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The Christmas
Festival differs as the precise date of the birth and historicity
of Jesus are much debated. Christmas, literally meaning the
Mass of Christ, is a traditional holiday in the Christian
calendar. The festival of Christmas takes place on 25th December,
every year to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. Christmas
is also celebrated as a secular holiday throughout the world,
including countries with small Christian populations like
India. Various theories of the origin of Christmas exist that
give a clear insight into the celebration of Christmas.
The date of
Christmas is based on the date of Good Friday, the day Jesus
died. Since the exact date of Jesus' death is not stated in
the Gospels, early Christians sought to calculate it, and
arrived at either March 25 or April 6. Then, wishing to calculate
Jesus' birthday, they followed the ancient idea that Old Testament
prophets died either an anniversary of their birth or of their
conception. In Jesus' case, they reasoned that he died on
an anniversary of the Incarnation so the date of his birth
would have been nine months after the date of Good Friday-either
December 25 or January 6. The date of 25th December became
popular. |