Seasons and Festivals
Major Festivals
Picture, Floral Decorations
The church divides the year into eight main Seasons, each with one or more Major Festivals, that remind us of the important times in the life and work of God and Jesus, and consequently have major significance for his followers, and so are usually observed by most Christians. (Return to top)

As well as the seasons and major festivals, the church celebrates several 'Special Days' throughout the year to remember, honour or support our work in God's world. Celebration of the "Special Days" is usually optional, Christians chose which they want to remember. (Return to top)
The 'Major Festivals'
Christmas: Non-Religious Customs
Picture of Father Christmas
Text FourMost non-religious customs seem to involve partying or celebrating and include:

Father Christmas or Santa Claus: Probably the most universal symbol of Christmas is the merry man in the red suit and white beard, known by different names in different countries but in the UK and America as Father Christmas or Santa Claus. Both names have come to mean much the same but they have different origins. Father Christmas traditionally brings the presents to good children at Christmas, which he carries in a large sack, travelling through the sky on a sleigh pulled by reindeer and coming down the chimney to deliver them into stockings or sacks left out for that purpose. (This tradition gets difficult to explain to children in modern houses with no chimney)! (Return to top)

'Father Christmas' arose around 1616 as a man who celebrates the merriness of Christmas in defiance of the Puritans after the English civil war. The Puritans had banned the celebration of Christmas because they saw it as pampering to non-Christian ideas, and Father Christmas was a reaction to this dowdiness. (Return to top)

'Santa Claus' is older and is derived from Saint Nicholas of Myra (Myra is now part of modern Turkey), a bishop around 320AD. He gained a reputation for secret gift-giving, such as putting coins in shoes that had been left them out for him. The English name comes from the German 'Sankt Niklaus' and the Dutch 'Sinterklaas'. (Return to top)
Christmas Presents
Picture of Christmas Presents
It has long been the custom of giving each other presents at Christmas in celebration of Jesus' birthday, but more recently some people have begun to send a donation to buy a goat or cow for people in poorer lands instead of giving each other presents, as that enables the person who receives the gift to improve their life enormously and no longer rely on charitable hand-outs. This is very much in line with the teaching of Jesus to "Love your neighbour as yourself" - it is his birthday we're celebrating after all! (Return to top)
Christmas Tree
Picture, Decorated Christmas Tree
The custom of bringing live branches into the house dates back to pre-Christian times. The idea of bringing a live tree into the house and decorating it was introduced from Germany by king George III's wife, Queen Charlotte, but it didn't become popular until reintroduced by Queen Victoria's husband, Prince Albert. It was the custom to set up and decorate the tree on Christmas Eve and to remove it the day after Epiphany, anything else was considered unlucky, but growing commercialism means trees are now usually set up well in advance of Christmas, especially trees in public places such as shopping malls or town centres. (Return to top)

Again at the time of the English civil war, Christmas Trees were banned (by Oliver Cromwell) as a 'heathen tradition' detracting from the Word of God, but most churches now have a Christmas Tree, either inside or outside the building. Some even have a 'Christmas Tree Festival' with many trees and a range of decorations, often collecting money for viewing them, which is then given to charity. (Return to top)
Christmas Cards
Picture, Typical Christmas Card
Another Victorian idea. The first commercial Christmas cards were commissioned in 1843 by Sir Henry Cole, who had introduced the Penny Post in the UK three years earlier! Early cards didn't show traditional Christmas or winter scenes but showed fairies, or humorous and sentimental images of children, or flowers reminding the recipient of spring. Charities now sell cards to help raise funds, after UNICEF sold such a card in 1949. America in particular is now seeing a decline in the number of cards posted as the 'e-card' takes over. (Return to top)
Christmas Crackers
Picture, Christmas Cracker
Yet another Victorian idea! These were introduced in 1847 by Tom Smith who ran a sweet shop in London. He sold his 'bon-bon' sweets in a twist of coloured paper. As sales declined he came up with the idea of making a larger twist of coloured paper with a sweet and motto inside, he added the 'bang' later. As they became popular, the modern content of hat, motto and toy was introduced by his son, Walter Smith, as a counter to the copies being produced by competitors. They became popularly known as 'Crackers' because of the bang from the toy cap inside, that explodes when they're pulled apart. (Return to top)
Christmas Dinner
Picture, Christmas Dinner
In the UK and Ireland, Christmas Dinner is usually eaten at midday or early afternoon and is similar to a regular Sunday dinner of roast meat and vegetables plus a dessert (sweet course), except at Christmas the meat is traditionally turkey and the dessert is a rich 'plum pudding' with a brandy cream sauce. In older times, the meat would have been roast boar, but as boars declined, this was replaced with goose. Turkey, a native American bird, was introduced by French Jesuits in the 1700s and has now taken over as the most favoured meat. The constituents of the traditional Christmas meal varies in other countries according to local tradition and the products readily available. (Return to top)
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