It may seem like Christmas has always been celebrated in the United States, but that's not the case. In fact, the joyous religious holiday was actually banned in America for several decades "“ by Christians themselves. //
The original war on Christmas was waged during the sixteenth and seventeenth century by Puritans, or Protestant Christians who believed that people needed strict rules to be religious and that any kind of merrymaking was sinful.
[Got a question? This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and we'll look for an expert who can crack it.]
"Shocking as it sounds, followers of Jesus Christ in both America and England helped pass laws making it illegal to observe Christmas, believing it was an insult to God to honor a day associated with ancient paganism," according to "Shocked by the Bible" (Thomas Nelson Inc, 2008). "Most Americans today are unaware that Christmas was banned in Boston from 1659 to 1681."
All Christmas activities, including dancing, seasonal plays, games, singing carols, cheerful celebration "“ and especially drinking "“ were banned by the Puritan-dominated Parliament of England in 1644, with the Puritans of New England following suit. Christmas was outlawed in Boston, and the Plymouth colony made celebrating Christmas a criminal offense, according to "Once Upon a Gospel" (Twenty-Third Publications, 2008).
Christmas trees and decorations were considered to be unholy pagan rituals, and the Puritans also banned traditional Christmas foods such as mince pies and pudding. Puritan laws required that stores and businesses remain open all day on Christmas, and town criers walked through the streets on Christmas Eve calling out "No Christmas, no Christmas!"
In England, the ban on the holiday was lifted in 1660, when Charles II took over the throne. However, the Puritan presence remained in New England and Christmas did not become a legal holiday there until 1856. Even then, some schools continued to hold classes on December 25 until 1870.
Although the change was gradual, people began to once again embrace the holiday until Christmas as we know it today "“ complete with mistletoe, eggnog and candy canes "“ was celebrated throughout the American colonies.
Is There a Santa Claus? Are Santa's Reindeer Males? Santa Claus: The Real Man Behind the MythFollow Remy Melina on Twitter @RemyMelina
Read More Articles: window.fbAsyncInit = function() { FB.init({appId: '110018835714235', status: true, cookie: true, xfbml: true}); }; (function() { var e = document.createElement('script'); e.type = 'text/javascript'; e.src = document.location.protocol + '//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js'; e.async = true; document.getElementById('fb-root').appendChild(e); }()); // 1){ s += '' for(i = 0; i < google_ads.length; ++i){ s += ' ' + google_ads[i].line1 + ' ' + google_ads[i].line2 + ' ' + google_ads[i].line3 + ' ' + google_ads[i].visible_url + ''; } s += '' if (google_ads[0].bidtype == "CPC") { google_adnum = google_adnum + google_ads.length; } } } document.write(s); return; } // ]]> // Sign up for our FREE e-Newsletter 'Mystery of the Day' Email A daily email with a featured article from Life's Little Mystery - A Daily Investigation of the World Around You Enter E-mail Address Note: Your privacy is very important to us. We will not share your e-mail address with any third party without your permission. See our full Privacy Policy. Sponsor Advertisement document.write(''); FOLLOW US: // 1){ s += '' for(i = 0; i < google_ads.length; ++i){ s += ' ' + google_ads[i].line1 + ' ' + google_ads[i].line2 + ' ' + google_ads[i].line3 + ' ' + google_ads[i].visible_url + ''; } s += ' ' if (google_ads[0].bidtype == "CPC") { google_adnum = google_adnum + google_ads.length; } } } document.write(s); return; } // ]]> // Pages About Us Contact Us Advertise with Us DMCA/Copyright Terms & Conditions Privacy Policy TechMediaNetwork Properties TopTenReviews Life's Little Mysteries SPACE.com Newsarama LiveScience iPadNewsDaily OurAmazingPlanet BusinessNewsDaily TechNewsDaily MyHealthNewsDaily NorthOrion SecurityNewsDaily Join our Mailing List FOLLOW US ON... Copyright © 2010 TechMediaNetwork.com All rights reserved. var csDocDomain = document.location.href; document.write(unescape("%3Cscript src='" + (document.location.protocol == "https:" ? "https://sb" : "http://b") + ".scorecardresearch.com/beacon.js' %3E%3C/script%3E")); setTimeout('COMSCORE.beacon({'+ 'c1:2,'+ 'c2:"6035753",'+ 'c3:"6035753",'+ 'c4:"http://www.lifeslittlemysteries.com/why-was-christmas-banned-in-america--1198/",'+ 'c5:"Technology - News",'+ 'c6:"",'+ 'c15:""'+ '});',0); //var _gaq = _gaq || []; _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-15288066-1'],['_setDomainName', '.lifeslittlemysteries.com'],['_trackPageview']); (function() { var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; ga.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https://ssl' : 'http://www') + '.google-analytics.com/ga.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s); })();
[Got a question? This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and we'll look for an expert who can crack it.]
"Shocking as it sounds, followers of Jesus Christ in both America and England helped pass laws making it illegal to observe Christmas, believing it was an insult to God to honor a day associated with ancient paganism," according to "Shocked by the Bible" (Thomas Nelson Inc, 2008). "Most Americans today are unaware that Christmas was banned in Boston from 1659 to 1681."
