The use of the Christmas Tree is well accepted by almost every Christian today. However, some Christians object to the use of the Christmas Tree because of the ties between the use of Evergreen trees and pagan worship.
Some of the earliest condemnation of the use of Evergreens can be traced as far back as hundreds of years before the birth of Jesus and can be found in the Old Testament of the Bible. In the time of the Prophet Jeremiah, pagans used these trees to make idols. Jeremiah said,
"This is what the LORD says: "Do not act like other nations who try to read their future in the stars. Do not be afraid of their predictions, even though other nations are terrified by them. Their ways are futile and foolish. They cut down a tree and carve an idol. They decorate it with gold and silver and then fasten it securely with hammer and nails so it won't fall over." (Jeremiah 10:2-4 NLT)
For this reason alone, some Christians believe that the act of decorating a Christmas Tree too closely resembles the Pagan worship during the time of Jeremiah and should not be recreated.
The Pagan Greeks decorated Evergreen trees during their worship of their god Adonia. They believed this god brought back to life the serpent Aessulapius after being slain.
In Europe, Pagans would decorate their houses with clippings of Evergreens and would decorate living Evergreen trees with bits of metal and replicas of their pagan god, Bacchus.
Ancient pagan Romans also decorated Evergreen trees in honor of their fertility god, Bacchus, and placed 12 candles on the tree in honor of their sun-god.
Ancient Germanic people tied fruit and attached candles to evergreen trees in honor of their god, Woden. They believed the Evergreen tree symbolized eternal life and Woden is the deity which Wednesday (Wodensday) was named. The trees joined holly, mistletoe, the wassail bowl, and the Yule log as symbols of the season. These items are all used in Christmas today, but they all predated Christianity.
Pagans still decorate Evergreen trees today during the time of Winter Solstice, which normally occurs between 20-23 December. Because the Evergreen leaves remain green during Winter, they believe the trees have a magical power to overcome the shorter days and not let the Sun disappear below the horizon forever.
I am not claiming use of the Christmas Tree as sinful. But, a quick look at the history of the Christmas Tree does show that there are some plausible ties to the its use or the use of the Evergreen tree in pagan worship.
The Bible says, "Keep away from every kind of evil." (1 Thessalonians 5:22) If replicating idol worship is a "kind of evil", maybe we should rethink our use of the Christmas Tree, Holly, Mistletoe, and Yule Log.
What do you think?
by James Apple Jr.
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| The Prophet Jeremiah |
"This is what the LORD says: "Do not act like other nations who try to read their future in the stars. Do not be afraid of their predictions, even though other nations are terrified by them. Their ways are futile and foolish. They cut down a tree and carve an idol. They decorate it with gold and silver and then fasten it securely with hammer and nails so it won't fall over." (Jeremiah 10:2-4 NLT)
For this reason alone, some Christians believe that the act of decorating a Christmas Tree too closely resembles the Pagan worship during the time of Jeremiah and should not be recreated.
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| Bacchus and Ariadne by Titian, at the National Gallery in London. |
In Europe, Pagans would decorate their houses with clippings of Evergreens and would decorate living Evergreen trees with bits of metal and replicas of their pagan god, Bacchus.
Ancient pagan Romans also decorated Evergreen trees in honor of their fertility god, Bacchus, and placed 12 candles on the tree in honor of their sun-god.
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| Winter Solstice Symbol |
The Bible says, "Keep away from every kind of evil." (1 Thessalonians 5:22) If replicating idol worship is a "kind of evil", maybe we should rethink our use of the Christmas Tree, Holly, Mistletoe, and Yule Log.
- Photo Credit: http://blogs.houstonpress.com
by James Apple Jr.
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