How Did Christmas Start? The History of Christmas Traditions, Jesus & Christianity Explained

Описание: How did Christmas Start? Was it because of Santa Claus? Was it just an excuse to kiss under mistletoe? Or was it to celebrate the birth of a baby born in a stable?

If you guessed the last one, you're right. It started as a celebration where Christians came together to celebrate the birth of baby Jesus, who they believe is the Son of God.

It’s why you might have seen nativity scenes pop up, featuring baby Jesus in the middle, his parents Mary and Joseph, and sometimes there are shepherds, three wise men, and of course, a whole bunch of animals.

In the early days of Christianity, Easter was actually the main holiday and the birth of Jesus wasn’t celebrated. Most historians agree that Christians officially started celebrating Christmas in about 300 AD. The Roman Emperor at the time, Constantine, is said to be the first ever Christian emperor, and played a big role in making Christianity the main religion of the Roman Empire.

So naturally, they wanted to make a holiday that would celebrate the birthday of Jesus. And they decided to make it in the middle of their winter, even though there’s still a bit of debate about whether that was actually the day Jesus was born.

Cut to today, and the Roman empire is no more, but billions around the world still celebrate Christmas.

These days there’s a good chance you’re more likely to see tall trees covered in tinsel and Santa than you are to see images of Jesus at Christmas time. So where did all of these new traditions come from? The answer is: all over the place.

Christmas trees are thought to have come from a tradition in Germany, while Turkey and Christmas pudding comes from England. It just so happens that in Australia, we kind of copied what the British did to celebrate Christmas. Which is why snow at Christmas time is a thing… even though it makes no sense to us.

Over the years, the meaning of Christmas has changed for some. It’s not just Christian people who celebrate Christmas anymore, for others, it’s just another holiday and a time to get together with family.

But for Christian people around the world, it has a very special meaning; a time of celebration and thanksgiving to remember the birth of their saviour.

__________________________________________

For the past 50 years, Behind the News has been helping to break down current issues and events for young people all around the world. The program is a high-energy, fun way for people to learn about the stories we see in the news, while providing background information that isn’t usually given by other news bulletins.

We have over 1000 stories on all sorts of topics - everything from politics & volcanoes, to online security & fortnite. If you're looking for help to understand something, you'll probably find it on BTN.

Make sure to like & subscribe our videos if you want to stay in the know!
http://www.abc.net.au/btn/

Follow us on Social Media:
Facebook:   / abcbtn  
Instagram:   / behindthenews  
Twitter:   / behindthenews   how did christmas start