{"id":224534,"date":"2011-12-21T21:40:54","date_gmt":"2011-12-21T21:40:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/new.moldova.org\/2011\/12\/21\/since-when-do-we-celebrate-christmas-227340-eng\/"},"modified":"2011-12-21T21:40:54","modified_gmt":"2011-12-21T21:40:54","slug":"since-when-do-we-celebrate-christmas-227340-eng","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.moldova.org\/en\/since-when-do-we-celebrate-christmas-227340-eng\/","title":{"rendered":"Since When Do We Celebrate Christmas?"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading Time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>

By Diana Ungureanu\/ Chisinau \/ Moldova.ORG\/ — Although Nativity of Jesus was being carried out now 2011 years ago, the feast of the Nativity or Christmas began to be celebrated a few centuries later.<\/p>\n

The feast of Christmas is not mentioned in any testimony whether Evangelical or historical to early Christians. Moreover, at its inception, the Church claimed that Christians worship a God, true, born of himself, from eternity, who made the Heavens and the Earth, which therefore has no beginning and no end, as such no birthday.<\/p>\n

Therefore, Christians could not celebrate the day of the birth of a true God and as a result, taking not seriously a birthday celebration for the gods, which would have proved that they are creations of the people that, with the same life, have fixed for gods birthdays, of christening etc. In this context, it was natural that the Christian Church to be condemned as a sin celebrating a day of birth.<\/p>\n

Preparation of the celebration of Christmas was, in fact, a concession by the Christian Church for the peasants who could not give up the traditions and customs inherited from ancestors. So, those accustomed to celebrating the pagan gods were aroused the same holidays celebrations which were given religious overtones. So the feast of the peasant, the start of the agriculture campaign, has become St. George, Rosalia was replaced by Pentecost, the Feast of Water, celebrated on the summer solstice, became a feast of Saint John the Baptist, in august, Feast of Diana has been replaced with the Holy Mary.<\/p>\n

But let’s see Christmas with what celebration was changed.<\/p>\n

In ancient times, on December 25, the pagan world was celebrating the more important deities of the various cultures. Although nowadays winter solstice corresponds to the days of December 21-22, in the time of the Christian Church was the primary date of December 25. The winter solstice marked the longest night of the year, the time of maximum domination of the darkness, but also the moment when its influence gradually decreased, the days becoming longer. It was, actually for the Pagan tradition, the cyclic victory of light over darkness. This victory was seen as a rebirth (or a birth cycle) of the light\/Sun.<\/p>\n

On December 25, in ancient Rome were celebrated Saturnals, an honor of Saturn, the God of the harvest. It was also celebrated the famous Sol Invictus (the birth of the invincible Sun). In the ritual celebration, at midnight, the faithful people came from temples and shouted: the Virgin born, the light increases. The new-born was personified, at some nations, like a baby, who was revealed to the crowd, as an occasion for joy.<\/p>\n

The day of the god Mithras was celebrated on December 25, when the Old World was celebrating the growth of the increasing of the light, which overcomes the forces of darkness. "Theologians always repeat that there is a sin to celebrate the day winter solstice, feast of the Solar God Mithra, but as everyone continues to celebrate, the Church makes it the feast of the Nativity. Thus, Christianity triumphs in law and Paganism triumphs in practice!" said A. Bayet.<\/p>\n

Pope Liberius, in 354, introduced for the first time a date for the birth of Jesus Christ and therefore was designated the 25 December, more exactly the night of 24 to 25 December. In 386 St. John-with-Golden-Mouth decided the Eastern Church to celebrate the day of the Nativity, too.<\/p>\n

So since 386 we celebrate such a beautiful celebration of the Nativity, which brings the light in our hearts and homes. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Reading Time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>Although Nativity of Jesus was being carried out now 2011 years ago, the feast of the Nativity or Christmas began to be celebrated a few centuries later.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":224533,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-224534","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-society"],"content_social_share":"Reading Time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>

By Diana Ungureanu\/ Chisinau \/ Moldova.ORG\/ — Although Nativity of Jesus was being carried out now 2011 years ago, the feast of the Nativity or Christmas began to be celebrated a few centuries later.<\/p>\n

The feast of Christmas is not mentioned in any testimony whether Evangelical or historical to early Christians. Moreover, at its inception, the Church claimed that Christians worship a God, true, born of himself, from eternity, who made the Heavens and the Earth, which therefore has no beginning and no end, as such no birthday.<\/p>\n

Therefore, Christians could not celebrate the day of the birth of a true God and as a result, taking not seriously a birthday celebration for the gods, which would have proved that they are creations of the people that, with the same life, have fixed for gods birthdays, of christening etc. In this context, it was natural that the Christian Church to be condemned as a sin celebrating a day of birth.<\/p>\n

Preparation of the celebration of Christmas was, in fact, a concession by the Christian Church for the peasants who could not give up the traditions and customs inherited from ancestors. So, those accustomed to celebrating the pagan gods were aroused the same holidays celebrations which were given religious overtones. So the feast of the peasant, the start of the agriculture campaign, has become St. George, Rosalia was replaced by Pentecost, the Feast of Water, celebrated on the summer solstice, became a feast of Saint John the Baptist, in august, Feast of Diana has been replaced with the Holy Mary.<\/p>\n

But let’s see Christmas with what celebration was changed.<\/p>\n

In ancient times, on December 25, the pagan world was celebrating the more important deities of the various cultures. Although nowadays winter solstice corresponds to the days of December 21-22, in the time of the Christian Church was the primary date of December 25. The winter solstice marked the longest night of the year, the time of maximum domination of the darkness, but also the moment when its influence gradually decreased, the days becoming longer. It was, actually for the Pagan tradition, the cyclic victory of light over darkness. This victory was seen as a rebirth (or a birth cycle) of the light\/Sun.<\/p>\n

On December 25, in ancient Rome were celebrated Saturnals, an honor of Saturn, the God of the harvest. It was also celebrated the famous Sol Invictus (the birth of the invincible Sun). In the ritual celebration, at midnight, the faithful people came from temples and shouted: the Virgin born, the light increases. The new-born was personified, at some nations, like a baby, who was revealed to the crowd, as an occasion for joy.<\/p>\n

The day of the god Mithras was celebrated on December 25, when the Old World was celebrating the growth of the increasing of the light, which overcomes the forces of darkness. "Theologians always repeat that there is a sin to celebrate the day winter solstice, feast of the Solar God Mithra, but as everyone continues to celebrate, the Church makes it the feast of the Nativity. Thus, Christianity triumphs in law and Paganism triumphs in practice!" said A. Bayet.<\/p>\n

Pope Liberius, in 354, introduced for the first time a date for the birth of Jesus Christ and therefore was designated the 25 December, more exactly the night of 24 to 25 December. In 386 St. John-with-Golden-Mouth decided the Eastern Church to celebrate the day of the Nativity, too.<\/p>\n

So since 386 we celebrate such a beautiful celebration of the Nativity, which brings the light in our hearts and homes. <\/p>\n

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