There is Magic in Respecting Others - Daily Inspiration
History of Christmas
In ancient pagan times, the last day of winter in the Northern Hemisphere was celebrated as the night that the Great Mother Goddess gives birth to the baby Sun God. It is also called Yule, the day a huge log is added to a bonfire, around which everyone would dance and sing to awaken the sun from its long winter sleep.In Roman times, it became the celebrations honoring Saturnus (the harvest god) and Mithras (the ancient god of light), a form of sun worship that had come to Rome from Syria a century before with the cult of Sol Invictus. It announced that winter is not forever, that life continues, and an invitation to stay in good spirit.
The first day of winter in the Northern Hemisphere occurs between the 20th and 22nd of December. The Roman celebrated Saturnalia between 17 and 24 December.
The early Christians
To avoid persecution during the Roman pagan festival, early Christians decked their homes with Saturnalia holly. As Christian numbers increased and their customs prevailed, the celebrations took on a Christian observance. But the early church actually did not celebrate the birth of Christ in December until Telesphorus, who was the second Bishop of Rome from 125 to 136AD, declared that Church services should be held during this time to celebrate “The Nativity of our Lord and Saviour.” However, since no-one was quite sure in which month Christ was born, Nativity was often held in September, which was during the Jewish Feast of Trumpets (modern-day Rosh Hashanah). In fact, for more than 300 years, people observed the birth of Jesus on various dates.
AD is short for Anno Domini, or “Year of our Lord,” as proclaimed by the Roman Catholic Church. Some non-Christians prefer the alternative designation “CE” for “Common Era.”
Christmas official, but not generally observed
In 325AD, Constantine the Great, the first Christian Roman emperor, introduced Christmas as an immovable feast on 25 December. He also introduced Sunday as a holy day in a new 7-day week, and introduced movable feasts (Easter). In 354AD, Bishop Liberius of Rome officially ordered his members to celebrate the birth of Jesus on 25 December.
However, even though Constantine officiated 25 December as the birthday of Christ, Christians, recognizing the date as a pagan festival, did not share in the emperor’s good intentions. Christmas failed to gain universal recognition among Christians until quite recently.
In England, for instance, Oliver Cromwell banned Christmas festivities between 1649 and 1660 through the so-called Blue Laws, believing that Christmas should be a solemn day.
When many Protestants escaped persecution by fleeing to the colonies all over the world, interest in joyous Christmas celebrations was rekindled there. Still, Christmas was not even a legal holiday until the 1800s. And, keep in mind, there was no Father Christmas (Santa Claus) figure at that time.
Christmas becomes popular
The popularity of Christmas was spurred on in 1820 by Washington Irving’s book The Keeping of Christmas at Bracebridge Hall.
In 1834, Britain’s Queen Victoria brought her German husband, Prince Albert, into Windsor Castle, introducing the tradition of the Christmas tree and carols that were held in Europe to the British Empire.
A week before Christmas in 1834, Charles Dickens published A Christmas Carol (in which he wrote that Scrooge required Cratchit to work, and that the US Congress met on Christmas Day). It was so popular that neither the churches nor the governments could not ignore the importance of Christmas celebrations.
In 1836, Alabama became the first state in the US to declare Christmas a legal holiday.
In 1837, T.H. Hervey’s The Book of Christmas also became a best seller.
In 1860, American illustrator Thomas Nast borrowed from the European stories about Saint Nicholas, the patron saint of children, to create Father Christmas (Santa Claus).
In 1907, Oklahoma became the last US state to declare Christmas a legal holiday. Year by year, countries all over the world started to recognize Christmas as the day for celebrating the birth of Jesus.
Have a merry Christmas
Today, many of the pagan uses are reflected in Christmas. Jesus was born in March, yet his birth is celebrated on December 25, the time of solstice. The Christmas celebrations end the 12th day of Christmas (January 6), the same amount of days that the return of the sun was celebrated by ancient and Roman pagans. It thus is no surprise that Christian puritans – or even conservative Christians – often are upset that Christmas “is not as religious as it was meant to be,” forgetting that Christmas was not celebrated at all until fairly recently.
Quick Christmas facts
The 25th of December is celebrated as the birth date of Jesus Christ. The Bible does not mention Christmas, and early Christians did not observe the birthday of Christ. Christmas as we know it became widely popular only in the 19th Century.
Christmas starts on December 25 and ends 12 days later on January 6 with the Feast of Epiphany also called “The Adoration of the Magi” or “The Manifestation of God.”
The concept of “Peace and Joy” over the Christmas season originates from the pagan believe in the magical powers of mistletoe. Enemies meeting under a mistletoe had to call truce until the following day.
In Finland and Sweden an old tradition prevails, where the twelve days of Christmas are declared to be time of civil peace by law. It used to be that a person committing crimes during this time would be liable to more stiff sentence than normal.
During the Middle Ages, many churches were built in honor of Saint Nicholas, the patron saint of children. Wearing his red and white bishop’s robes, he would ride on a donkey to deliver gifts to children.
The first Christmas card, which went on sale in 1843, did not feature an image of Santa.
In 1860, illustrator Thomas Nast introduced Santa Claus in the fashion we now know him today, a happy, burly, white-bearded fella in a bright red suit.
The meaning of the word “Christmas”
The word “Christmas” means “Mass of Christ,” later shortened to “Christ-Mass.” The even shorter form “Xmas” – first used in Europe in the 1500s – is derived from the Greek alphabet, in which X is the first letter of Christ’s name: Xristos, therefore “X-Mass.”
