Christmas is officially in 31 days!! At any moment you’ll begin to see Christmas lights, wreaths, and trees filling homes and the streets of Peoria Heights. But, do you really know where all of the Christmas traditions came from? Although mostly all of us celebrate Christmas, not everyone knows the true meaning of Christmas! Christmas is actually the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. Centuries before his birth, other religions celebrated the winter solstice, which people believe is the other reasoning Christmas Day was chosen to be on the 25th of December. Other traditions, such as Christmas trees and decorations have a historic background also.
The Christmas tree can be traced all the way back to Egyptian times. Trees that stayed green throughout the year had a special meaning to people. Egyptians cherished and worshipped evergreen trees. During winter, they would bring the trees into their homes to symbolize life’s triumphs over death. Many other cultures have participated in similar traditions. The first Christmas ornaments were in Germany. They used apples and other fruits as a reminder that life would return again in the spring. As the tradition spread, different cultures took on variations of it.
The Christmas wreath is also a German tradition. In December, they would gather wreaths of evergreens. They did this as a sign of hope for the coming spring.
As for decorations, it was recorded that in London it was the custom at Christmas for every house and all the parish churches to be "decked with holm, ivy, bays, and whatsoever the season of the year afforded to be green". The heart-shaped leaves of ivy were said to symbolize the coming to earth of Jesus, while holly was seen as protection against pagans and witches, its thorns and red berries held to represent the Crown of Thorns worn by Jesus at the crucifixion and the blood he shed.
The traditional colors of Christmas decorations are red, green, and gold. Red symbolizes the blood of Jesus, which was shed in his crucifixion, while green symbolizes eternal life, and in particular the evergreen tree, which does not lose its leaves in the winter, and gold is the first color associated with Christmas, as one of the three gifts of the Magi, symbolizing royalty.
The Christmas tree can be traced all the way back to Egyptian times. Trees that stayed green throughout the year had a special meaning to people. Egyptians cherished and worshipped evergreen trees. During winter, they would bring the trees into their homes to symbolize life’s triumphs over death. Many other cultures have participated in similar traditions. The first Christmas ornaments were in Germany. They used apples and other fruits as a reminder that life would return again in the spring. As the tradition spread, different cultures took on variations of it.
The Christmas wreath is also a German tradition. In December, they would gather wreaths of evergreens. They did this as a sign of hope for the coming spring.
As for decorations, it was recorded that in London it was the custom at Christmas for every house and all the parish churches to be "decked with holm, ivy, bays, and whatsoever the season of the year afforded to be green". The heart-shaped leaves of ivy were said to symbolize the coming to earth of Jesus, while holly was seen as protection against pagans and witches, its thorns and red berries held to represent the Crown of Thorns worn by Jesus at the crucifixion and the blood he shed.
The traditional colors of Christmas decorations are red, green, and gold. Red symbolizes the blood of Jesus, which was shed in his crucifixion, while green symbolizes eternal life, and in particular the evergreen tree, which does not lose its leaves in the winter, and gold is the first color associated with Christmas, as one of the three gifts of the Magi, symbolizing royalty.