Judging from the occasional glimpses I’ve had of the adverts on TV whenever I’ve bothered looking in that direction, it would appear to be the crass commercial scam period known loosely as ‘Christmas’ – a time of being manipulated into buying crap you dont need, under the guise of goodwill to all.
You’d imagine that people would be intelligent enough to spot when they’re being treated like morons by corporate interests, and being emotionally manipulated into spending money they dont have, in order to ‘participate’ in the sensation of brotherhood put out by all media at this time of year. But then again, who in the media (NOT tainted by vested interests), ever bothers to take a step back, get perspective and point out that the Emperor has no clothes — and that its all just marketing rubbish? I mean, if its a time for ‘giving’ then why aren’t the shops ‘giving’ us goods for free? Someone’s screwing us, folks.
Rant over. Let’s take a look at what this Christmas thing is all about and where it comes from. (I find it rather ironic, given the approaching war-for-oil, that part of the origins of Christmas comes directly from historical Iran) Start off at The Origins of the Christmas Festival. Then for the Iranian (or – as it was originally known – Persia) connection, spend some time at Mitra And for the few of you here sweating amidst consumer images of snow and fireplaces, if that alone doesnt make you wonder if you’re being taken for a sleigh ride, dip into the origins of The Yule Log.
Here’s a fairly academic but damn interesting read which opens up lots of new avenues of research for those of you who figured the Jesus story and the Red Man known as Santa was all there was to the origins of Christmas. Consider An Alternative Hypothesis To The Origins of Christmas.
Not all Christians buy into the mainstream consumer-driven story of Christmas. An interesting view – from a fairly orthodox Christian viewpoint – uses the Bible to make A Case Against Christmas. Off the topic, but worthy of mention, at the same place there’s a pretty fun article on Valentines Day.
Naturally all you Pagan tree-worshippers have a ‘Christmas Tree’ – without knowing anything of the real significance and meaning of this. Why not learn a bit about some aspects of a very different and older religion you’re participating in, with that tree — Tree Worship Also soak up the info at Tree Tradition.
Seeing as quite a few alleged Christians seem to get off on the whole Xmas thing, lets try and mess up sales by pointing out the Satan tie-in with ‘Santa’ – read Historical Origins of Xmas Traditions. Then take a quick reindeer-ride through the information at The Origins of Santa
Looping back to crass commercialism, the same company that started off life selling a ‘headache tonic’ loaded with cocaine (in 1931) hit on the perfect illustration for their adverts for a now cocaine-free but caffeine-loaded and over-sugared soft drink. Go stare at the modern emergence of The Coca Cola Santa Claus.
For those of you who still have this odd pipe-dream about there being any kind of valid Biblical connection between the 25th of December and the birth of that composite of various prior beliefs, which is known as Jesus – might I direct you towards Christ Wasn’t Born on 25th December. Now lets dive into the actual birth of what we call Christmas, which lie in the distant Pagan traditions which early Christians grabbed in order to achieve mass appeal for their new ‘invisible Deity’ concept. See Pagan Origins.
The cheerful bubble bursting continues – in that earlier article on Mitra will have probably run across the concept and idea of Saturnalia.
The Media keeps using the phrase ‘holidays’ and ‘Christmas holidays’ – but has anyone actually bothered explaining to you the historical background to the word itself? I thought not. So go learn something (dont be scared) at Holidays and Holy Days.
Various foods get traditionally eaten at this time of the year, and again – just in case you never wondered why you’re being sold specific crap by the Media at this point – go read a fairly mainstream traditional view of the Origins of Christmas Foods. As the companies who make billions from printing and selling greeting cards, (and the postal services who sell you stamps) will hurriedly tell you – Christmas is a time of letting loved ones know you care. Yeah right. Go absorb the Origins of Christmas Cards.
And finally, just to show that there are a lot of people who feel that Christmas has about as much significance as Snake-Whacking Day in The Simpsons – go have some fun with the subtle and charmingly named I Hate Bloody Christmas. You should also definitely go explore the happy and joyful nuances to be found at Bah Humbug! And that’s not forgetting the political element of Christmas, at the wildly anti-consumerist (and there are some great downloadable cards and stickers) at Christmas Resistance.
Until the next time, if I’m not trampled to death by a herd of smelly reindeer.
Ian Fraser is a playwright, author, comedian, conspiracy nut, old-time radio collector and self-confessed data-junkie. Winner of numerous Vita and Amstel Awards, he’s been an Internet addict and games-fanatic since around 1995, when the Internet began to make much more sense than theatre.