The myth behind kissing under the mistletoe during Christmas time:

Have you ever wondered where some of our modern traditions came from? As the Christmas season approaches, I have been doing some research regarding certain holiday-related topics. My findings may surprise even the biggest scrooge!

Mistletoe has been revered by certain cultures for many, many years. The ancient Celts of Britain felt that Mistletoe held sacred powers of healing, and that it contained the soul of the tree from which it was cut. In the Celtic language, Mistletoe means All Heal.

The Druids also had an interesting ceremony that included Mistletoe. The pagan priests of the time would carefully cut boughs of Mistletoe from the sacred Oak tree with a golden sickle. They were ever careful not to let the boughs touch the ground, for fear of contaminating them. The priests then divided these boughs into sprigs, and gave them to the people to protect them from storms and other forms of evil.

Mistletoe has also been included in many famous myths from earlier times. The Norse myth that comes to mind is that of the resurrection of Balder, the god of the summer sun. The myth states that Balder had a dream in which he dies. His mother Frigga, the goddess of beauty and love, was rather alarmed by this. Frigga went to all of the elements (air, fire, water, and earth) and asked that they spare her son. When she was satisfied that she had secured their cooperation in this matter, she informed Balder that he would live forever.

Balder had one enemy, though. Loki, the god of evil, discovered one plant that Frigga had overlooked. That plant was Mistletoe. Loki fashioned an arrow made from the branch of the Mistletoe, and dipped it in poison. He then tricked Balder?s blind brother, Hoder, into firing it and killing Balder. Each of the elements tried to bring Balder back to life, but none were successful save for his mother, Frigga. It is said that her tears turned into the berries from the Mistletoe, and when they rained upon Balder they brought him back to life.

In her joy at Balder?s resurrection, she reversed the poisonous reputation of the Mistletoe and kissed everyone who walked beneath the tree on which it grew. She also issued a decree that anyone passing under the Mistletoe must kiss, and therefore no harm would come to them.

I love that story, and I think of it each year as I hang the Mistletoe in my home. The tradition of kissing under the Mistletoe seems to have faded somewhat in modern times. So I?m going to hang it in every doorway I pass under during this Christmas season!

Catherine Spelling absolutely loves spending Christmas with family and friends. When she is not counting down the days until Christmas, she writes for christmaslightsanddecorations.com ? an online resources for all things relating to Christmas and decorations, with information about Christmas tree ornaments, Christmas candles, Christmas lights and more.

Grandparents Day began with the idea of honoring the elderly and championing the cause of the lonely in nursing and retirement homes. Marian McQuade, a housewife from West Virginia, brainstormed the idea, which was later to become a nationally recognized holiday, thanks to Jimmy Carter in 1978. Now the holiday is celebrated on the first Sunday after Labor Day, in September one of the first holidays of the school year that greatly affects most students.

McQuade, the original founder of Grandparents Day, is the mother of fifteen children, grandmother of forty, and great-grandmother of three. With so many descendants, she was well aware of the special bond that children should have with their grandparents. While mothers and fathers are the main source of discipline and example in a child?s life, his or her grandparents have a profound affect on viewpoints. Without the wisdom of the grandparents, many children today wouldn?t understand what it was like to grow up without the technology and amenities of today?s world and wouldn?t appreciate what they have nearly as much.

Another reason to celebrate our grandparents on Grandparents Day is simply because they help to raise us and shape us into the men and women we will become. It is said that it takes a village to raise a child, and in many families, grandparents baby-sit and share in the responsibility of ?bringing up baby?. With both parents entering the workforce today, coupled with rising daycare costs, retired grandparents have become perhaps the most dependable source of daily child care, meaning they are becoming more prominent in children?s lives. And, while they?ve already raised a family of their own, most grandparents are willing and even eager to take part in their grandchildren?s care and development.

