There's an internal discussion going on around here about how the celebration of Christmas came to be on Dec 25th.
Google gives various sources of info (of various levels credibility, of course): http://deoxy.org/time/sabbats/12-21.htm suggests a Western tradition of Christ's birth on the 25th day was connected with the midwinter celebrations of Roman pagans. http://www.fionabroome.com/history/Yulehistory1.htm suggests a decision by emperor Constantine in an attempt to unify religions in Rome was the cause http://www.mysteriousbritain.co.uk/festivals/christmas.html give the birthday of the Roman god Mithras as Dec 25th, and connects the Christian date as an attempt to connect or coerce the pagan festival. http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761556859/Christmas.html has the Roman Catholic church giving Christian meaning to existing pagan rituals. The local suggestion is that the mid-winter solstice on the 22nd had the three days of the crucifixion/resurrection added to it. Does anyone have alternative suggestions or resources to contribute to the conversation? Regards, Rohan Rohan Pryor Manager, Information Technology Services Synod of Victoria and Tasmania Uniting Church in Australia Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Ph: (03) 9251 5243 Fax: (03) 9654 4110 Website: http://vic.uca.org.au ------------------------------------------------------ - You are subscribed to the mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] - To unsubscribe, email [EMAIL PROTECTED] and put in the message body 'unsubscribe insights-l' (ell, not one (1)) See: http://nsw.uca.org.au/insights-l-information.htm ------------------------------------------------------
