One of the most belovedChristmas tradition , especially in America , is decorate aChristmas tree . Most mass intend it ’s been around , well , forever . But the Christmas Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree is really a pretty late vacation custom .
German immigrants impart the tradition to the United States in the mid-18th C , yet 100 years afterward it still had n’t really caught on . In fact , it was downright controversial . The New York Times wrote an editorial against the practice in the 1880s , and whenTeddy Rooseveltwas prexy in the early 1900s , he inveigh against slue down Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree for Christmas , say it was a waste of good timber [ author : Shenkman ] . The tradition , of course , took clench no matter .
Despite Christmas ' popularity among Christians and non - Christians alike , little - known facts like this — and even unlimited myth — abound . From the vacation ’s religious origins to Mr. and Mrs. Claus to that great , evergreen symbol , the Yuletide Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree , here are 10 enduring Christmas myth , exposed at last .
10: Christmas Is the Most Important Christian Holiday
Say it ai n’t so ! Yes , to the astonishment of many multitude — include many Christians — Christmasis not the most crucial Christian vacation . Despite the medal . Despite the tags . Despite the packages , boxes and bags . No , Christmas ca n’t have a candela to that power station Christian holiday , Easter . And it ’s not just an Easter bunny versus Santa Claus matter , either .
On Christmas , Christians celebrate the nascence of Jesus , who they believe is the son of God . That ’s by all odds an crucial effect , and Christians whoop it up in solemnization . But Easter commemorates Jesus ' rising from death into eternal life , which was not only a coup for Jesus in person , but for all of humankind , as his resurrection is said to have contained the promise of eternal lifespan for all who consider in him [ germ : Martin ] .
Because Easter is so sacred , Christians expend about two month of the year celebrating the Easter time of year , far longer than they celebrate Christmas . Think of it this way : Everyone has a birthday , but not everyone can triumph over death .
9: Clement C. Moore Wrote “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas”
How many of us snuggle with family member every Christmas season to read " A Visit from St. Nicholas , " aka " ' Twas the Night Before Christmas " ? Thispoemhas been popular since it was first release in New York ’s Troy Sentinel on Dec. 23 , 1823 [ origin : Conradt ] .
The poem was publish anonymously , and it was n’t until 1836 that someone stepped forwards as the author : Clement Clarke Moore , a prof and poet . concord to Moore , he wrote the poem for his minor , and afterwards , unbeknown to him , his housekeeper send it to the paper . But once Moore exact to be the writer , appendage of the Henry Livingston Jr. phratry blazon out foul , say their dad had been reciting the very same poem to them a full 15 years before it was published . Livingston , interestingly , was a distant congener of Moore ’s wife [ rootage : Conradt , Why Christmas ] .
Who was telling the truth ? At least four of Livingston ’s kid , and one neighbor , said they remembered him tell the poem as betimes as 1807 . He was also part Dutch , and many references in the poem are , too . Plus scholars who studied Moore ’s other write whole works say they ’re all vastly different in complex body part and subject matter from " A Visit from St. Nicholas . " But Moore did claim authorship first . He was also ally with Washington Irving , who knew all about Dutch refinement and had previously write about St. Nicholas [ origin : Howse , Conradt ] . tot all these clues together and the question of the famous verse form ’s authorship is still up in the airwave .
8: Jesus Was Born on Dec. 25
If Christmas is the solemnisation of Jesus ' birth , and Christmas is always on Dec. 25 , then Jesus was bear on Dec. 25 , right ? Nope . No one know for surewhen Jesus was bear . The Bible mentions neither a calendar month nor a date . Yet while Jesus may have been endure on Dec. 25 , it ’s highly unlikely , at least according to Biblical interpretations [ source : Christian Answers ] . Here ’s why .
First , the Bible mentions that during Jesus ' birth , shepherds were in their fields . But it ’s cold-blooded in Bethlehem in December , and nothing much develop in the field , so sheepherder sheltered their sheep around that time of twelvemonth and stayed inside . The Bible also enounce Mary and Joseph were traveling to take part in a census . But back in Jesus ' time , censuses were normally held in September or October — after the nightfall harvesting , yet before the harsh wintertime made traveling difficult [ root : Christian Answers ] .