Grandparents are extraordinary people. They have stories to tell that expand our horizons and views of life formed through years of experience that we cannot begin to fathom. We should feel lucky to benefit from this, and our grandparents feel privileged to be able to share these experiences with us. Overall, grandparents are a great resource for us, and if we can celebrate mothers and fathers, we can definitely recognize grandparents for their achievements in life.

Nicola always enjoys celebrating Grandparents Day. Visit her Grandparents Day 2006 site for Grandparents Day gift ideas, tips and news, information and views at http://Grandparents-Day.your-holiday.info.

This article may be reprinted in full so long as the resource box and the live links are included intact. All rights reserved. Copyright Your-Holiday.info.

Here are 7 classic kid birthday party game ideas that are always successful. And you can easily make all of them fit your party theme.

Incredible Musical Statues

They’ll have lots of fun with this one and they’ll even be still for a short time.

Have all your party guests move to the center of the room. Start playing some music related to your theme. Have your guests start moving in silly positions and dancing around. Then stop the music and have all your guests freeze like statues. Anyone who moves is out. Start the music again and have your party guests start moving in silly positions and dancing again until the music stops. Have them freeze like statues again. Keep repeating this until only one person is left. The last remaining party guest is the winner.

Crazy Mixed Up Message Relay

A kid birthday party game idea that will have them laughing!

Have all your guests sit in a circle. Have your birthday child think of a silly phrase or sentence related to your party theme. Your birthday child whispers the message to the child on thier right. That party guest whispers the message to the child on their right until the message goes all the way around to the person sitting just to the left of your birthday child. That guest repeats the message out loud… The birthday child then tells everyone what the original message was. Everyone then gets a turn to come up with a message. The more the message gets mixed up, the more fun it is.

Pass The Gift – Open The Gift

Hot Potato In Reverse!

Before your party, wrap up a small toy or some candy that all the kids will want. Then wrap it up again and again and again, over and over again in layers. You can even wrap up boxes within boxes. Anything to make the game go on for a while to build excitement. Have all your party guests stand in a circle. Start playing your theme related music and have the first child unwrap the first layer. Then the second child unwraps the next layer until one of the guests unwraps the last layer and the gift is revealed. That child wins the gift.

What In The World Am I?

A great kid birthday party game idea for everyone.

Tape a picture on each child’s back. You can cut out pictures from magazines or just about any other source. The pictures can be characters from your birthday party theme, or it can be pictures of animals or bugs. Have your guests start asking each other questions to find out what in the world they are. But the questions can only be answered with a yes or a no. Questions like do I have wings?, am I brown, or do I have legs? The child who guesses what in the world am I first is the winner.

Lots A Socks

How many socks can you put on?

Get a whole bunch of socks. They don’t even have to match. Place the same number of socks in two bags, or two baskets or two boxes. Line up your party guests in two teams. Start your party theme music and give the first players on each team just 30 second to put on as many socks as they can. When you stop the music, they must stop putting on socks. Then count each child’s socks. The one with the most socks wins. Keep track of each teams sock count and when the last two party guests have played, the team that put on the most socks wins the prize. Have your party guests remove thier shoes before you play so they can put on the socks. This kid birthday game is always a favorite.

Silly Musical Hats And Wigs

Crazy hats and wigs make lots of fun!

Place a couple of chairs in the middle of the room and put hats and wigs on the chair seats. Have all the kids form a circle around the chairs. Make sure you have one less hat or wig then children playing the game. Start your party theme music and have the children walk around the chairs. Then stop the music and have the children grab a hat or wig and put it on. The player without a hat or wig is out. Now take out a hat or wig and start the music again. Repeat this until there is only one player left… Always remember to have one less hat or wig than you have players. The last two players will be trying for only one hat or wig. A terrific game!

You can pick up some silly looking wigs and hats at a party supply store.

Funny Chin-To-Chin Pass

A birthday party classic that’ll have um laughing.

No hands allowed… Line up your party guests in two teams and start your party theme music. The object is to have each team pass a balloon, a rubber ball or an apple or an orange from chin-to-chin down the line to the last player. If the object being passed is dropped, that team has to start over at the begining of the line. The first team to pass the object all the way to the end without dropping it wins! Remember, no hands allowed.

