I
know my readers are already sick of my anti-STI posts, so I decided to write
something about Christmas. Here, imma gonna give you 8 facts about Christmas.
1. Christmas was actually a Christianized pagan
festival held every December 25 called birthday
of the Unconquered Sun. Early Christians began to associate it to the birth
of Jesus because they referred the LORD as sun
of righteousness (Malachi 4:2). Moreover, in 350 CE, Pope Julius I
officially declared December 25 as the official date of Christmas celebration. The
followers of Felix Y. Manalo always emphasize this fact to Catholics, but they
are just jealous because we have something like this were the whole family
celebrates together. Mamatay kayo sa
inggit. :P
Pope Julius I
2. Nothing is bad about using ‘Xmas’ instead of
‘Christmas,’ because in ‘Xmas,’ ‘X’ is the abbreviation of ‘Christ’—the Greek
name for ‘Christ’ was actually Χριστος (“Christos”). So shut the fuck up and stop
complaining about how people use ‘Xmas’ instead of ‘Christmas.’
3. The concept of the Christmas tree was actually
invented by the Protestant Martin Luther, the most influential figure of the
Age of Reformation. He was thought to put candles to an evergreen tree to make
his family happy.
Martin Luther
4. It was said that a man gave Christmas bonuses to
his factory workers and let them go home to their families during Christmas Eve
after he heard the English writer Charles Dickens read his novella A Christmas Carol. Remember that fact
every time an employee in Max’s serves
you when you chose to celebrate Nochebuena in that restaurant.
Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol
5. The Simbang
Gabi or Misa de Gallo was held
during dawn because Pope Sixtus V want the farmers to attend a mass before harvest
time in sunrise.
6. Santa Clause was based on Saint Nicholas, who was
also thought to give presents to children during winter.
7. Some astronomers thought that the Star of Bethlehem
was actually the planet Jupiter, because Jupiter appears to be the brightest star in the
sky of Bethlehem during winter.
8. The Bible never said that Jesus was visited by the
three magi in his birth. The concept was developed when Matthew 2 was combined
with Isaiah 60:1-3: “Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the
glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For behold, darkness shall cover the
earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you and his
glory will be seen upon you. And nations shall come to your light, and kings to
the brightness of your rising.”
The three Magi in Byzantine art
References:
1. Once again, Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org)
2. Did You Know (didyouknow.tumblr.com)
3. National Geographic (nationalgeographic.com)
Note: All pictures are from Wikipedia except the merry-christmas-ya-filthy-animal pic.
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