The Republican journal., 1897-12-09
CHRISTMAS.


loneliness to the forlorn Heaven pity
those who at this festive period have no
smiling faces of dear ones at their board,
or, worse still, possess neither home nor
means nor friends. When most families
are annually gathered together in loving
communion, it is meet that the common
strongly stirred in behalf of the wretched
and the outcast.
1t is unquestionabe that our Christmas
festival is of Pagan origin; that it is the
survival of sun -worship-one form of that
great and universal phallic creed which
would seem to be as old and as ubiquitous
as mankind. Who can say for how many
thousands or scores of thousands of years
the souls of men were moved to hope and
JOY by the return of the sun to vivify and
bless the earth? The end of the winter
solstice was period of expectancy and
promise, celebrated by joyful feasting,
curious customs, and appropriate wor
ship, and the first day of every week was
dedicated by our Anglo. Saxon ancestors
to the solar deity. Christianity appro-
priated the Pagan festivals to its own cult
with as few innovations as possible, so as
not TO shock too rudely the conservative
susceptibilities of its converts. And thus
the time of year of the universal Saturna-
W. iyl ba aI #
the birth of Christ, the spiritual Sun, ''the
Sun of righteousness, Who was to bring
gladness and healing beneath His wings.
The Scriptural phrase is plain alluson
to the Solar serpent worship which pre-
vailed in Syria, as in this country and
throughout the world. An ancient hero
gram of its divinity was a circle, egg, or
sun, with lowering wings.
The Yule- clog or log was emblematic
OF the same sacred fire. The suns name
in Welsh was Haul; in Breton, Heoi. The
AngloSaxon for Christmas was geol or
iule; Danish and Swedish, jul; Icelandic,
iol or jol and English Y ule. Thus Yule
plainly meant the festival of the Sun. A
year was often called sun by the ancients,
and ule was the time when the old sun
died and the new one was born. Thus the
birth of Christ comedies with the birth of
the sun.
Warmestry in his ''Vindication of the
Solemnity of the Nativity of Christ"
164S, says: ''If it doth appeare that the
time of this Festival doth comply with the
time of the Heathen's Saturnalia, this
leaves no charge of impiety upon it; for
since things are best cured by their con
traries, it was both wisdom and piety
in the ancient Christians (whose work it
was to convert the Heathens from such
riage>j TO vindicate such times from the
service OF the Devil, by appointing them
to the more solemn and especial service
of God. The Blazes are foolish and
yaine, and not countenanced by the
Church.
"Chlistmasse Karilts, if they be such
as are fiji for time, and of holy and sober
composite, and used with Christian So
briety and piety, they are not unlawful,
and may he profitable, if they be sung
with grace in the heart.
New \ care Gifts, if performed with
out superstition, may be harmless provoca-
tions of Christian love, and mutual testi-
monies thereof to good purpose, and
never the worse because the Heathens
have them at the like times
All very sensible, but at the same time
clever example of special pleading, not
unknown in our time, in which Heather
priority is ignored. The SBlazes." or
Yule-logs, however, We're difficult for
Warmestry to account for or to claim as
Christian emblems. We can scarcely sup
pose him ignorant of their meaning or of
that of the others, but he doubtless
thought it would not be wise to enlighten
the vulgar. Herrick tells US that the Yule-
log of the new Christmas used to be lit
with last years brand In some places
Ills "ao hePl uuuer lne DeQ during the
interval as preventive against thunder
and fire. 1t was said to cure cattle dis
eases, and its ashes freed corn from
blight.
The Christmas candles used to be of
enormous size, and made to illuminate
the whole house. They were always lit
on Christmas Eve, and thus Christmas,
says Blount, was called 'sThe Feast of
Lights in the Latin church.
Christmas is the season of carols. Du-
randus derives this word from cantare, to
sing and rola, a joyful interjection. Tai
bot, however, derives it from the Breton.
coroll, to dance; and Richardson from
the French Carolle, particular kind of
dance. From its similarity Of structure
and meaning in many tongues, we may be
sure that it meant dancing accompanied
with music and song, like that around
the affairs of the Sun God, Bel, or that
practiced by the Bacchantes of the Sun
God, Bacchus, or by the Corybantes, the
Cali of Cybele or Bella, the Lunar deity
and the consOrt of the Solar
Warton says of the Christmas Carols