The Story Behind the Importance of Christmas

Christmas Comes But Once A Year And  It’s The Most Anticipated Holiday For Everyone

 

retro importance of christmas

Why do people celebrate Christmas?

 

What’s the story behind it? Find out in this article.

Without a doubt, Christmas has become the most celebrated and anticipated event because it stirs – and continues to stir – warm and strong emotions for everybody. Especially for the children all over the world who most certainly look forward to it the most.. The attachment that most people have for this particular holiday is, in fact, significant because of its association with the promised birth of Jesus Christ, also known as the Messiah or the Savior in some religions.

December 25 is considered a public or official holiday in many countries. While Christmas is commonly celebrated both religiously and culturally every year on this date, no one is really certain if that is the correct or true date of the birth of Christ. Customs associated with Christmas are characterized by a curious mix of pre-Christian, secular, and Christian themes as well as origins.

Christmas is automatically translated mostly of the gestures of gift-giving, music in the form of caroling, church or other religious services. The most precious events are the special meal with family and friends, holiday candy and a wide array of decorations such as twinkling lights, wreaths on doors, fir trees decorated with tinsel, a nativity scene, and hung garlands, holly, and mistletoe. Reunions of all kinds are also associated with Christmas.

 

Why a Pagan Festival Became Christian Celebration

 

retro saturnlia

More than any other organized spiritual or religious group, Christians, particularly Roman Catholics, celebrate Christmas as the fulfillment of the Old Testament’s prophecy regarding the birth of a Messiah, or Savior, even without being entirely sure about the exact birth date of Jesus Christ. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, however, December 25 coincided with a pagan winter festival: Saturnalia.

Saturnalia was already an established celebration of the Roman Empire which honored Saturn, the Roman god of agriculture, who, according to Roman mythology, was forced out of the realm of Mt. Olympus by another god, Jupiter, also known as Zeus in Greek mythology, which resulted in shortened hours of days. Saturn’s feet were bound in chains by Jupiter until the beginning of the winter solstice.

In Europe’s northern hemisphere, this winter solstice, the year’s shortest day, occurs at the time of December 25, or thereabouts, and makes days start to grow longer. When the Roman Catholic Church became the dominant religion, it adopted Saturnalia and transformed it into a Christian holiday since they were unable to dissuade people from celebrating the holiday. December 25 then became the “birthday” of Jesus Christ.

 

The Most Important Thing About Christmas

 

Although Christmas was neither observed nor instituted by Jesus Christ, or any of His apostles for that matter, the event was nevertheless celebrated to honor the incarnation of Jesus Christ. C.S. Lewis wrote that Christmas is all about God – Jesus Christ – becoming man. That “The Word” became “flesh” when Jesus Christ was born as a baby is, still according to Lewis, the “most important thing” about the history of the cosmos.

Christmas is characterized by a lot of gift giving yet in the wake of materialism, people often forget that God shows us He is the ultimate giver of gifts who does not give selectively or sparingly. God gave us Himself when He sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, as His gift of forgiveness, grace, and mercy. If God can give us His only son as a gift, we can be sure that He will not spare anything else to show us how much He loves us.

 

Why Celebrate the Story Behind Christmas?

The connection between the birth of Jesus Christ during Christmas and His death and resurrection during Easter remains a mystery for most people. The simplest explanation of why Christmas is important, however, is its invitation for people to reflect on love. Jesus Christ becoming flesh, or man, to redeem mankind from sin, makes Christmas high significantly for those who believe in God.

We celebrate Christmas traditions, because we consider it important that God chose to become human, a person, to show us that He loves us. This love went beyond sacrifice and suffering for God just to have reconciliation between Him and us. The story behind why Christmas has become significant for most, if not all, of us is that it was the result of God’s love for His creation – mankind – because nothing is impossible for Him.