The iconic version of Santa Claus as a jolly man in red with a white beard and a sack of toys was immortalized in 1881, when political cartoonist Thomas Nast drew on Moore’s poem to create the image of Old Saint Nick we know today. St. Nicholas first entered American popular culture in the late 18th century in New York, when Dutch families gathered to honor the anniversary of the death of “Sint Nikolaas” , or “Sinter Klaas” for short. The family was also becoming less disciplined and more sensitive to the emotional needs of children during the early 1800s. Christmas provided families with a day when they could lavish attention-and gifts-on their children without appearing to “spoil” them. Also around this time, English author Charles Dickens created the classic holiday tale, A Christmas Carol. The story’s message-the importance of charity and good will towards all humankind-struck a powerful chord in the United States and England and showed members of Victorian society the benefits of celebrating the holiday.
When Oliver Cromwell and his Puritan forces took over England in 1645, they vowed to rid England of decadence and, as part of their effort, cancelled Christmas. By popular demand, Charles II was restored to the throne and, with him, came the return of the popular holiday. By holding Christmas at the same time as traditional winter solstice festivals, church leaders increased the chances that Christmas would be popularly embraced, but gave up the ability to dictate how it was celebrated. By the Middle Ages, Christianity had, for the most part, replaced pagan religion. On Christmas, believers attended church, then celebrated raucously in a drunken, carnival-like atmosphere similar to today’s Mardi Gras. Each year, a beggar or student would be crowned the “lord of misrule” and eager celebrants played the part of his subjects.
The poor would go to the houses of the rich and demand their best food and drink. If owners failed to comply, their visitors would most likely terrorize them with mischief. Christmas became the time of year when the upper classes could repay their real or imagined “debt” to society by entertaining less fortunate citizens. Christmas, a Christian holiday honoring the birth of Jesus, has evolved into a worldwide religious and secular celebration, incorporating many pre-Christian and pagan traditions into the festivities. For the first time in more than seven decades, Christmas—celebrated today by Russian Orthodox Christians—is a full state holiday across Russia’s vast and snowy expanse.
Numerous Church Fathers offered sarcastic comments about the pagan custom of celebrating birthdays when, in fact, saints and martyrs should be honoured on the days of their martyrdom—their true “birthdays,” from the church’s perspective. The end of December was a perfect time for celebration in most areas of Europe. At that time of year, most cattle were slaughtered so they would not have to be fed during the winter.
Grapevine is the perfect place to create wonderful Christmas memories with your family and friends. You’ll be amazed at 40 days of unique and traditional Christmas events, as you see Grapevine sparkle with millions of lights, enormous decorations, animated characters and much more! While unlit Christmas trees can look like real trees, they can also take just as long to decorate. You can save time and effort with one of our pre-lit Christmas trees or fiber optic Christmas trees. Talk about convenient – just set one of these trees up, put on your favorite Christmas tree decorations, and that’s it, you’re done.
The best known of these figures today is red-dressed Santa Claus, of diverse origins. The name Santa Claus can be traced back to the Dutch Sinterklaas, which means simply Saint Nicholas. Nicholas was a 4th-century Greek bishop of Myra, a city in the Roman province of Lycia, whose ruins are 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) from modern Demre in southwest Turkey. Among other saintly attributes, he was noted for the care of children, generosity, and the giving of gifts.
India the evergreen Christmas tree is replaced by the mango tree or the bamboo tree, and houses are decorated with mango leaves and paper stars. Christmas largely remains a Christian holiday and is otherwise not widely observed. Christmas carols with Scripture readings narrating salvation history from the Fall in the Garden of Eden to the coming of Christ. Benson and adopted at the University of Cambridge, has become widely popular. Christmas is celebrated by many Christians on December 25 in the Gregorian calendar.
In certain parts of the world, notably Sicily, living nativity scenes following the tradition of Saint Francis are a popular alternative to static crèches. The first commercially produced decorations appeared in Germany in the 1860s, inspired by paper chains made by children. In countries where a representation of the Nativity scene is very popular, people are encouraged to compete and create the most original or realistic ones. Within some families, the pieces used to make the representation are considered a valuable family heirloom. The calculation hypothesis suggests that an earlier holiday held on March 25 became associated with the Incarnation.
The Christmas sale has dozens of cute stocking stuffers for those Christmas stockings, so you can stock up now and save. Decorate your tree with Santa and character ornaments, gingerbread ornaments and a wide assortment of dazzling holiday designs. There are holiday bingo cards, whistles, stockings, dinner plates, place holders, wreaths and decorations to make your Christmas festive. Whether you like traditional-looking trees or colorful trees, including white Christmas trees, black Christmas trees, pink, purple, blue or rose gold – The Home Depot is sure to have your perfect match. Browse online or in store to see some of the many other unique styles we offer, including rainbow Christmas trees and eye-catching upside-down Christmas trees. Plus, since artificial Christmas trees are hypo-allergenic and don’t shed needles, they make an ideal option for families with pets or small children.
Local crèches are renowned for their ornate decorations and symbolic figurines, often mirroring daily life. As Christmas celebrations began to be held around the world even outside traditional Christian cultures in the 20th century, some Muslim-majority countries subsequently banned the practice of Christmas, claiming it undermines Islam. The First Congregational Church of Rockford, Illinois, “although of genuine Puritan stock”, was ‘preparing for a grand Christmas jubilee’, a news correspondent reported in 1864. By 1860, fourteen states including several from New England had adopted Christmas as a legal holiday. On June 28, 1870, Christmas was formally declared a United States federal holiday.