The Pagan Origins of Christmas customs (The Queen Magazine 1924)

Status
Not open for further replies.
And while correlation does not imply causation, it is at the very least quite coincidental that this incident took place so closely before the COVID epidemic started.
 
The Julian calendar was named for Julius Caesar, while the Gregorian calendar was named for Pope Gregory XIII who declared that 10 days did not exist in order to correct the Julian calendar. Which begs the question as to why traditional Orthodox adhere to a calendar named for a pagan leader… Maybe @dochawk can explain.
 
stpurl said:
And while correlation does not imply causation, it is at the very least quite coincidental that this incident took place so closely before the COVID epidemic started.
Click to expand...
I don’t find that coincidental at all. Covid probably jumped species in early December of last year. That’s not really tied in to the Amazon synod.
 
I don’t think all these things are so very cut and dry, though.

But it’s not all that important, we “baptize” pagan customs when people convert. It isn’t a total cultural hegemony thing. It’s the Church Universal after all. These formerly pagan things get turned around, just like the people, and become Christian. I personally think it’s beautiful.
 
Last edited:
In reality modern Christmas trees are far different from the ancient groves with which the indigenous Germans use to commune through a network of nerves in their braids
 
Have you ever seen Kirk Cameron’s Saving Christmas? It’s a movie where he tries to reinterpret all the pagan customs Christians have adopted and make them biblical. It’s so bad it’s good.
 
No I haven’t seen it, but as this article and more recent one’s from university studies show, December 25th never had a pagan holiday until long after Jesus’s birth and it was a minor holiday celebrated but just a few parts of the Roman Empire.

The Winter Solstice is actually December 23rd.
 
The solstice is on Dec 21. Among pagan holidays are the two solstices, the two equinoxes, and the halfway points between a solstice and an equinox called cross quarter days.

If we consider the random possibility of picking a day within four days of one of these 8 pagan holidays, it’s about one in five. The odds are not beyond the realm of coincidence.
 
According to our Gregorian Calendar and scientific knowledge, it’s the 21st.

However, according to the Roman Calendar used at the time, it would’ve been the 23rd according to our current calendar.
 
From what I understand, they’re saying the traditions surrounding Christmas, not the actual celebration of Christmas. So like Christmas trees, yule logs, mistletoe, stuff like that.

But yes, there is a fairly decent argument that Dec 25 was the Day of Christ’s birth, looking at when John the Baptist’s father received the revelation, adding to the 6 month pregnancy when Mary visited, looking at ancient custom when they celebrated it liturgically, etc.
 
On the same Roman calendar, what day was Christmas?

Are you saying that the Romans were off on their estimation of the solstice?
 
Last edited:
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top