For more game ideas take a quick look at Fun-Kid-Birthday-Parties.com

These kid birthday party game ideas are all proven winners and your birthday child and all their guests will have a wonderful time playing these classic games.

Mike Dougherty has years worth of experience putting together fun birthday parties for his children and now his grandchildren. Mike is webmaster for his web sites http://fun-kid-birthday-parties.com and a movie themed site http://best-dvd-movie-club.com

History of Halloween, like any other festival’s history is stimulated through civilization that has emerged through all ages from one generation to other generation and you can follow your previous generations as they did. Most of their innovation gets fuzzy with additions and alterations as this process goes on. It happens so slowly, straddling over so many ages, that we barely come to be familiar with about these deformations. At one point of time it leaves us puzzled,with its multihued faces. Digging more into its history assists to sieve out the facts from the fantasies which caught us unaware. The history of Halloween Day, as culled from the net, is being described here in this light. This is to help out those who are interested in washing off the superficial hues to reach the core and know things as they truly are. ‘Trick or treat’ may be an innocent fun to enjoy on the Halloween Day. But just think about a bunch of terrifying fantasies and the scary stories featuring ghosts, witches, monsters, evils, elves and animal sacrifices associated with it.

Halloween is a ceremonial celebrated on the night of October 31, most exceptionally by children dressing in diverse as well as striking costumes and going door-to-door collecting sweets or money. It is notorious in most of the Western world, though most common in the United States, Puerto Rico, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia, Irish, Scots and other refugees brought grown-up versions of the custom to North America in the 19th century. The holiday was a day of religious festivities in assorted northern European pagan traditions, until it was appropriated by Christian missionaries and given a Christian interpretation. In Mexico November 1st and 2nd are celebrated as the Day of the Dead. In Great Britain and Ireland, the pagan Celts celebrated the Day of the Dead on All Hallows Day (1st November). To scare off the evil spirits, the Celts wore masks. When the Romans invaded Great Britain, they exaggerated the ritual with their own, which is both a celebration of the yield and of honoring the dead. Halloween is sometimes associated with the occult.

Many European cultural traditions hold that Halloween is one of the liminal times of the year when the spiritual world can make contact with with the physical world and when magic is most effective. One story says that, on the day of Halloween, the ethereal feelings of all those who had died throughout the preceding year would come back in search of living bodies to hold for the next year. The Celts alleged all laws of space and time were suspended during this time, permitting the spirit world to amalgamate with the living. Naturally, the still-living did not want to be haunted. So on the night of October 31, villagers would snuff out the fires in their homes, to make them cold and detrimental. They would dress up in all modes of ghoulish costumes and raucously paraded around the neighborhood, being as caustic as possible in order to frighten away spirits looking for bodies to possess.

Usha Rani is a Copywriter of http://www.halloweenfantasy.com

She written many articles in various topics.For more information visit:

http://www.halloweenfantasy.com
contact her at usharani.articles@gmail.com

It may happen that this type of weird thought has never drive you mad before. We all know what Christmas is all about but we hardly take note of the thing that Christmas is not same for all. One can try to spell out ?Merry Christmas? in various languages and even he succeeds he will rarely keep in mind that the spirit changes from one language to another.

If we say ?Fr?hliche Weihnachten?, we should then think about evergreen wreaths with four red candles hung in the home, cookies on the Christmas tree, lights, ornaments and tinkles? Cookies are in the shapes of people, animals, hearts or stars. Children write to St.Nicholas telling what they want to get as gifts. They believe gifts are brought by Christ child called ?Christkindl?. The Christmas treat includes roast goose or duck and also ?marzipan? candy, cookies or gingerbread with tiny decorations on it. Children love to play with dice and the rule of the game is highly peculiar. One who throws a double puts on a hat, scarf, and gloves and then tries to open a chocolate bar out of the wrapper. It?s the German?s Christmas! They light up candles on every Sunday before Christmas.

