The Big Christmas Can of Worms

[BellyTank]

Xmas/Christmas

Yuletide is upon us and I just realised how much I hate the word; 'Xmas'.
It's really vulgar!
Sounds more like a skin ailment than a festive occasion.

Yuletide sounds very Danish- Jul tid- Jul(Christmas) tid(time).

Go' Jul!

B
T

 

[Baron Kurtz]

Anyone know why X rather Christ before mas?

ex-mass?
cross-mass?


bk

 

[MK]

.

It used to be the birthday of the man who saved our necks. Now it stands for Santa Clause and they spell it with an "X".

 

[Baron Kurtz]

santa is illiterate

bk

 

[Marc Chevalier]

MK's on to something. The X comes from the Greek spelling of Christ, the first letter of which was chi ("X").

 

[Lauren]

heehee. You guys are funny.

I heard it started as a cross in front of mas. I guess the cross got turned a bit sideways, though.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

Most people crucified by the Romans in Palestine were done on an X shaped cross. See the Scottish flag:

St Andrew was crucified. The flag represents his cross (he's the patron Saint of Scotland)

There is some debate as to the shape of the cross Jesus was crucified on.

Whether or not the X in Xmas is this involved is up for debate ...

bk

 

[Mycroft]

Isn't it the orginal a sign of Christ a "P" with an "X" through it, as in the greek letter:

 

[IndianaGuybrush]

I thought I read somewhere that it was the Greeks who crucified people on the X cross, and the one the Romans used looked more like a T.

 

[Andykev]

Simple simplify.

You guys are killing me!:cheers1:

Such a body of knowledge. The point? Americans as a whole have lost the true spirit of Christmas. It has become way, way too commercialized.

Every year, my family "downsizes" Christmas. Bake cookies, visit an Assisted Living Home, or your elderly neighbor. Be "Christ like" and not "Charge like".

 

[Mycroft]

You guys are killing me!:cheers1:

Such a body of knowledge. The point? Americans as a whole have lost the true spirit of Christmas. It has become way, way too commercialized.

Every year, my family "downsizes" Christmas. Bake cookies, visit an Assisted Living Home, or your elderly neighbor. Be "Christ like" and not "Charge like".

I agree with you, but I think people should do this year round too beacause a lot of organizations say they need more funding and aid during the non-holiday seasons, because most people give during the holidays and no time else.

 

[Lauren]

Yup. You guys hit it on the nose. Such a silly thing that people act "giving" and "full of good cheer" around Christmas season and not the rest of the year. Especially Christians. I am thankful I know such wonderful people of good faith that care more about showing these qualities year round than waiting for a holiday for these attributes to come out in them.

 

[MudInYerEye]

My all-time favorite band is X. They use X as shorthand for "Christ".
The female singer, Exene Cervenka, was originally named Christine.

 

[Barry]

My all-time favorite band is X. They use X as shorthand for "Christ".
The female singer, Exene Cervenka, was originally named Christine.

Have you heard the cover of "I'll go down swinging" she did with Los Straightjackets?

Wow!

Barry

 

[BellyTank]

I thought maybe someone bought a banner that wasn't wide enough and had to 'abbreviate' the word...

We have Coca Cola to blame for Santa Claus as we know him today... and probably the commercialisation....

B
T

 

[K.D. Lightner]

I have read and seen accounts of where the modern Christmas comes from; it originated about the time of Dickens in England.

Christ was most likely born in the early springtime, but the church designated that the holiday should coincide with Winter Soltace in order to attempt to convert pagans, who liked to revel and make merry at that time. Most major cultures around the world have a holiday at that time, when seasons change.

True Christians, for many centuries, did not "celebrate" Christmas. They attended mass to honor the birth of Christ, but did not throw parties, give and receive gifts, drink spirits, put up trees, etc. That was done by those less religious, i.e., those with the pagan spirit of the holiday.

When Dickens wrote A Christmas Carol, the story was so popular, that people in Europe and the U.S. began to give gifts, have parties, and make merry. Slowly, even the devoutly religious folks did the same. I understand that the Christmas tree came from Germany, as did St. Nicholas, or Father Christmas, or the newer Santa Claus.

The crass modern Christmas we all complain about, evolved over time. My mother, when she was a child, celebrated with church, a good meal, and all the children were given an orange. When I was a child, my brother and I got five or six moderately priced presents,mostly clothes. Once in awhile, we got a big one, like a sled or bicycle. Now, my great niece and nephews get every toy in sight, which grosses my mother out. And there are parties all over the place, and stores are dependent on holiday sales to get them through the year, and the poorer people, who have only a bit of money to get bigger presents, riot at Walmart so they can get the computer they can't afford elsewhere. The media films them so that the rest of us can get a good laugh at those who are so "greedy." But, the lady who fell and lost her wig was crying in a close-up, probably humilated and knowing she had lost out on acquiring those precious few big items that her family wanted.

I often see billboards proclaiming that Jesus is the reason for the season, one billboard stating "the only reason." But, the truth is that the holiday season dates back many millenia before the birth of Christ and is pagan in origin.

Also, the "X" in Xmas is a symbol of Christ, not meant to "X" him out, but a way to abbreviate Christ Mass.

karol

 

[Siirous]

Very interesting Karol, I didn't know a lot of that history. I always considered christmas just a time to sit back with the family, get a day off work, and have a turkey/ham dinner. When I was little, I remember getting a good mix of clothes and toys. Now that I'm college student I tend to get more useful things from my parents, like grocery store gift cards so I can float my food expenses a little . But mainly since I'm not very religous it's just a time for me to sit back and reflect on the year, take a deep breath for 2 weeks before the next semester/work picks back up and spend time with loved ones.

Sincerely,
Rob

 

[MK]

.

1 in 50 people know the trivia about Christmas. As far as our culture is concerned, we don't worship trees or other pegan rituals. In our culture Christmas is about Christ.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

If one happens to be a Christian. I never saw what non-Christians get out of Xmas. Personally i get nothing out of the whole rigmarole. More stress that i dont need ...

bk

 

[shamus]

Here's an interesting link all about the history of the christmas tree.

http://www.christmasarchives.com/trees.html