Today we know that Christ was not born on the 25th of December. The date was chosen to coincide with the pagan Roman celebrations honoring Saturnus (the harvest god) and Mithras (the ancient god of light), a form of sun worship. These celebrations came on or just after the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year in the northern hemisphere, to announce that winter is not forever, that life continues, and an invitation to stay in good spirit.
It is also told that Saint Boniface used the triangular shape of the
fir tree to describe the Holy Trinity of God the Father, Son and Holy
Ghost. By the 12th Century, Christmas trees were hung from ceilings as a
symbol of Christianity. However, in that time, for a reason no one
could yet explain, the trees were hung upside down.
The word “Christmas” means “Mass of Christ,” later shortened to “Christ-Mass.” The even shorter form “Xmas”
– first used in Europe in the 1500s – is derived from the Greek
alphabet, in which X is the first letter of Christ’s name: Xristos,
therefore “X-Mass.”
This 
Junior
may like opening presents a whole lot more than wrapping them, but he's
great at both! He's also looking quite festive in this 
The
elf dad has been through so many seasons it would take a lot to get him
off his game. He can wrap, woodwork, and bake with the best of them,
and he does it all with the kind of knowledge the other elves take for
granted. And even though he's constantly working overtime his uniform is
always on point. Check out this 
What a beautiful dress! 
This 
For a little more money, you can treat yourself to the plush looking 
Our exclusive 
If you think just being Santa isn't enough to make an impression, perhaps this 
This 
The
presents have all been wrapped, and Santa will soon be home from making
his special deliveries across the entire world. You're done taking
requests from little elves for at least a few months until they start
planning next year's Christmas Eve. That can only mean one thing... it's
time to celebrate! In 
Prove that you are just as qualified to play the part of Santa with this 
If you've been a good girl this year, you deserve to be treated like a queen, and in this 
Rather than deliver the presents, take them for yourself while wearing this 
Have you ever watched A Christmas Story and thanked your lucky stars that it wasn't your Aunt Clara who gave you the 
Buddy
and Josie were such a sweet pair in the Elf that it only makes sense to
want to dress up just like them. Maybe the way that you'll spread more
Christmas cheer is to be a little more like Buddy this Christmas. Baking
is a must. Smiling is a must. Maple syrup… do we even have to say it?
This Elf outfit is a must! There's lots of ways to bring the magic of
Elf to your own holiday celebrations, and this Christmas 
Do
you long for an old fashioned holiday, where you'd roast chestnuts over
a fire and go door to door singing traditional Christmas carols? These
caroler Christmas costumes for adults let you recreate that festive
spirit and allow you to celebrate the way you've always dreamed about.
Just work on the "Fa-la-la-la" harmony and you'll be set to spread
Christmas cheer to all your friends and neighbors.
If you love the holidays and aren't afraid to show it in over-the-top costumes, this pair of 
The easiest way to convince a crowd that you're the real deal? Carrying a large bag of presents of course! This 
Santa needs to make sure no name has been overlooked on his "nice" list, so he wears a pair of 
It's
cold at the North Pole, and Santa has to keep warm so that he can meet
all of his important responsibilities during the holidays. Plus, when
you picture Santa, does he ever have a bare head? We didn't think so.
That makes this 
Santa is not known for being a clean shaven guy. And thanks to this 
The hero of the story is 
Sally
is Jack's wistful girlfriend who isn't quite sure about this whole
Christmas thing. She is kind and caring, and looks out for Jack. They're
a classic couple that sing one of the best songs in the movie in their
snowy graveyard as Jack's dog Zero lights the way. If you're ready for
your solo, you'll need this lovely 
It's
important to keep the holiday season as smooch-filled as possible.
Mistletoe is the best way to do that. It's a classic decoration! Hang it
above the doorways, above the work stations, above the tree, and if
none of that works out then you can just hang it over your sweetheart
anyway.
While
working hard it's easy to forget the details. That just won't do when
you're working for Santa. He's got the highest standards of all! Just
take a look at this spectacular scene. Lots of presents getting wrapped,
trees being decorated, and… cookies getting eaten? Yep, you've got to
keep an eye on junior for sneaking the sweet stuff during all the
commotion. And if you're the one who is doing the taste test, just tell
your supervisor that you're just making sure Santa will enjoy them.
Everyone knows Santa hates that fake coconut flavoring. Luckily, these
were just delicious sugar cookies with marshmallow fluff. Phew!
Isn't
it great to get the whole family together for a fun activity like
wrapping presents? Okay, maybe that isn't the most fun thing ever, but
we promise, once it's all done you'll look back and be so proud at what
you accomplished together. If you've got some time left over, try making
some paper snowflakes and garland decorations for your pictures. As you
can see in our photos, these simple decorations really make any room
look festive and picture ready. Hey, you've got the tape, ribbon, and
scissors out already, why not let it snow, let it snow, let it snow
(with paper)!
It's
important to remember the big guy whenever you're working. He's the
velvet leader, the bearded boss, the snowcapped commander! His standards
have to be your standards, and we're here to tell you that his
standards are mile high. Good thing you know what you're doing when it
comes to decorating, baking, and wrapping presents. That's sort of elves
101 stuff. As you can see, our elf family here is totally on point and
scored excellent marks when Santa stopped by to supervise. If you have a
few extra people, grab some 
Now that all the hard work is done everyone can eat some 
Who
doesn't like a bonus elf? A new Holiday classic can come to life to
surprise just about anyone, even other elves! You've seen him in stores,
on social media (and on countless shelves) and now you can experience
what it's truly like to be the world-renowned