Finally , while Easter was celebrated by the early Christians , Jesus ' birth was n’t consider a special twenty-four hours until about the fourth century , when the church service wanted some kind of solemnization to take the focussing away from the wintertime solstice festivity privilege by the gentile . Voilà — the church proclaimed Jesus ' giving birth date as Dec. 25 , and it became a major Christian solemnisation . Most scholar , by the bye , agree Jesus was likely born near the end of September , based on a horde of additional Biblical clew .
7: Germans Always Put Pickle Ornaments on Their Trees
You might have noticed that most ornament stores carry field glass pickles . Ever inquire why ? The pop story is that the pickles are part of a very oldGerman traditionthat went like this : On Christmas Eve in Germany , parents hid chicken feed muddle ornaments deep within the fragrant branch of their trees , once all of the other ornament were in place . The next dayspring , the first child to obtain the jam ornament got an extra talent from St. Nicholas , while the first adult to find it ( not matter the ones who hid it ) would have sound luck for the next yr [ source : German Pulse ] . Not too shabby !
unluckily , this cute tale is a myth . Most Germans say they ’ve never heard of this practice , and it ’s definitely not a tradition . That ’s pretty good intel . But the tale has more flaws . In Germany , as in many European countries , St. Nick traditionally deliver his gifts on the night of Dec. 5 , not on Christmas Eve . Christmas Eve is also the day German kids ordinarily give their nowadays , not Christmas Day . So how did this fib become so well - entrenched ? It ’s still a closed book . Glass ornaments were being produced in Germany in the sixteenth century , and by the 19th century some Germans were craft fruit- and nut - form ornaments . But that ’s about as close as we can get to figuring it out [ source : German Pulse ] .
6: Abbreviating Christmas as “Xmas” Is Sacrilegious
Do n’t take " Christ " out of Christmas ! That ’s the rally cry of many Christians , who become quite frenzied over what they view as blasphemy — take Christ ’s holy name from the significant holiday , and replacing it with a simple X. A profane X. An impersonal , present - and - Santa - seek X.
But if we take a skinny flavour , compose " Xmas " is n’t a necessarily a slam against the son of God . Far from it . The word " Christ " in Greek is written " Χριστός . " Notice anything conversant ? The first letter is " ex , " or chi . Chi is also pen as an X in the Roman alphabet . Rather than being an nauseating abbreviation for Christmas , " Xmas " is actually a quite logical soubriquet [ sources : Boyett , Bible Suite ] .
5: Santa Claus, St. Nicholas and Father Christmas Are All the Same
This is a tricky one . The three are definitely different , yet sometimes can be considered the same . St. Nicholas was a fourth - 100 Turkish bishop who spend his life giving money to the poor , and it ’s order one of his favor methods was on the Q.T. leaving money in people’sstockingsovernight . Nicholas died on Dec. 6 , and was eventually promulgate a saint . Thus , Dec. 6 became cognise as St. Nicholas Day . Various culture celebrated by apprise their kid to leave out stockings or horseshoe the Nox before so " St. Nick " could fill them with gifts like fruit , screwball and confect . [ source : Why Christmas ] .
By the sixteenth century , Europeans were turning aside from the estimate of St. Nicholas , yet they loved the gifting tradition . So St. Nick morphed into a guy named " Father Christmas . " First note in 15th - C writings , he was a partying dude link withdrunkennessand holiday merrymaking . In the U.S. , St. Nick became Kris Kringle . Father Christmas and Kris Kringle broadly bring gifts on Christmas , not Dec. 6 . When Dutch settler start emigrating to the U.S. , they brought with them story of St. Nicholas , whom they called Sinterklaas . presently Sinterklaas became Americanized as Santa Claus [ source : Why Christmas ] .
By the twentieth century or so , all of the Father Christmases , Kris Kringles , etc . , became " Santa Claus , " uniformly render as a around - bellied , white - bearded sometime guy cable who brings gifts on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day . Yet some people around the world , namely Christians from European countries where St. Nick was a dear zep , still celebrate St. Nicholas Day on Dec. 6 by setting out shoes or hanging stocking the dark before . So while Father Christmas and Santa Claus are definitely now one and the same , St. Nicholas is still a pitch - up , with some people recognizing him as a distinct person and others lumping him in with the other gift - bear men [ source : Why Christmas ] .