One can taste a different flavor of Christmas when it comes to celebrate the occasion in France. One has to say ?Joyeux Noel? instead of ?Merry Christmas. It?s a fun time for children as they get holidays and New Year is for the adults. The family sets up cr?ches with Mary, Joseph, shepherds, angels, and the farm animals. Three Wise men are added to the cr?che on 6th January, the Epiphany. Children in this case get the gifts from ?Pere Noel?. Their favorite Christmas dish is stuffed goose with special French dessert in the shape of a Yule log.

Just wish the Italians ?Buon Natale? with a smile on your face. It?s a religious time for them. They love to sing and dance and generally set up ?Presipio? in their homes. The fun goes for three weeks .It is not Christmas but ?Novena? for them. The Italian children go from house to house reciting Christmas poems and singing. But one thing is common in every Christmas celebrations. Children wait for their gifts till Epiphany.

On Christmas Eve as the stars come out they light up tiny oil lamps in their houses. They shake their bodies in the tunes of music on the streets and dance with the merrymakers and onlookers after the Midnight Mass and Christmas Dinner. The special Christian dance is ?Jota?. The most striking part of the celebration is to honor the cow which breathed on Jesus in the stable at his birth time to keep him warm. Officially the Christmas celebration begins on 8th December. They have given a special name to Christmas Eve, ?Nochebuena?. The traditional Christmas treat is ?turron?, the almond candy. People exchange presents in the church and they take part in the swing game. They believe that swinging at this auspicious moment evokes an ancient desire to encourage the sun to ?swing? ever higher in the sky. This is a short account of ?Feliz Navidad? of Spain.

Customs change with the change in the cultural scenario. So, Christmas has many colors and shades as it is celebrated by muti lingual and multi cultural people around the world. But on the whole the spirit remains the same though the customs may differ.

Sean Carter writes on holidays, Christmas and world events. He also writes on family, relationships, Thanksgiving, religion, love and friendship. He is a writer with special interest in ecard industry and writes for 123greetings.com. He also writes blogs on Christmas Blogspot

If you’re struggling to find the perfect gift for the teenage boy on your Christmas list, here are some gift ideas to get you started.

Paintball

What is the natural instinct that drives teenage boys to want to hunt each other down? Whatever it is, you can feed this instinct safely by giving a gift of paintball guns and equipment. There are complete kits you can purchase at retail stores for reasonable prices. .

Car Accessories

A gift of car accessories is a sure win if the teenage boy on your list is old enough to drive and has his own car. Even for the teenage boy who is not driving yet, this could be a great gift. Young guys dream of owning their first set of wheels. A gift of car wax and other cleaning supplies allow him to pamper his new toy. Seat covers or other decorative accessories let him give his car a personal touch.

Black Light Lamp

Black light lamps are back, and any teenage boy on your list is likely to want one. Get him one for his room and find out what glows in the dark. Many posters and other decorative accessories are available now that spring to life under a black light.

Consumer Electronics Gift Certificate

Gadgets and entertainment equipment are always a hit with teenage boys. A gift certificate to a consumer electronics store will give him an excuse to check out all of the latest TVs, stereo equipment, and computers. This is also the place where he can find his favorite music and video games. If you don’t have a suitable store in your area, the young guy on your list can do all his shopping there online.

Team Jersey

The majority of teenage boys are into some sort of sport. Whether it is basketball, football, baseball, or NASCAR racing, he most likely has a favorite team or sports hero. Buy him a jersey from his team. Even better, find a jersey with the number of his favorite player.

Jeans

Most teenage boys wear jeans most of the time, which means they always need new ones. Just make sure you buy the style he likes. Some teenage boys like snug-fitting jeans, while others like their jeans baggy. Carpenter or painter jeans are also popular. Whatever the style, this is the can’t miss gift, because there is no such thing as too many jeans.

