Secular and religious celebrations near Christmas time
Seeing how this is Decemeber and everyone now has the holidays on their minds, I thought I’d take this month to post some info and other thing about the holidays. This being my first post, I’ll share a bit from ReligiousTolerance.org about the holidays celebrated during this season.
Religious celebrations near Christmas time:
The month of December is a time of many religious celebrations. In alphabetic order, they include:
- Some Atheists in the U.S. have begun to celebrate the Winter Solstice. This is the day of the year when the nighttime is longest, and the daytime shortest. Lately, it has been falling on DEC-21 or 22. However it can be as early as DEC-20 and as late as DEC-23. American Atheists and many local Atheist groups have organized a variety of observances at this time.
- Buddhists celebrate Bodhi Day (a.k.a. Rohatsu) on DEC-8, or on the Sunday immediately preceding. It recalls the day in 596 BCE, when the Buddha is believed to have achieved enlightenment and escaped the repeating cycle of reincarnation: involving birth, life, death and rebirth.
- Christians in the West celebrate Christmas on DEC-25, as the day when the Yeshua of Nazareth (a.k.a. Jesus Christ) was born. He is regarded by most Christians as a deity and savior of humanity. The Eastern Orthodox churches currently celebrate Christmas on DEC-25 according to the Julian calendar, which is JAN-07 in the Gregorian calendar.
- Jews celebrate Hanukkah, (a.k.a. Chanukah; “Feast of Dedication” and “Festival of Lights”). This is an 8 day observance which recalls a miracle in the Jerusalem temple during a war fought by the Maccabees in the cause of religious freedom. Between 1996 and 2008, the first day of Hanukkah fell, or will fall, between NOV-30 and DEC-26.
- Muslims celebrate Id al-Fitr (a.k.a. ‘Id and Eid) on the first day of the 10th month of their lunar calendar. This is the day after the lunar month of Ramadan. It is a time of rejoicing. Houses are decorated; Muslims buy gifts for relatives. More details. The dates of Ramadan and Id al-Fitr are determined by the phases of the moon. Thus, they occur a few days earlier from one year to the next. Until recently, both were observed in December. However, in 2003, Id al-Fitr was celebrated in November.
- Some Native Americans and Aboriginal groups elsewhere in the world also observe the Winter Solstice. They associate different beliefs and rituals with it. For example, the Hopi tribe celebrations are “…dedicated to giving aid and direction to the sun which is ready to ‘return’ and give strength to budding life.” Their ceremony is called Soyal. It lasts for 20 days and includes “prayerstick making, purification, rituals and a concluding rabbit hunt, feast and blessing…”
- Wiccans and some other Neopagans celebrate Yule at the time of the Winter Solstice. Some may celebrate the Sabbat (one of eight days of celebration) on the evening before, at sunrise on the morning of the solstice, or at the actual time of the astronomical event.
- In ancient times, Druids and followers of the Pagan and Polytheistic religious of Egypt, Greece, and Rome held celebrations at or shortly after the Winter Solstice. Some Neopagans have recreated these religions and are following them today.
Cultural celebrations near Christmas time:
The month of December also includes a number of cultural celebrations. They are:
- Fesivus — a celebration for the rest of us: This is a new celebration, created in 1966 and popularized on a Seinfeld comedy episode in 1997. It seem to be growing in popularity as a simple, secular, seasonal day of celebration as an alternative to Christmas and Hanukkah. More details
- Kwanza (a.k.a. Kwanzaa, Quansa) is a week-long celebration which starts on DEC-26. It is a recently developed cultural holiday celebrating African-American heritage that has been an annual tradition since 1966. “Kwanza” is derived from the Swahili phrase “matunda ya kwanza” which means “the first fruits of the harvest”. Each day focuses on one of the seven principles of Kwanza: unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity and faith.
- Shabe-Yalda (a.k.a. Shab-e Yaldaa) is a cultural celebration observed by followers of many religions in Iran . It originated in Zoroastrianism, the state religion which preceded Islam. The name refers to the birthday or rebirth of the sun. People gather at home around a korsee — a low square table — all night. They tell stories and read poetry. They eat watermelons, pomegranates and a special dried fruit/nut mix. Bonfires are lit outside.
