Jeffrey Shaw Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 Christians nicked all their holidays from the old pagan festivals anyway. They just re-purposed them to suit their own ends. The church hijacked the festival, but couldn't wipe out the name. Not wholly. Some elements are pagan [tree, mistletoe, holly, Father Xmas, yule log], I agree. Others derive from the Jewish festival of Chanukah [25th of month, presents, lights]. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeadingNorth Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 Not wholly. Some elements are pagan [tree, mistletoe, holly, Father Xmas, yule log], I agree. Others derive from the Jewish festival of Chanukah [25th of month, presents, lights]. Sorry, we're talking at cross purposes. The Church successfully imposed their own name on Christmas, but most of the related activities are pagan. The festival to which I was referring when I said "couldn't wipe out the name" was Easter - named after a Saxon goddess Eostre, I believe, though the Roman goddess had a very similar name. Many pagan elements of Easter also survive - bunnies and eggs, for instance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeffrey Shaw Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 Not "eggs", no; that's an observance of Pesach [Passover], albeit without chocolate coating! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alien52 Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 Nope. That's Yule. Yule never walk alone ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeffrey Shaw Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 Oh, and the Eater-associated 'Lent' also derives from the seven-week period following Pesach [Passover]. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeffrey Shaw Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 Yule never walk alone ! Captain's Yule Log. Star date 261011. Boldly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gnvqsos Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 Not wholly. Some elements are pagan [tree, mistletoe, holly, Father Xmas, yule log], I agree. Others derive from the Jewish festival of Chanukah [25th of month, presents, lights]. The rest comes from Asda,the God of commerce ie pies,turkey,pudding and booze. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sccsux Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 An argument which was lost about a millennium and a half ago - but we did manage to hold on to the spring equinox festival's name of Easter. The church hijacked the festival, but couldn't wipe out the name. Yeah, I know about the history. I still use the original term for the winter festival period. Boldly. Why not use the bbcode then?;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plain Talker Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 Oh, and the Eater-associated 'Lent' also derives from the seven-week period following Pesach [Passover]. no, Pentecost has it's roots in the Jewish festival Shavu'ot, which commemorates the giving of the Torah. it's also known as The "Feast Of Weeks". It's exactly fifty days after passover. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeffrey Shaw Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 no, Pentecost has it's roots in the Jewish festival Shavu'ot, which commemorates the giving of the Torah. it's also known as The "Feast Of Weeks". It's exactly fifty days after passover. Yes- because, as you say, the period is a 'week of weeks'. But the Hebrew name for it is the 'Omer', named after an offering of mealed wheat on the eve of Pesach/Passover. And Lent is derived from the Omer which begins on the eve of Pesach/Passover. QED. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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