Without a full blown debate on xmas and religion......I thought Santa Clause was some Pagan Character??????......
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http://www.teambaconstrip.com/2006/12/21/is-santa-a-pagan/
The true origins of Christmas
So where did it all begin??The concept of Christmas originated in ancient Egypt in the days of King Osiris and Queen Isis around about 3000 B.C. - long before the Christian faith was even thought of!! After the untimely death of King Osiris, his wife, Isis, propogated the demonic doctrine of the survival of Osiris as a spirit. She claimed a full grown evergreen tree sprang overnight from a dead stump, symbolising the new life of the Osiris spirit from his death. On each anniversary of Osiris birth, which was the date we now know as December 25th, Isis would leave gifts around this tree. Isis became the “Queen of Heaven”, and Osiris became the reborn “divine son of heaven”. Osiris later became, through the later Phoenicans, Baal the Sun-god. The “mother and child” became chief objects of worship by the Babylonians, from which it spread over the world under various names, such as, Cybel & Deoius in Asia, Fortuna & Jupiter in pagan Rome. Then during the fourth and fifth century, the Romans under the new popular “Christianity” popularised the “mother and child” concept especially around Christmas time - from which we have many of the Christmas carols such as “Silent Night Holy Night” with it’s familiar “mother and child” theme.
The Pagan Origin of The Christmas Tree
The concept of the Christmas Tree originated around 3000 B.C. in ancient Egypt with King Osiris and Queen Isis. After the untimely death of King Osiris, his wife, Isis, propogated the demonic doctrine of the survival of Osiris as a spirit. She claimed a full grown evergreen tree sprang overnight from a dead stump, symbolising the new life of the Osiris spirit from his death. On each anniversary of Osiris birth, which was the date we now know as December 25th, Isis would leave gifts around this tree. During the Middle Ages, the Germans believed the evergreen trees were especially imbued with life since they remained green throughout all of winter. Greenery was prominent in pagan winter celebrations in honour of the tree spirit or spirit of fertility. The Romans trimmed the trees with trinkets and toys at that time of year. The Druids tied gilded apples to tree branches. For many, a tree decorated with orbs and fruit-like object symbolised the tree of life in the garden of Eden.
The Pagan Origin of The Holly WreathMistletoe and Yule Log
The mistletoe were used at the festival of the winter solstice by ancient pagans because it was considered sacred to the sun. The mistletoe supposedly had miraculous healing powers, probably due to the fact that not only the plant remained green throughout winter but it actually bore fruit during this time, a type for fertility spirits!! This led to the tradition of “kissing under the mistletoe” - occuring early in the night of revelry and drunken debauchery, celebrating the death of the “old sun” and birth of the “new sun” at the solstice. Holly berries were also considered sacred to the sun-god. Holly was revered along with the mistletoe, with decorations in those greeneries prominent in buildings and places of worship during the winter festival - leading to the holly wreath that we have today. The burning of the Yule Log originated with the Druids and their ritual burning of a carefully chosen log during the winter. The word “yule” is derived from the old Anglo-Saxon word “hweol” which means “wheel” - a pagan symbol of the sun. Indeed the “Yule Log” is in fact the “Sun Log”!!
The Pagan Origin of Exchanging Gifts at Christmas
The wonderful tradition of exchanging gifts during Christmas. That excitement of looking forward to seeing what your loved one buys for you for Christmas. Oh of course, it is “Christian” to be giving gifts to one another…. but is it?? Let us see what the Bibliotheca Sacra (vol 12 pp 153-155) says about the exchanging of gifts at Christmas…
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“The interchange of presents between friends is alike characteristic of Christmas and the Saturnalia, and MUST HAVE BEEN ADOPTED BY CHRISTIANS FROM THE PAGANS, as the admonition of Tertullian plainly shows.” Emphasis mine
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The exchanging of gifts does not honour Christ at all. Suppose it is YOUR birthday and yet at your party, your friends and relatives exchange gifts among themselves and almost completely ignore you!! This is exactly what happens at Christmas - we exchange gifts among ourselves, but usually don’t have enough money left over to continue our giving to our churches!! Just ask any pastor!! The giving to the church usually doesn’t get back to normal until March next year!! In any case it’s not Jesus’ birthday anyway!! - His birthday is in September most probably and the exact date is not known.
The wise men gave Jesus gifts because He was a KING of the Jews - it was not because it was His birthday. It was customary to give gifts to someone who is a King, just as it is so in many cultures today. In any case, the wise men didn’t give any gifts to Jesus until long after His birthday.
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“Verse 11 (They presented unto him gifts) The people of the east never approached the presence of kings and great personages, without a present in their hands. The custom is often noticed in the Old Testament, and still prevails in the east, and in some of the newly discovered South Sea Islands.”Adam Clarke Commentary, vol 5, page 46
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The exchanging of gifts among friends and relatives at Christmas is not found in the Scriptures, it is derived from paganism.
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Christmas… It was, according to many authorities, not celebrated in the first centuries of the Christian church, as the Christian usage in general was to celebrate the death of remarkable persons [eg Communion - death of Christ] rather than their birth…”"…A feast was established in memory of this event [the birth of Jesus] in the fourth century. In the fifth century the Western Church ordered it to be celebrated forever ON THE DAY OF THE OLD ROMAN FEAST OF THE BIRTH OF SOL [SUN], as no certain knowledge of the day of Christ’s birth existed.” Encyclopedia Americana, 1944 Edition