreath is a circle woven of the branches of evergreen. The wreath goes as far back as ancient greece and the worship of Apollo, another sun god. Meanwhile, the fir is yet another evergreen, suggesting survival throughout the winter.

Of the pagan holidays, Halloween or Samhain, has remained relativity untouched by Christian hands. Mexico has the Day of the Dead and there is All Saints Day, but worship has not overwhelmed the traditions of Halloween. Halloween comes at the Autumnal equinox and is in one part a harvest festival, and in another part a protection ritual at the start of the dark half of the year. During this time, it was believed the veil between the living and the dead worlds grew thin. The dead and evil spirits could cross over into the mortal realm. By donning fearsome images, the average person could protect themselves as the evil spirits would see them as one of their own. Jack-o-lanterns, an Irish tradition, came later as another means of dealing with nasty spirits.

So far these traditions have been regarded as pagan, and though often tolerated by most Christian groups, they have yet to be embraced but in the case of a couple of instances.