Here's how the festival of Christmas came into being on December 25

Christmas is a festival brings together people from all communities to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. It is the reason to cheer people up even during depressing winters with celebrations lasting over several days. This cheerful festival is incomplete without the Christmas story revolving around all the shepherds, angels, the birth of Christ, and how the celestial creatures smiled and showered their love when Christ was born. Let us find out the reasons for the Christmas celebration and stories related to it.

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Why is Christmas celebrated?

According to online Christmas resource WhyChristmas, the word Christmas describes the mass service that is arranged to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. This mass service takes place at midnight, which is when Christ was born. Interestingly enough, even though Christmas is meant for those who follow Christianity, this festival is loved by all, irrespective of age, race, and religion. This is primarily because this is the time when all the family members, relatives come together to remember all the good things that have happened in life. Not to forget the exciting presents that people exchange to show their gratitude, which is yet another factor that makes this festival so lovely and enjoyable.

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Why is Christmas celebrated on December 25?

It still remains unclear whether or not Christ was born on 25th of December but according to Encyclopaedia Britannica, Sextus Julius Africanus, who was believed to be the first Christian historian, stated and marked 25th December to be the auspicious date when Christ took birth in 221 and since then 25th December is being observed to be the day of Christ. There are many other theories on this matter, another popular belief states that on December 25th, dies Solis invicti nati ("day of the birth of the unconquered sun") was Christianised. In the Roman Empire, this day was celebrated to mark the resurgence of the sun. The two events i.e., the re-emergence of the sun and the birth of Christ, were connected and were considered to be symbolic by Christian writers.

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The evergreen fir tree is used to make Christmas trees, and these trees are then decorated; this is a Pagan custom. Branches of fir trees were used to decorate homes to welcome spring. Also, the mythical character of Santa Claus is indispensable to the Christmas celebrations. Christmas is more than fun, good food, cakes, and presents. It is the festival of life and everything good that has happened and will continue to happen in life for which we all are thankful to God.

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