Christmas Trees – the History of a Christmastime Tradition
When we talk about the history of Christmas trees, there are really several issues to address. First, there is the association of the evergreen tree with Christianity. When and where did this begin? Next, how did the evergreen tree come to be associated with the Christian holiday of Christmas? And last, how did this association manifest itself into our modern day tradition of a decorated tree at the holiday season? We will examine each of these questions one by one.
Evergreen trees and Christianity:
There is some debate about when and how the evergreen tree first became associated with Christianity. Some historians tell us that a monk named Boniface happened upon a group of pagans worshipping an oak tree in the woods (and possibly also performing animal and human sacrifices there). Boniface was angered by this, and he cut the oak tree down. As the legend goes, an evergreen tree sprang up where the oak had been. Boniface and the pagans believed this to be a sign of Christianity, and thus, the association of the evergreen tree with Christianity first begin. There is also some debate about where exactly this happened. Some historians claim it happened in Riga, Latvia. However, some others argue that this occurred in Germany, which might make more sense given that Boniface was a German monk.
Evergreen trees and Christmas:
Some other historians claim that the monk Boniface actually used the evergreen tree as a teaching tool to preach Christian beliefs to pagan populations. He took the triangular shape of the tree as a symbol of the Christian trinity: Father, Son and Holy Ghost. According to this legend, sometime around the 12th century A.D.,