In past Christmas seasons I've blogged about all sorts of different aspects of our Christmas traditions. Usually I just pick a pet peeve and sort of "have at it." In typical post-modern fashion I've picked apart perceived portions of the narrative that I think are inaccurate; things like the non-existent inn, the time frame of the magi, the date of Christmas itself, and the whole "x"mas thing.
But I was reminded, as I was picking out our Christmas tree for this year, that I haven't blogged about the origins of the Christmas tree yet. So, maybe you'll know some of this, maybe you won't. Either way, here it goes:
Many people have tried to claim that the Christmas Tree has more roots in paganism than in Christianity. Certainly a case can be made; there are all sorts of different pagan religions that have used evergreens in their religious symbolisms. Naturally, these are also often in connection with the winter solstice. This just makes sense, 'cause what other symbol would you want to use to remind you of life and hope in the middle of winter than the only plant that is still alive and green!
There are a number of good examples of this: winter solstice in ancient Egypt involved decorations of green date palms. In Rome it was evergreen boughs for the celebration of Saturnus, the god of agriculture. In old Britain the druids put evergreen boughs over their doors to ward away evil spirits. And other northern European religions had traditions like the yule log.
None of these are anything quite like the Christmas tree, but you can see how people would extrapolate these pagan traditions and use them to explain away the origins of the Christmas tree. After all, there's nothing more that some people like than to "prove" that Christianity is really just a complex amalgamation of older pagan religions.
Anyway, regardless of it's questionable pagan origins, the vast majority of people agree that the Christmas Tree itself originated in Germany. There are two very interesting tales that root the Christmas Tree's origins to Christianity: Boniface & Luther.
St. Boniface was as missionary to the Germanic/Frankish people in the 700s AD. The story goes that one day Boniface ran into a large group of people worshiping a pagan god under an oak tree. As he had been ministering to these people for quite some time now, out of anger and frustration he ran over to the oak and started to chop it down. Of course, the people were shocked and warned him of the "heresy" he was committing, but Boniface (in very Elijah-like style) simply said that if the god was real he could strike him dead for this blasphemy... and continued to chop down the tree.
Well, the tree fell and Boniface was still alive, so the people converted to Christianity. It was then noted that in the place where the oak had once stood a fir tree grew in its place. This was then taken as a symbol of the supremacy of Christianity and Boniface supposedly then used the triangular shape of the fir tree to teach the people about the trinity.
Well, that doesn't quite take us right up to the Christmas Tree, but it shows us an early origin of the evergreen tree as a symbol of Christianity over and above paganism.
The other story takes us right into the period of the Reformation. This story goes that, after being ousted from the Catholic Church, Martin Luther had a lot of time on his hands and spent a significant amount of that time roaming the woods of Germany, thinking about his beliefs and the beliefs of the Church.
Well, one evening on Christmas Eve, Marty was walking through the woods and was struck by the astounding beauty of God's creation. He was blown away by the beauty of a stand of fir trees in the snow, lit by moonlight and stars. Trying to explain this experience to his family, but unable to put it into words, he went out and cut down a tree, brought it into his house, and then decorated it with candles. Since it was Christmas Eve Luther then taught his children about how Jesus, whose birth they were about to celebrate, was the light of the world. From then on, this tradition spread among Protestants as an alternative to the Nativity Scenes that the Catholics had become so enraptured with (Francis of Assisi started that one!).
So, whether these stories are to be taken at face value, are purely fictional, or are legendary in the sense that they have a seed of historical fact, I leave up to you... but such are the Christian origins of the Christmas Tree.
The only other thing that I'll mention is this: if anybody has the right to claim trees as a religious symbol it is Christians (and perhaps Jews). After all, the Bible uses trees as its "bookends":
In the beginning we see: Genesis 2:9 (ESV) 9 And out of the ground the Lord God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
And in the end we see: Revelation 22:1-3 (ESV) 1 Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 3 No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him.
As I did a quick search I found literally dozens upon dozens of different passages that use trees as symbols for our faith. This post is already too long as it is, so I'll just leave you with these:
Psalms 92:12 (ESV) 12 The righteous flourish like the palm tree and grow like a cedar in
Proverbs 11:30 (ESV) 30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and whoever captures souls is wise.
Proverbs 13:12 (ESV) 12 Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.
