A Short History Of Christmas
Christmas holiday is one of the most popular traditions through the world. It involves decorating a tree with small ornaments, ribbons, strings of flashing lights and of course the magic of placing gifts for dear ones at the bottom of the tree. The decorated Christmas tree is usually takes place of pride besides the fireplace or corner of the room for weeks. It is finally removed on the Epiphany day.
Ever green trees were considered magical and able of resisting the darkness of winter in ancient northern European cultures before the Greek and Roman empires. The villagers and priests used to gather around the tallest evergreen tree every year at the winter and prayed to their gods to return the sun and the warm weather that was beneficial for their crops and the animals.
It appears to be awkward for the people if 21st century to think that summer would not return during those times but those people only knew that winter was a hard and miserable time. They knew that they came and went back again but their lives were very shaky, they were only able to stockpile enough firewood and food to last through the winter. This was the reason sun was important for them and they would perish if the sun did not return. It is easy to understand about the magic that evergreen trees obviously had.
Early Egyptians also appreciated the value of evergreen trees and would bring palm leafs into their homes and temples during winter. This symbolized the importance of life over death. The concept of resurrection and afterlife was a strong belief of early Egyptians and palm leafs that remained green became a symbol of eternal life.
The customs of decorating the Christmas tree by the pagans are even mentioned in