4: Three Kings Visited Jesus Shortly After His Birth
Gaspar ( or Caspar ) , Melchior and Balthasar , three kings from the east , are said to have locomote a long manner to see Baby Jesus , following a freakishly large , brightstarand haul talent ofgold , olibanum and myrrhalong with them . Alas , according to the Bible this is yet another Christmas girl , despite the presence of a trio of tycoon figurines in all nativity sets .
The Bible say magi derive from the east , following a big star , and that they were looking for the King of the Jews . But magus are wise work force , not king . And the turn of and names of the magus are never detailed anywhere in writing . Further , the Bible says the men arrived when Jesus was a young shaver , not an infant , and they find him at plate with his mom — not in a manger in a stable .
Scholars believe the serviceman were likely astrologers who arrived a class or more after Jesus ' birth . Because three gifts are listed in the Bible , scholars also say it ’s potential that over meter , people take up this meant there were three men [ reference : Boyett ] . The myth of their name emerge later on , after a mosaic depicting the magi was make in the sixth century . The mosaic , housed in the Basilica di Sant’Apollinare Nuovo in Ravenna , Italy , contains the names Gaspar , Melchior and Balthasar .
3: Boxing Day Is for Boxing Up Gifts for Return
lot of people have never hear of Boxing Day . Those who have — and who bed it fall afterChristmas — often retrieve it ’s a day designated for boxing up any gift you do n’t want , do n’t like or ca n’t use , and take them back to the stock . gracious as that may sound to anyone who ’s used to encounter posterior natural endowment , unfortunately it ’s whole wrong .
Boxing Day is Dec. 26 , and it ’s a festivity that takes blank space only in a few countries . It started in the United Kingdom during the Middle Ages as the one daytime of the year when churches open up their alms corner , or collection boxes , and doled out the money to the poor . servant were also given this twenty-four hours off to celebrate Christmas with their families , having had to work for their bosses on Christmas Day [ source : Why Christmas ] .
The vacation alter over time . In the long time leading up to World War II , blue collar workers such as milkmen , butchers and newspaper boy used the twenty-four hour period to track down their routes and collect Christmas tips from guest . Today , in certain country such as the United Kingdom , Canada , Australia and New Zealand , Boxing Day is a Clarence Shepard Day Jr. when certain sporting events are held , namely horse race and soccer matches [ source : Why Christmas ] . What that has to do with alms for the poor — or boxes — is another mystery story .
2: U.S. Students Can’t Sing Religious Carols in Public Schools
This melodic theme is false — at least for now . As long as secular songs are included in a school vacation concert ’s repertoire , Christmas carolsmay also be blab [ source : Gibbs , Jr. and Gibbs III ] . But there ’s much public debate over whether scorch any consecrated choral music in public schools is a violation of theU.S. Constitution ’s Establishment Clause . The Constitution ’s First Amendment say " Congress shall make no law value an establishment of religion . " This " Establishment Clause " is at the heart of many disputes over what the great unwashed consider exemption of scruples , freedom of language and exemption of religious belief [ source : Kasparian ] . As of now , however , there ’s been no opinion by theSupreme Court , and no Constitutional amendments , banning this practice . Some individual school district , however , have banned Christmas music in school concert [ reservoir : Rundquist ] .
1: “Jingle Bells” Is a Christmas Song
" Jingle Melville Bell , jingle bells , jingle all the style " — one of the best - cognise Christmas songs ever written . Right ? Well , not exactly . We bang it as a Christmas classic , but it was n’t write that mode . It was actually written as a Thanksgiving song . Yes ! We get laid ! Jingle Bells ! What ? Originallytitled"One Horse Open Sleigh , " the song was written by American composer James Lord Pierpont in the 1850s and was about the annual sleigh race hold around Thanksgiving in the townsfolk of Medford , Massachusetts .
Lots More Information
Thank good my frequent consumption of the term " Xmas " is n’t sickening . Now I ’m going to go hang my kettle of fish ornament on the tree , read whoever ’s " ' Twas the Night Before Christmas " and call it a sidereal day .
