Some of the pagan roots of modern Christmas traditions include the date (Dec.25th) it is celebrated on, the Christmas tree, and mistletoe.
Pagan Roots of Christmas Traditions
Long before Christmas was an established tradition, ancient peoples celebrated the Winter Solstice on December 21st. The Winter Solstice marked the shortest day of the year and was considered to be a time of renewal as the Sun began its return.
Over time, the Romans extended the celebration to a week and came to dedicate these festivals to Saturn, their god of agriculture. During this the week of December 17th to December 23rd, the Romans held banquets and exchanged gifts to mark the festival of Saturnalia. Our modern Christmas traditions of elaborate dinners and gift giving likely have their origins in these pagan roots.
Why Do We Celebrate Christmas on Dec. 25th?
As the Roman Empire spread into Persian lands, soldiers encountered stories of the god Mithra. Long associated with the coming of the new dawn, Mithra was adopted by some as the new Roman sun god. Worship to him, Mithraism, became an official religion of the Empire and was most popular from around the 1st century BC to the 4th century AD.
Because he was the new Roman Sun god, Mithra's birthday now was associated with the Winter Solstice. Consequently, the Saturnalia was replaced with celebrations to Mithra. Some scholars contend that the original 12 Days of Christmas referred to those 12 days between Mithra's birthday on December 21st and New Years Day, January 1st.
In 325 AD, the Roman Emperor Constantine began to allow the practice of Christianity. As the leaders of the church spread the Gospel throughout the Roman Empire, they reinterpreted some of the old pagan beliefs as consistent with the new theology.
Because the actual birth date of Christ was unknown, the councils decided to identify Christ's birth with the existing birth celebrations for Mithra. Thus, the sun god's birthday festival turned into the son of God's celebration.
Ultimately these councils decided to move the day of celebration to December 25th. Sources are a bit inconsistent as to when this actually happened: it may have been at the Council of Nicea in 325 AD, by decree of Constantine in 336 AD, or by Pope Julius I in 350 AD.
At this point, the twelve days of Christmas came to represent the time between the Jesus' birth and the coming of the Magi (December 25th to January 6th).
The Christmas Tree Tradition
Like the date of Christmas, the Christmas tree also has its roots in pagan Winter Solstice festivals. The Romans and Druids are both said to have decorated their homes with evergreen branches as part of the celebration of Saturnalia.
Hanging decorations on either a fir or oak tree may also have been commonplace. Over the centuries, the original pagan roots of the Christmas tree evolved, taking on a different significance at each stage.
While some believe that the modern Christmas tree dates back to 8th century Germany (coinciding with those tribes' conversion to Christianity), there is little evidence to support this claim. The earliest record of an evergreen tree being decorated specifically for Christmas dates back to 1521 in Germany. Lights, in the form of candles, were added sometime in the 17th century.
The Pagan Roots of Christmas Mistletoe
So what about mistletoe? Some stories link the custom of kissing beneath mistletoe to the Druids, who regarded it as a fertility symbol. In Norse mythology, Mistletoe was associated with Frigga, the goddess of love, marriage and fertility.
After a dream foretelling the death of her son Balder, Frigga made all of earth's creatures promise not to ever harm her new baby. Mistletoe, a lowly weed, was also a baby at the time, and, therefore, considered too insignificant to hurt anyone.
Some time later the god Loki, jealous of the attention Balder received, crafted an arrow from the mistletoe and tricked Balder's blind brother into launching it at Balder. Balder died, and Frigga attempted to rescue him from the underworld. In most versions of the legend she failed, but, from that point on, mistletoe became sacred to her. The granting of kisses is said to be in recognition of Frigga's love for her son.
The Origins of Christmas Traditions
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