Blessed Yule!
Twas the night before Christmas... and a few nights after Yule, technically, but who cares? For me, I celebrate Yule on Christmas, because why not? I'm not one of these super-strict astrological date Pagans, and I like to know that the date I'm celebrating is the date that I'm guaranteed off work, LOL.
So, everyone knows the story behind Christmas, the little baby born in a stable who grew up to found one of the greatest religions in the history of the world. But what a lot of Christians don't realize is that Jesus was almost certainly NOT born on December 25. While the Middle East and Israel in particular don't tend to be as cold as the northern United States, for example, it's cold enough to be utterly miserable in late December, with a chance of snow. Generally, sheep are brought down out of the fields in winter, rather than being out in the fields exposed to the elements. Travel, too, can be difficult and dangerous during the winter, especially with a heavily-pregnant woman to care for. Joseph, as Mary's husband and protector, would have been an idiot to be traveling with her in mid-December.
Yule, on the other hand, is timed to the Winter Solstice: the shortest day of the year, and the longest night. It is, in a number of pagan traditions, the time of the death and rebirth of the sun god. Saturnalia, another pagan tradition is a Roman holiday Call it Yule, Saturnalia, Diwali, Hanukkah or Christmas, it is the celebration of the return of Light and Life in a time of darkness and cold. Because of this symbolism, the Christian Church decided to make their celebration of Christ's birth coincide with the pagan celebration of Yule, and adopted a number of their traditions with it.
The tree? Pagan. The wreath? Pagan. The Yule log? Pagan. Gift-giving? Pagan. Parties? Pagan. (Although who doesn't like a party, LOL!) The red & green color scheme? Pagan.
So, you celebrate Christmas, and wish me Merry Christmas. I'll celebrate Yule, and wish you Happy Holidays (or Blessed Yule, if you know that I'm pagan). We can all have fun, we celebrate a lot of the same traditions, and we all wish each other the best in this holiday season. So let's forget all this "war on Christmas" nonsense that the neo-conservative media and fundamentalist fire-breathers keep trying to shove down our throats, and just wish each other the best in this season of light and in the new year to come!
So, everyone knows the story behind Christmas, the little baby born in a stable who grew up to found one of the greatest religions in the history of the world. But what a lot of Christians don't realize is that Jesus was almost certainly NOT born on December 25. While the Middle East and Israel in particular don't tend to be as cold as the northern United States, for example, it's cold enough to be utterly miserable in late December, with a chance of snow. Generally, sheep are brought down out of the fields in winter, rather than being out in the fields exposed to the elements. Travel, too, can be difficult and dangerous during the winter, especially with a heavily-pregnant woman to care for. Joseph, as Mary's husband and protector, would have been an idiot to be traveling with her in mid-December.
Yule, on the other hand, is timed to the Winter Solstice: the shortest day of the year, and the longest night. It is, in a number of pagan traditions, the time of the death and rebirth of the sun god. Saturnalia, another pagan tradition is a Roman holiday Call it Yule, Saturnalia, Diwali, Hanukkah or Christmas, it is the celebration of the return of Light and Life in a time of darkness and cold. Because of this symbolism, the Christian Church decided to make their celebration of Christ's birth coincide with the pagan celebration of Yule, and adopted a number of their traditions with it.
The tree? Pagan. The wreath? Pagan. The Yule log? Pagan. Gift-giving? Pagan. Parties? Pagan. (Although who doesn't like a party, LOL!) The red & green color scheme? Pagan.
So, you celebrate Christmas, and wish me Merry Christmas. I'll celebrate Yule, and wish you Happy Holidays (or Blessed Yule, if you know that I'm pagan). We can all have fun, we celebrate a lot of the same traditions, and we all wish each other the best in this holiday season. So let's forget all this "war on Christmas" nonsense that the neo-conservative media and fundamentalist fire-breathers keep trying to shove down our throats, and just wish each other the best in this season of light and in the new year to come!