All Christmas activities, including dancing, seasonal plays, games, singing carols, cheerful celebration "“ and especially drinking "“ were banned by the Puritan-dominated Parliament of England in 1644, with the Puritans of New England following suit. Christmas was outlawed in Boston, and the Plymouth colony made celebrating Christmas a criminal offense, according to "Once Upon a Gospel" (Twenty-Third Publications, 2008).
Christmas trees and decorations were considered to be unholy pagan rituals, and the Puritans also banned traditional Christmas foods such as mince pies and pudding. Puritan laws required that stores and businesses remain open all day on Christmas, and town criers walked through the streets on Christmas Eve calling out "No Christmas, no Christmas!"
In England, the ban on the holiday was lifted in 1660, when Charles II took over the throne. However, the Puritan presence remained in New England and Christmas did not become a legal holiday there until 1856. Even then, some schools continued to hold classes on December 25 until 1870.
Although the change was gradual, people began to once again embrace the holiday until Christmas as we know it today "“ complete with mistletoe, eggnog and candy canes "“ was celebrated throughout the American colonies.
Is There a Santa Claus? Are Santa's Reindeer Males? Santa Claus: The Real Man Behind the MythFollow Remy Melina on Twitter @RemyMelina
Read More Articles: window.fbAsyncInit = function() { FB.init({appId: '110018835714235', status: true, cookie: true, xfbml: true}); }; (function() { var e = document.createElement('script'); e.type = 'text/javascript'; e.src = document.location.protocol + '//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js'; e.async = true; document.getElementById('fb-root').appendChild(e); }()); // 1){ s += '' for(i = 0; i < google_ads.length; ++i){ s += ' ' + google_ads[i].line1 + ' ' + google_ads[i].line2 + ' ' + google_ads[i].line3 + ' ' + google_ads[i].visible_url + ''; } s += '' if (google_ads[0].bidtype == "CPC") { google_adnum = google_adnum + google_ads.length; } } } document.write(s); return; } // ]]> // Sign up for our FREE e-Newsletter 'Mystery of the Day' Email A daily email with a featured article from Life's Little Mystery - A Daily Investigation of the World Around You Enter E-mail Address Note: Your privacy is very important to us. We will not share your e-mail address with any third party without your permission. See our full Privacy Policy. Sponsor Advertisement document.write(''); FOLLOW US: // 1){ s += '' for(i = 0; i < google_ads.length; ++i){ s += ' ' + google_ads[i].line1 + ' ' + google_ads[i].line2 + ' ' + google_ads[i].line3 + ' ' + google_ads[i].visible_url + ''; } s += ' ' if (google_ads[0].bidtype == "CPC") { google_adnum = google_adnum + google_ads.length; } } } document.write(s); return; } // ]]> // Pages About Us Contact Us Advertise with Us DMCA/Copyright Terms & Conditions Privacy Policy TechMediaNetwork Properties TopTenReviews Life's Little Mysteries SPACE.com Newsarama LiveScience iPadNewsDaily OurAmazingPlanet BusinessNewsDaily TechNewsDaily MyHealthNewsDaily NorthOrion SecurityNewsDaily Join our Mailing List FOLLOW US ON... Copyright © 2010 TechMediaNetwork.com All rights reserved. var csDocDomain = document.location.href; document.write(unescape("%3Cscript src='" + (document.location.protocol == "https:" ? "https://sb" : "http://b") + ".scorecardresearch.com/beacon.js' %3E%3C/script%3E")); setTimeout('COMSCORE.beacon({'+ 'c1:2,'+ 'c2:"6035753",'+ 'c3:"6035753",'+ 'c4:"http://www.lifeslittlemysteries.com/why-was-christmas-banned-in-america--1198/",'+ 'c5:"Technology - News",'+ 'c6:"",'+ 'c15:""'+ '});',0); //var _gaq = _gaq || []; _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-15288066-1'],['_setDomainName', '.lifeslittlemysteries.com'],['_trackPageview']); (function() { var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; ga.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https://ssl' : 'http://www') + '.google-analytics.com/ga.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s); })();
"Shocking as it sounds, followers of Jesus Christ in both America and England helped pass laws making it illegal to observe Christmas, believing it was an insult to God to honor a day associated with ancient paganism," according to "Shocked by the Bible" (Thomas Nelson Inc, 2008). "Most Americans today are unaware that Christmas was banned in Boston from 1659 to 1681."
All Christmas activities, including dancing, seasonal plays, games, singing carols, cheerful celebration "“ and especially drinking "“ were banned by the Puritan-dominated Parliament of England in 1644, with the Puritans of New England following suit. Christmas was outlawed in Boston, and the Plymouth colony made celebrating Christmas a criminal offense, according to "Once Upon a Gospel" (Twenty-Third Publications, 2008).
Christmas trees and decorations were considered to be unholy pagan rituals, and the Puritans also banned traditional Christmas foods such as mince pies and pudding. Puritan laws required that stores and businesses remain open all day on Christmas, and town criers walked through the streets on Christmas Eve calling out "No Christmas, no Christmas!"
In England, the ban on the holiday was lifted in 1660, when Charles II took over the throne. However, the Puritan presence remained in New England and Christmas did not become a legal holiday there until 1856. Even then, some schools continued to hold classes on December 25 until 1870.
Although the change was gradual, people began to once again embrace the holiday until Christmas as we know it today "“ complete with mistletoe, eggnog and candy canes "“ was celebrated throughout the American colonies.
Follow Remy Melina on Twitter @RemyMelina
Read Full Article »
