The Complete Christmas
Collection
Christmas Recipes, Crafts
and Kids Activities and xmas stories. The
history of Christmas and in particular the reasons for the giving of gifts are
not known for certain, but several things are known for a fact. The traditions
of Santa Claus and giving presents at Christmas time began long before the birth
of Jesus Christ, although it really depends on where in the world you live as
to how you believe the whole tradition started. The
giving of presents at Christmas time actually dates back over 4000 years to the
Mesopotamians. They believed that every year in winter their primary god Marduk
would do battle with the evil spirits of chaos. Upon Marduks return it was necessary
for the king to then pledge his allegiance to the God and he would die at the
end of the year. The Mesopotamians obviously cottoned on to the fact that they
were going through kings quicker than they could produce them, so they would dress
a convict up as the king and treat him as though he were a king for one day. At
the end of the new year festival they would kill him. On
this day they would present gifts to one another to mark the beginning of the
new year and the success that Marduk had yet again bestowed on them. This is where
the giving of Christmas gifts began. St
Nicholas is believed to have been born around 300 A.D and lived in what is now
Turkey. He was a widely revered and loved monk due to his overwhelming kindness.
His most famous act of kindness was to save three sisters from slavery by providing
them with a dowry in order that they could be married. As
such a popular character he soon became the patron saint of many different groups
of people, eventually resting on children and sailors. Traditionally St. Nicholas
day was celebrated and remembered on December 6th, although his role as patron
saint of children has seen his special day moved to coincide with Christmas. So
one thing that is certain is that Santa Claus visits us on the wrong day every
single year. Celebration of Saint Nicholas should in fact be on December 6th,
although the moving of St. Nicholas day to the 25th was presumably done to combine
his special day with the Christian festival. If the large superstores and toy
manufacturers were given the choice Im quite sure they would rather celebrate
them separately, so be warned for next year.
Born
is Vancouver, BC Jessica Cander is a professional freelance writer who currently
calls the Southern tip of Ireland home. You can read more of her writing on all
things Christmas gifts related at the Christmas
Gift Center. | 