SAY "CHRISTMAS!"

If anything says “Christmas!” it’s a tree. Whether it’s a live tree or an artificial one, when we see an evergreen tree, we think of Christmas. 

Trees have been important symbols in many religions, and from earliest times, evergreen trees have reminded people of life through winter and darkness. The evergreen tree has a specific meaning for Christians. 

Long ago, European Christians celebrated December 24 as the feast of Adam and Eve, our first parents. They put up a “Paradise Tree” decorated with fruit. It was a way of remembering how human beings had eaten fruit from the forbidden Tree of Knowledge of good and evil. That sadness was replaced by joy the next day, December 25, when they could celebrate Jesus, born to save us from that sin and open the way back to God. Jesus would demonstrate his love by dying on a cross, made from a tree. A Christmas tree is a tree of life! 

In the 17th century, the custom of putting toys and gifts at the foot of the Christmas tree was adopted, and it was in the 19th century that the tradition of the Christmas tree became widespread. 

TAGS: Reflection