All About Christmas
By Tarang Dua and Nihaan Suraparaju
Christmas is celebrated on December 25th and is a sacred religious holiday, a worldwide culture, and a commercial phenomenon. For around two millennia, people around the world have been celebrating it with traditions and practices that are both religious and non-religious.
The middle of winter has long been a time of celebration worldwide. Centuries before the arrival of the man called Jesus, early Europeans celebrated light and birth in the darkest days of winter. Many people rejoiced during the winter solstice, when the worst of the winter was behind them and they could look forward to longer days and extended hours of sunlight.
Christmas is celebrated to remember the birth of Jesus. The name 'Christmas' comes from the Mass of Christ (or Jesus). A Mass service (sometimes called Communion or Eucharist) is where Christians remember that Jesus died and came back to life.
The first civilization to celebrate Christmas was the Roman Empire. Over time, Christmas gained popularity and new traditions. In medieval England, Christmas was a 12-day festival involving all kinds of celebrations, from plays to wild feasts to pageants celebrating Jesus' birth. Music, gift-giving, and decorations all became the norm. Then, the holiday was moved throughout the world by the many English explorers and missionaries around the world. Churches in the English colonies were required to celebrate Christmas in their churches so that Christianity could be spread throughout other countries such as the Americas.
If you ever wonder about where Christmas carols came from, it's around the 9th to 12th century. It started as a dance and then developed its way to becoming a singing ritual. In the 9th and 10th centuries, monasteries from Northern Europe developed the Christmas hymn into a sequence of stanzas. A Parisian monk named Adam of Saint Victor started to derive music from popular songs in the 12th century, which introduced something closer to the traditional Christmas carol.
In conclusion, Christmas is a holiday that is celebrated worldwide in many countries. From decorating a Christmas tree with a star and ornaments to singing Christmas carols, Christmas is a famous worldwide holiday that people enjoy and love to celebrate with friends and family. Starting as the Roman Empire celebrated, Christmas is now known worldwide and is probably the biggest holiday in the world. Christmas is known for many things, but most importantly it's a time to spend with friends, family, and loved ones.