Jewelry

Yes — jewelry! Jewelry is becoming increasingly popular, in one form or another, among teenage guys. For rockers, tribal or beaded necklaces will be a hit. They might also like a stud or hoop earring. Preppy guys often like to wear fashionable rings or bracelets. If you aren’t too sure about jewelry, try a watch. With such a wide variety of watch styles available, you’ll be certain to find one to fit any teenage boy’s taste.

Snowboard

Christmas is a great time for winter sports. This year might be the perfect opportunity for your teenager to get into snowboarding, and simple snowboards can be purchased at a relatively low price. The thrill of conquering a new challenge motivates many a teenage boy, and snowboarding will give him a way to release some energy and add excitement to the winter months.

Video Game Magazine Subscription

Generally speaking, teenage boys are suckers for video games. If the guy on your list has a game system, such as X-Box, PlayStation, or Nintendo, you can get him a subscription to the corresponding magazine. He’ll get inside information and screen shots from upcoming games, ratings of current games, and, best of all — demo discs. These demo discs let him play portions of games before they even come out, which helps him decide what games he really likes and wants to buy.

Portable CD Player

Boys love noise — and their favorite kind is music. Whatever his music preferences, the teenage boy on your list is most likely to be passionate about his bands. With a portable CD player he can listen to his music anytime, anywhere, and you won’t have to hear it.

Mission Accomplished

Head out to the mall armed with the above list and a little shopping savvy, and you have a way better chance of finding the ideal gift. Soon he will be saying, DUDE, that is so cool!

Visit Xmas Gifts to learn more. Ron King is a full-time researcher, writer, and web developer, visit his website at Website.

Copyright 2005 Ron King. This article may be reprinted if the resource box is left intact and the links live.

Some of the most creative and unique christmas tree decorating ideas are actually the ones that are the cheapest. Don’t think for a minute that decorating a tree, whether it be an artificial tree, a wall mounted tree or a real tree has to be boring! The key is to use your imagination to come up with ideas that will reflect your interests and personal style. When it comes to christmas tree decorating ideas, necessity really is the mother of some great inventions!

Here is some inexpensive and creative christmas tree decorating ideas for revelers on a budget.

Christmas Card Images – This is one of the simplest of christmas tree decorating ideas. Cut the images that you like from last year’s Christmas cards and color the back with gold or silver magic marker. Then hang it from the tree with a shiny ribbon. This look is especially nice on a wall mounted christmas tree that is placed next to your main entryway.

Colored Glass or Plastic Balls – Embellishing common colored glass balls with glitter paints or aerosol flocking (fake snow) is one of the most tried and true of christmas decorating ideas. You can also glue on glitter or craft store jewels and attach braids or ribbons on a cheap glass ball and turn it into the dime store equivalent of a Faberge egg. Stickers, sequins and ribbons can also be used to make inexpensive decorations look more unique. A bit of glue and some glitter is also a great way to refresh the look of old or scratched xmas ornaments.

Cookies – Decorating your tree with cookies is as old as the tradition itself. Simply make gingerbread or shortbread cookies and decorate them with icing. Make sure to leave a little hole in the confection so you can hang it from fishline or a ribbon from the tree. Gingerbread men or shortbread snowmen look great, especially on a natural green tree.

Glitter Decorations – Just about any tiny object, sphere or disk can be dipped or painted with glue and then rolled in glitter. This is one way to transform junk into xmas decorations that can be hung from the tree. Glitter is very inexpensive and it can be used to transform everything from old antique keys to cereal box prizes to golf balls into xmas d?cor.

Origami – Origami is the fine art of paper folding. You can find instructions for making everything from snowflakes to storks out of Origami on the Internet. There are many sites that specialize in offering origami christmas tree decorating ideas. One idea is to make larger and smaller versions of the same design to create a balanced and minimalist look.

Party Streamers: simply strewing the ends of its branches with party streamers can create a very fashionable and minimalist looking tree. A strand of Chinese lanterns from the dollar store also very nicely compliments this look. This type of look is also very attractive on an upside down xmas tree or a wall mounted christmas tree as a bit of a breeze makes the tree come alive with movement.

