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| A King was Born –Reflecting on the Birth of the Lord Jesus Christ | | | Omkar Dattatray
The festival of Christmas is celebrated worldwide by Christians and non-Christians on 25th December annually with great pomp and show. Christmas is the birth anniversary of Jesus Christ and it was on this date that this prophet of humanity, peace, love and spirituality was born to shepherd parents. The most significant holiday for the Christian world is the birth day of Jesus Christ and it is celebrated across the world with great pomp and show not only by the people of Christian faith but by the non-Christians as well. Even being a traditional Christian holiday ,Christmas is widely celebrated worldwide ,including in non-Christian countries .Some traditions of the season celebration are so old that goes up to pre-Christian era or secular origins .Nowadays ,the most common is the exchange of gifts and card s with beloved ones .Christmas dinner, Christmas carols and other celebrations alongside local traditions, bringing together each place’s custom to this time of the year. Although Christians are a minority in India, Christmas in our country is celebrated with enthusiasm in all states and major cities. The country’s famous adage ‘’unity in Diversity‘’ derives the whole festivity. In south India, one of the most common Christmas celebrations is putting a burning earthen lamp on their roofs ,symbolizing that Jesus is the world’s light .In the northwest. Christians tell Christmas stories and sing carols in their dialects. In some places of northwest, devotees fast from December 1st until December 24 and end it with a sumptuous feast at midnight on December 25.Christmas is celebrated on 25th December every year by the world Christian community. The day holds much significance for Christians as they believe that Jesus Christ was born on the same day at Bethlehem. It is observed as a public holiday in several Christian majority countries .Also ,in some countries were Christians are in minority, it is still observed as a holiday. The festival calls for a grand celebration and is one of the major festivals. The preparations begin much in advance with the shopping enthusiastically for gifts and other articles. Children are happiest around the festival as they get lots of gifts and cakes. Families sing, dance and eat together with family and friends on Christmas. It is the most important festivals of the Christians and also most awaited one. The popularity of the festival could well be ascertained from the fact that every year in the month of December, gifts and other items worth billions are sold across the world, mostly in western countries. Christmas is indeed a festival of great significance for Christians and is celebrated with much gaiety and fanfare by the people especially by the Christians. It is observed to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, whom the Christians believe to be the son of God. The festival calls for a grand celebration and is one of the major festivals. Christmas means Feast day of Christ. Christmas is the festival of joy. It is about sharing and helping others. On this day people remember Jesus Christ and his lessons of life. This festival encourages us to make merry and be happy. Its sole aim is to teach us that the light of the Lord always guards us and thus we must follow the message of Jesus Christ and remember devoid of Christian elements ,and marked by an increasingly elaborate exchange of gifts. In this secular Christmas celebrations, a mythical figure named Santa Claus plays a pivotal role .The early Christian community distinguished between the identification of the date of Jesus birth and the liturgical celebration of that event. The actual observance of the day of Jesus birth was long in coming. In particular, during first two centuries of Christianity, there was strong opposition to recognizing birthdays of martyrs or, for that matter of Jesus. Numerous church Fathers offered sarcastic comments about pagan custom of celebrating birthdays when in fact ,saints and martyrs should be honored on the days of their martyrdom –their true birthdays from Church’s perspective. The precise origin of assigning December 25 as the birth date of Jesus is unclear. The New Testament provides no clue in this regard. December 25, was first identified as the date of Jesus birth by Sextus Julius Africanus in 221 and later became the universally accepted date. One widespread explanation of the origin of this date is that December 25 was the Christianizing of the dies solis invicti nati (day of the birth of the unconquered sun). a popular holiday in the Roman Empire that celebrated the winter solstice as a symbol of the resurgence of the sun, the casting away of the winter and the heralding of the rebirth of spring and summer. Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ ,observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world .Christmas is a public holiday in many countries and is celebrated religiously by a majority of Christians ,as well as culturally by many non-Christians and forms an integral part of the holiday season surrounding it .Indeed ,after December 25 had become widely accepted as the date of Jesus birth ,Christian writers frequently made the connection between the rebirth of the sun and the birth of son .One of the difficulties with this view is that it suggests a nonchalant willingness on the part of the Christian church to appropriate a pagan festival when the early church was so intent on distinguishing itself categorically from pagan beliefs and practices. A second view suggests that December 25 became the date of Jesus birth by a priori reasoning that identified the spring equinox as the date of the creation of the world and the fourth day of creation ,when the light was created, as the day of Jesus conception that is March 25. December 25, nine months later became the date of Jesus birth. For a long time the celebration of Jesus birth was observed in conjunction with his baptism celebrated January 6. Christmas began to be widely celebrated with a specific liturgy in 9th century but did not attain the liturgical importance of either Good Friday or Easter, the other two major Christian holidays. Roman Catholic churches celebrate the first Christmas mass at midnight, and protestant churches have increasingly held Christmas candlelight services late on the evening of December 24. A special service of ‘’lessons and carols’’ intertwines Christmas carols with scripture readings narrating salvation history from the Fall in the Garden of Eden to coming of Christ. The service, inaugurated by E.W. Benson and adopted at the university of Cambridge has become widely popular. None of the contemporary Christmas customs have their origin in theological or liturgical affirmations ,and most are of fairly recent date. The Renaissance humanist Sebastian Brant recorded, in Das Narrenschiff (1494 –The Ship of Fools), the custom of placing branches of fir trees in houses, Even though there is some uncertainty about the precise date and origin of the tradition of the Christmas tree. Towards the end of the 18th century the practice of giving gifts to family members became well established. Theologically, the feast day reminded Christians of God’s gift of Jesus to mankind even as the coming of Wise Men or Magi, to Bethlehem suggested that Christmas was somehow related to giving gifts. The practice of giving gifts, which dates back to 15th century, contributed to the view that Christmas was a secular holiday focused on family and friends. In European countries, gifts are exchanged on Christmas Eve, December 24, in keeping with the notion that the baby Jesus baby was born on the night of December 24. The morning of December 25, however has become the time for the exchange of gifts in North America. Given the importance of Christmas as one of the major Christian feast days, most European Countries observe ,Christian influence, December 26 as second Christmas Day. In short let us follow the teachings of Lord Jesus Christ and live a life of contentment and resolve to be guided by the life and teachings of Lord Jesus Christ. Christmas greetings to all.
The author is a columnist, social, KP activist & Freelancer |
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