Christian Christmas traditions

The Modern Christmas Traditions?

Why a Christmas tree?
The tree is a reminder of the Crucifixion of Jesus.
According to Paul, Jesus hung on a tree.
It could have been a tree. Trees are always popular for executions.
It is unlikely that a bark-stripped tree trunk was used.
Most likely, the cross was an accurately milled 8" x 8" chunk of lumber.
Carpentry was a prolific profession during the time of Jesus
Jesus himself was a carpenter.
Tradition says the cross is made of Dogwood.
The Bible does not specify what kind of wood, but the common woods of the time were Dogwood, Gopher, Shittim wood, Acacia, and Cedar as mentioned in the Bible.
Another traditional theory states that his body was held by Cypress wood, his feet held by Ceder wood, and his hands were nailed to a cross piece made from the wood of a Palm tree.
The inscribed plaque was made of wood from the Olive tree.
Pine trees are the traditional ones used at Christmas because they are most plentiful in full bloom during Christmas.

The star reminds us that the Magi were guided to young Jesus by the bright Star of Bethlehem.
Generally, a star is placed at the top of the tree to signify this.

A single angel represents how the shepherds learned about the birth of Jesus.
Some folks hang many angels on the branches of their Christmas tree.
This is a reminder that after the initial angel approached the shepherds many angels came and joined in the celebration of rejoicing in the birth.

Lights on the tree are a reminder of the Tabernacle, where there was communication with God.
The tabernacles were lit by candles using one or more sacred candle sticks known as the Menorah.
The original Menorahs appear as being like branches of a tree.
In early tradition candles appeared on Christmas trees.
Light bulbs became more popular than candles.
This author can remember we had bubbly lights that looked like candles.
Some cultures still use live candles to keep tradition.
It is more common to see electric candles and most often just light bulbs.

The character of Santa Claus is an actual person who lived during the 4th century in Turkey which was part of Greece.
Santa Claus, aka Bishop Nicholas, was very religious and generous.
He has been called Kris Kringle, Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas, Sinterklaas, or Saint Nick.
Saint Nick was generally not seen by the public while doing good deeds or giving gifts to the underprivileged.
The belief is that he did much of this in the shadows of darkness so as not to be recognized.

There are many stories of how modern gift-giving started.
The strongest belief is that gift-giving at Christmas was started to honor Bishop Nicholas, as proposed by Martin Luther.
The more common belief is that it comes from the gift-giving of the Magi to the newly-born Christ.
The Bible instructs us to give to the less fortunate, and what better time than Christmas?
t should be with love that gifts are given by a Christian with compassion for others and doing what the Bible instructs.