Pipe Cleaners – This is one of those christmas tree decorating ideas that is great to do with the kids! Chenille pipe cleaners have to be one of the most versatile craft items ever invented. Simply twist them into the shape of snowflakes, stars, angels or anything that you can imagine. Best of all pipe cleaner xmas decorations can be wired directly onto the tree. This makes them ideal for trees that can’t, for reasons of safety, have too many dangling decorations such as the wall mounted christmas tree or the upside down christmas tree.

Popcorn Christmas Tree – There is nothing cheaper than popcorn and it is a great source of inspiration when it comes to christmas tree decorating ideas. Any type of christmas tree including the real, artificial or wall mounted christmas tree looks great decorated in garlands of popcorn. Popcorn can also be shaped into balls and hung like gigantic snowballs from the branches of a tree. Don’t forget too that you can easily dye or paint popcorn using food coloring.

Ribbons and Lace – One of the simplest christmas tree decorating ideas is to simply tie bows made out of scraps of ribbon and bits of lace and tie them to the boughs of a tree. This is also the safest way of decorating a tree if you have a wall-mounted or upside-down christmas tree. Decorating a christmas tree in ribbons that are securely tied to a tree is also safest for a toddler.

Snowflakes – This is one of those christmas tree decorating ideas that are great to do with the kids. Remember the folded paper snowflakes you made as a child? You can decorate them with any color of glitter. For the best results hang the smaller paper snowflakes at the top of the tree and the larger ones at the bottom.

Toys – If you are on a budget then you can find lots of christmas decoration ideas in the toy section at your local toy store. As long as it is miniature, it will probably look great on a tree. You can wire heavier items to the branches and hang lightweight items with colorful bows. Trains, little dolls and fish look especially nice on an xmas tree. This idea is also good for a small wall mounted tree in a child’s room.

Wired Translucent Bows – This is one of the more minimalist christmas tree decorating ideas but the effect is absolutely beautiful. Buy wired translucent ribbon on in two colors – silver and gold are hot right now – and simply tie them to your tree. The wire keeps the bows big and stiff so they look really attractive. This look is also perfect for a tree that you don’t want people to bump into such as a wall mounted christmas tree or upside down christmas tree.

For more information on Christmas trees, visit http://www.o-christmas-tree.com/christmastrees.htm – a year-round resource for all your christmas tree and decoration needs.

Father’s day is coming on 18th June. For all the fathers it is an important day, because they expect some acknowledgement from their offspring about their fatherhood. A lot has been written about mother and her role in raising her children. Some people compare Mother with God. What about father? How to you propose to let your father know about his value in your life? Let me give you some ideas about using Father?s day ecards.

Before you think of acknowledging your father’s role in your life, please go back to your childhood. Think of all the instances, everything where your father helped you, taught you and made you feel safe? Think about what would have happened if your father were not there? Thank him in your mind for bringing you in this world and then begin selecting some ecards or egreeting cards for your father.

Send an ecard that will make your father feel good. Let him know by your selection of father’s day ecard about his true value for you. Let him feel the warmth of your love in the Father’s Day ecard. Choose a color that he likes. The Father?s Day ecard should make him feel that you are very near. That will depend upon the text you chose. Select Father’s Day ecard with heat touching text. Send your father love and thanks on this Father’s Day with a lovely father’s Day ecard. Let him know that he did something great by bringing you up.

CD Mohatta writes for ecards, greeting cards and online cards. If you are looking for Free ecards that look good and will make your father happy, please chose from – Free Father’s Day ecards You can also send Free Birthday ecards and Free Holiday ecards from http://www.ecarduniverse.com These are all free for you. Send as many as you wish at no cost.

Go ahead and have a celebration. If you are Christian, celebrate the birth of Jesus and the gifts of the magi (even though they probably didn’t arrive in Bethlehem until a year or two after he was born). If you are not a Christian, celebrate family, friends and gift giving. And Christians, don’t worry about Christmas being commercialized. It always has been (more on this below). And let’s keep it public. Who can complain about a holiday with family and gifts and cards and travel, and Christmas specials on TV. What about Christmas eve church services that includes people who usually don’t attend church, nicely decorated city streets and parks, and houses dripping with lights, and big Christmas trees and manger scenes, and traveling, and food? Let’s keep it a very public event.

