Welcome to Kerri's Christmas Page

Celebrated on December the 25th, Christmas is probably the most joyous holiday celebration. Traditionally Christmas is a time for families, gift giving, food and songs. And for many religions it is the time to celebrate the birth of Christ. "Christmas" comes from the Old English word "Christes Maesse" meaning "Christ's Mass".

According to the Bible, angels announced the birth of Jesus to shepherds, and a bright star led the three Wise Men to a stable in Bethlehem. The Bible does not state the 25th of December as the day on which Christ was born, but historians believe that this was the time when many pagan festivals were celebrated. These festivals were to celebrate the "Winter solstice" the time when the days begin to lengthen in the Northern Hemisphere.

The 25th of December was decided as the day to celebrate the birth of Christ by the Western Church in Rome, while the Eastern Church chose January 6th. After many years the holidays were merged, and Christmas was then celebrated in a twelve day festival. To this day only the Armenian Church celebrates Christmas on January 6th.

The traditions of Christmas

Gift Just like Easter, Christmas is celebrated in many different ways in many countries. Although many countries have very similiar customs, from the gathering of families to gift giving and of course Santa.

Giving gifts: In ancient times gifts were given as part of the midwinter festivals and followed on to become a tradition of Christmas. In different countries, gifts are given on Christmas Day, New Year's Day or on Christmas Eve. Santa

Santa Claus: In many countries gifts given to children are said to be given by a magical, mysterious person known in English speaking countries as Santa Claus or Father Christmas, who legend has it was a fat, jolly elf, who wore a red suit with a fur trim. The legend of Santa is said to have begun in Asia minor, where a 4th century bishop St. Nicholas was said to be very generous to children. He later became the patron saint of children. Children in Germany, Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands still to this day call him Saint Nicholas. The children of France call him Pere Noel.

Christmas decoration Decorations: In ancient times decorating was an important part of the pagan festivals. The northern Europeans would bring evergreen boughs inside in the winter time to remind them that life would return in the spring. Other evergreen plants such as the mistletoe were said to have magical powers. It is told that if two enemies stood under a branch of the mistletoe they would put down their weapons and embrace. In modern times Christians gave new meaning to decorations such as holly, fire, candles and other lights which all have signifigance in todays Christmas celebrations. Christmas tree

Christmas trees: As with most Christmas traditions the Christmas tree also came from Europe. People started to set up trees in their homes on Christmas Eve, the 24th December to celebrate the feast day of Adam and Eve. When the idea of trees became more popular, people began to decorate them with candles and other ornaments.The Christmas tree was introduced into America by the Germans in the 1700s, and became popular in England in the 1800s when Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, a German prince married Queen Victoria of England, where he set up a decorated Christmas tree in Windsor Castle.

Christmas cards: The very first cards given at Christmas time were created in 1843 by John C. Horsley an English artist. By 1860 Christmas cards were very popular throughout the United Kingdom, and by 1874 they were introduced into the United States by a German emigrant printer, Louis Prang who designed and sold coloured cards. By the mid 1800s he was selling up to 5,000,000! cards per year!