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White Christmas
The status of Christmas has varied over the years. Christmas is a relatively unimportant holiday in the Christian liturgy (less important, for example, than the Feast of the Epiphany). Early Protestants, including the Puritans who settled in Plymouth, denounced it as Papist. Many of the customs we have come to associate with Christmas developed in Victorian England, notably the Christmas Tree (which originated in Germany and was introduced in England by Prince Albert). Charles Dickens' ''A Christmas Carol'' presented Christmas as a time of generosity, good will, and family closeness.
The status of Christmas has varied over the years. Christmas is a relatively unimportant holiday in the Christian liturgy (less important, for example, than the Feast of the Epiphany). Early Protestants, including the Puritans who settled in Plymouth, denounced it as Papist. Many of the customs we have come to associate with Christmas developed in Victorian England, notably the Christmas Tree (which originated in Germany and was introduced in England by Prince Albert). Charles Dickens' ''A Christmas Carol'' presented Christmas as a time of generosity, good will, and family closeness.
In the United States, during the twentieth century, gift-giving assumed a greater and greater role, and by mid-century had become of great commercial importance, to the point where some felt the religious aspects were becoming forgotten. The relatively unimportant Jewish holiday of Hanukkah, which falls at about the same time, evolved to become a sort of Jewish counterpart to Christmas. The tension between religious and secularized Christmas has waxed and waned over the years. Bing Crosby, a devout Catholic, initially refused to sing ''White Christmas'' because of its having been written by a Jew and containing no explicitly religious content; he changed his mind, and become his greatest hit.
Fox News pundits John Gibson and Bill O'Reilly claim that Christmas has come under attack by "liberals."
Fox News pundits John Gibson and Bill O'Reilly claim that Christmas has come under attack by "liberals."