Christians, this is our (human) holiday. It is not Christ’s holiday. I can’t find in the Bible where He told us to celebrate His birth, or even His resurrection (Easter). He didn’t tell us to celebrate those events. But He did invite us to partake in Communion. Do you get as excited about Communion as you do about Christmas or Easter?

If you are not a Christian don’t freak out if the little old lady who works at city hall puts a manger scene on the lawn. It won?t change you unless you want it to. And don’t freak if I say Merry Christmas. If it offends you, let me know and I will try to remember not to wish you any merriment. If it doesn’t offend you and you are just protesting because you think it might offend someone else who might overhear it (political correctness). Then you are a very silly person.

And if you prefer Happy Holidays, isn’t that the same as Happy Holy Days? Just asking.

Let’s look at the commercialization of Christmas. The Christmas Holiday’s growth in this country was due to its commercialization. The mostly Protestant settlers of the continental US did not typically celebrate Christmas. Christmas was a European (Catholic) tradition. Christmas = Christ Mass. It was too Catholic for them. The Protestant disdain for Christmas even helped us win the Revolutionary War. In 1776 we were getting our butts kicked. British troops occupied both Boston (though they were soon to leave) and New York. They thrashed George Washington’s Army up and down Long Island. He was retreating to New Jersey and very close to total defeat. He was saved only because the British inexplicably failed to pursue and finish him off. Washington needed a military victory and he knew that nearby Hessian (German) soldiers in Trenton would be celebrating Christmas. So he made his famous boat ride across the Delaware River and captured the drunken Hessians and their supplies. The newly invigorated and freshly re-supplied Continental Army followed up this easy victory with another success in Princeton. They would go on to fight another year. We have to progress into the 19th century before Christmas starts to be widely recognized in the states. A huge increase in Catholic immigration (Italian, Irish, et al) in the early part of the century, and later arrivals of German and Scandinavian celebrators helped to spread the holiday. American authors Washington Irving (The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent.) and Clement Clarke Moore (Twas the Night before Christmas, actually A Visit from St. Nicholas), and Englishman Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol helped to popularize it. In the 1830s some of the southern states began to recognize it and in 1870 it became a national holiday.

Surrounding all of these events was a newly emerging industrial revolution that was rapidly improving the standard of living. People discovered a disposable income and the Christmas Holiday started to boom. Now throw in the growth of advertising in newspapers and catalogues, the creation of dependable electric power, and travel, and later radio, movies, TV, the internet, etc. Christmas was bound to evolve. I think the commercial success spurred Christmas, not vice-versa. I further think that Christians who protest the commercialization are self-righteous and just trying to showcase their moral indignation. It gets even crazier when the Pope denounces a materialistic Christmas. Have you ever been inside the Vatican?

I don’t think Christ would be very upset that we have commercialized Christmas. It is our holiday, not His. That is the same lesson He gave us about the Sabbath long ago.

Now that I am done bashing some Christians, you secularists need a dope slap too. Your assault on Christmas is silly. Lighten up. You are not upholding the finest traditions of your made up mantra about the separation of church and state. All you are doing is trying to level down the Christians. Every year Ramadan is explored, Hanukkah is talked about, Kwanzaa is legitimized, but just try to mention Christmas and a liberal goes through the roof. Remember that your tolerance should also apply to Christians. You can’t have selective tolerance. That is the same as intolerance.

In closing, let’s discuss the actual date of Christmas. No one knows for sure when Christ was born. Below is a short discussion about some of the dates I have heard. I’m not going to offer any hard facts and references on these dates. I’m not attempting to convince you of some sort of conclusion. Just attempting to share some stuff I have picked up over the years.

