Christian Holidays

Things You Need To Know About Christian Holidays

Christian Holidays play an important role in the celebration of various religious practices. From the start of Christianity, Catholic holidays have been observed. Fasting or a large, celebratory meal is created in honor of a religious milestone. One of the best known of these traditions is also recognized in some form throughout the world: the joyous occasion of Christmas (the birth of Christ). The purpose of these Christian holidays is often overshadowed by celebration, food and gift giving, but the main idea has always been to remember the historic religious meanings that each possess.

Christmas

The birth of Jesus Christ is celebrated on December 25th. The English word for this day can be traced back to the old English translation, meaning “Christ’s mass.” It may be interesting to know that Christmas is not one of the oldest celebrated Christian holidays. It wasn’t until the late 3rd century AD that we see its emergence in history, which would later become one of the most prominent of Catholic holidays.

Common Christmas traditions include setting up a pine tree with decorations and lights, gift giving, and dressing the house in lights. A popular pagan character associated with the holiday is Santa, accompanied by his elves and 8 reindeer.

Ash Wednesday

Ash Wednesday marks the first day of Lent, which includes 40 days of repentance and fasting. This is the time period that leads up to Easter. Today, this Catholic holiday is marked by a display of ash upon the forehead. At the church, participants receive the ash upon their forehead from priests, who have mixed the palm branch ash with holy water. The sign of the cross is made. Before leaving the church, washing off the ash denotes being cleansed of sins. Departing the church with the ash still on the forehead signifies that they are carrying the cross outside of the church with them. Did you know when it comes to Roman Catholic holidays, Good Friday and Ash Wednesday are the only days where fasting is still expected?

Palm Sunday

Palm Sunday is celebrated on the sixth Sunday of Lent and the last Sunday before Easter. Additional references to this Christian holiday include Passion Sunday and Flower Sunday. This day marks Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem. On that day, a path of palm branches greeted him, leading to the modern traditions of crosses fashioned from palm leaves. It is on the Friday before Easter Day that we celebrate the anniversary of Jesus’ death upon the cross. This day is referred to as Good Friday and is often met with penance and fasting.

Easter

 The resurrection of Christ is celebrated on this day, which is observed after the season of Lent. This is the oldest of all Christian holidays. It is also considered one of the most important visits to the church. Even people who do not regularly attend church services throughout the year will put on their best clothing to pay a visit. A custom among Americans is to purchase a brand new outfit for this occasion.

Did you know that in the past, Easter was celebrated on every Sunday? This practice was dismissed somewhere in the first two centuries. Today, eggs are painted different colors (usually pastel) and the Easter bunny is a well-known pagan symbol, all of which is used to represent fertility, joy and celebration. Eggs are symbolic at this time because they cannot be eaten during the fast of Lent.

St. Patrick’s Day and St. Valentine’s Day

Additional Catholic holidays include St. Patrick’s Day and St. Valentine’s Day. These sort of Christian holidays pay homage to a specific saint. It may surprise some that St. Patrick’s Day actually celebrates Ireland’s conversion to Christianity and not green beer and leprechauns.

As for Valentine’s Day, there is a deeper story behind the chocolate hearts and roses given on February 14th. During the third century in Rome, Emperor Claudius II outlawed the marriage of young couples because he wanted the men to focus on becoming soldiers. It was St. Valentine of Rome, who thought this law rather harsh and secretly married couples. As a result, Claudius threw Valentine into jail, where he eventually died. The young couples of today haven’t the slightest clue about this Christian holiday, which pays tribute to the patron of engaged couples, love, lovers, happy marriages, as well as young people.