Proverbs 15:4 (ESV) 4 A gentle tongue is a tree of life, but perverseness in it breaks the spirit.
Jeremiah 17:7-8 (ESV) 7 "Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. 8 He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit."Merry Christmas!
8 comments:
sweet... I didn't know those historical stories! Thanks
Not to mention - that symbolism of Christ himself taking on our sin and dying on a tree. I have been reminded this year that no matter much more fanfare Christmas gets, it is inextricably tied to Easter. Christmas would be meaningless without the cross.
Yeah, for sure Christy. The whole tree theme ties everything together.
Jesus died on a "tree" and in Deuteronomy we see that anyone hung on a tree is accursed (21:23). But then in the Tree of Life passage in Revelation as see that "No longer will there be anything accursed."
The tree is integral to the symbolism of redemption... which is exactly what Christmas is about!
All of the scripture quoted here refers to LIVE trees.....I wonder if there is correlating symbolism to the fact that x-mas trees, when we cut them down and bring them in our homes are DEAD and have been removed from their first estate?
We actually know that x-mas trees are rooted in paganism because the scriptures tell us so:
"Learn not the ways of the nations, nor be dismayed at the signs of the heavens because the nations are dismayed at them, for the customs of the peoples are vanity. A tree from the forest is cut down and worked with an axe by the hands of cratsmen. They decorate it with silver and gold; they fasten it with hammer and nails so that it cannot move." - Jeremiah 10:2-4
But we tell ourselves whatever we have to to justify our love of man-made traditions, don't we?
There's absolutely no doubt that, even at its best, the Christmas Tree is a man-made tradition. However, not all traditions are bad. If it is one that is edifying and honouring to God, keep it. If it draws one away from God, scrap it.
I think that's more to the heart of what Jeremiah is talking about. First of all, let's include the following verse (5):
"Their idols are like scarecrows in a cucumber field, and they cannot speak; they have to be carried, for they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of them, for they cannot do evil, neither is it in them to do good.”
It becomes very clear that Jeremiah isn't talking about anything that resembles our Christmas Tree tradition. We aren't cutting down trees and getting "craftsmen" to "work" them (vs. 3) into a certain image which is then overlaid with silver or gold (vs. 4). Verse 5 makes it clear that he is talking about carving wood into the images of pagan "gods"; idols.
I know we'll likely disagree on this, but I think God, through Jeremiah, is specifically addressing A.N.E. polytheism. So, unless there are people bowing down before their "Christmas Trees" and participating in cultic fertility rites or chanting "all hail Asherah" I'm not sure that this passage fits the bill (yeah, I know that that's an extreme and kind of silly example).
I like your question about live vs dead trees. Obviously I'd have to look into it, but of course trees are a symbol of life and health, etc. So, you're right, there's a certain, ironic discontinuity here. But that's the thing about symbols; they represent something, they're not the thing itself. Kinda like the whole "shadow vs reality" thing in Colossians & Hebrews.
I don't know...I am not sure Jeremiah was talking about carving the trees into idols....since when are things "carved" by an "axe"? And you are right in that vs 5 does state that these things cannot do evil....BUT it also says, neither is it in them to do GOOD. So on that note, is there scriptural support that man-made traditions aren't all bad? Or that any of them are good? If it is in fact in the scriptures, by all means, point us to it.
From my standpoint, the xmas tree is actually a better representation of the anti-christ. A christmas tree, destroyed for our enjoyment and pleasure, which is terminal, it is not everlasting (unlike the Messiah) a tree the instrument of our messiah's tortuous death, looks like it has life, but it doesn't, an imposter without roots, anchoring our minds in the past rather than to the promise of the New Kingdom which is yet to come.
As I said, I knew we wouldn't see eye-to-eye on this, and that's fine.
As far as axes go, people have used axes for carving for thousands-upon-thousands of years. All you need to do is "google" 'ancient carving axe' and you'll see dozens, if not hundreds of specimens, including bronze age ones that predate this passage from Jeremiah.
Also, the early Church clearly held to certain traditions aside from the scriptures themselves. Paul encourages at least 2 Churches to hold to these traditions: see 2 Thess 2:15 & 1 Cor. 11:2. Obviously these texts have their own contexts, but at the very least we can see that they were holding to certain "traditions" that they viewed in a very positive way.
I just wanted to say I thought this was an excellent post. Well researched and I think that you are an excellent writer.
Post a Comment