Dec 25th- The traditional date in the Catholic Church. Why did they pick this date? Some claim that it was to counter the Roman feast of Saturnalia. But I have also read that this is redacted history. The Christian Holiday of Dec 25th was supposedly established before the feast of Saturnalia which really wasn’t ever established. Just talked about.

Another interesting theory I heard was that this particular date was related to His death and conception. I heard of a Jewish belief that prophets have what is called an integral age. This is the belief that a prophet’s death was either on the anniversary of their birth or their conception. So, if Christ died at Easter (late March) and we use that as his conception. Nine months later would lead us to a December birth date.

Jan 6th – The traditional date in the Eastern Orthodox Church. You know, the 12 Days of Christmas (DEC 25th- Jan 6th). The Eastern Orthodox Church grew out of Asia Minor. This is the part of the world that the Apostles first witnessed to after giving up on Israel. If somebody has a traditional date that is accurate, then it would probably be this church.

Sep 11- This date gets the conspiracy nuts going (9/11). Anyway, someone looked at all of the Bible clues and did some calculations. The considered the Roman leader Pontius Pilate, the Jewish puppet King Herod, the census history, astronomy (the Star), and even the temple schedule of Zacharias. There is probably some other stuff I am overlooking but this is the date they came up with.

Mid-to-late October- This is my favorite choice. Certain events in Christ’s life corresponded with Jewish festivals.

1. His crucifixion was during the Jewish festival of Passover (Pesach). Christ was the sacrificial Passover lamb.

2. His Ascension was during Pentecost (Shavuot) or the harvest festival. Perhaps this makes Christ the harvester of our souls (His fruits).

3. His birth might have been during Sukkoth, the feast of the Tabernacles. The ushpizzin or celebration of the 7 shepherds of Israel (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Aaron, and David) is a part of this festival. Christ is the shepherd to us, His sheep.

4. Pesach, Pentecost and Sukkoth make up the Shalosh Regalim. Three Jewish festivals that require a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. If we use Sukkoth for his birth then this would complete a trinity of the major events in His life.

You might ask, if we are using Jewish festivals to milestone Christ’s life, then why not use Hanukkah for his birth? Hanukkah is an important Jewish holiday and it would give us a December date for his birth. That is always a possibility, but Hanukkah isn’t a major Jewish festival. It has only been brought to the forefront due to its close association with Christmas. So now maybe the Jews can freak out about Christmas because it is leading to the commercialization of Hanukkah. Just kidding.

And one more thing for us Christians. If Christmas is Christ’s birthday, did you remember to give Him anything?

Merry Christmas!

Something Ain’t Right

http://www.somethingaintright.com

A perfect card for an occasion is very difficult to get. Who hasn’t spent hours in card shops looking for the perfect wording, enhanced by a supporting design for one of the various celebrations of life? Thankfully, there are a lot of cards available for Father’s Day. Of course, if you like, you can also make a card by hand for your father as a token of appreciation for what he means to you.

Father’s Day cards are available in various colors, designs and themes. Today, the greetings for Father’s Day can be sent through post or as a simple e-card. Various card companies have websites which offer free e-cards for the occasion. Apart from the websites of the various card companies, there are websites which pertain exclusively to Father’s Day.

One can also opt for belated Father’s Day cards on the websites. These cards ensure that your dad won’t remain grumpy about you missing Father’s Day, once he has a look at the cards.

Thematic cards are also available in stores as well as online. There are funny, regal, sporty and even bizarre Father’s Day cards available. Also, there are print-and-send greetings cards available online. These cards are printer-friendly and can be directly printed on any kind of paper.

Archie?s Greetings is one of the most popular greeting card companies, which has a huge range of Father’s Day cards ranging from the regal to the bizarre. Their products are viewable at Archie?s stores. Another good card company whose products are available for viewing online is Hallmark.

Fathers Day provides detailed information on Father’s Day, Father’s Day Cards, Father’s Day Crafts, Father’s Day Gift Baskets and more. Fathers Day is affiliated with Mother’s Day.