The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1913-12-25

Among the many Signs u all dp-
preaching unity of the churches must be
reokoned the increasing custom among
Protestants of observing Christmas as
religious feast This year in Bir-
mingham, for instance, it has been the
exception for any body of Christian
people to omit reference to the day, or
even fall to use the season In some
special service of gifts; and what IS
true here is but the reflection of a Gus
tom already general in this country. [
have found also among the stock car
ried by dealers in picture postal cards
large collection of colored reproduce
lions of the Madonna paintings, pre-
pared especially for Christmas trade.
And now comes a most worthy and
interesting effort of certain Birming
ham ladies to establish a more digni-
fed sort of Christmas celebration than
has been usual hitherto, with rational
music a tree" and a municipal family
reunion.
Somebody is said to have recently
discovered that the Germanic peoples
Perhaps that intense individuallsm
which distinguishes the Germanic race
tends to a deeply pathetic--may we not
say sympathetic2-sel regard, a brood
ing melancholy, which creates passion
ate and strenuous revolt from self for
the loyal alteration of another, seeing
self in that others eyes. If there is
any truth in this claim the same may
go far to explain the persistence of
Christmas customs in England and
| America, as well as among the Ger
mans, despite those religious anti
Christmas prejudices which once
marked the two former nations in a
large degree. With Teutons Christmas
is universally a season of family re-
unions. of feasting and the giving of
presents. Perhaps it is, as suggested,
an indication of Germanic religious
genius.
Going back to the beginnings of
things, it is very curious that of the
two greatest festivals of the church
the one, Easter, should have been the
occasion of bitter division as to the
proper date for its celebration, and the
other, Christmas should have left not
a trace of its observance on the 25th
of December before the end of the
fourth century. There are indeed proofs
of a confusion of the Nativity feast
with the Epiphany, celebrated on jan
uary s. There is also indication of a
further confusion of Epiphany held in
remembrance of the visit of the Gentle
Magi, with a celebration OF the Bap-
tism of Jesus. 1t is understood that
Soma Of tha old churches still obserUn
the Nativity festival on January 6, SO
that all three ideas may have been at
first concentrated in feast on this
date.
In this connection it should be re-
memb cred that certain theorists of a
heretical turn of mind, at very early
period of church history, concluded that
the birth of Jesus as a babe at Bethlc
hem was not the significant fact, but
that His real birth. as Son of God, was
at His baptism. This heretical opinion
is taught and held by the followers of
widely advertised preacher whose
headquarters are at Brooklyn, and
whose printed discourses are scat
! tered on our doorsteps. The early name
| for this heresy was Docetism, a variety
OF which was apparently held by the
Basilideans. Hence there are those who
think that the earliest Christmas or
| Nativity feast was celebrated by the
united early church in connection with
| the Epiphany on January g. but that
the majority afterward preferred a
separate date for the Nativity as a pro-
4 test against these heretical opinions
which laid undue emphasis upon the
Lords baptism as His second birth
as Son of Cod whereas up to that time
| He had been purely human.
| In any event it is known that at the
beginning of the fifth century a Ma