Christmas• Christ’s-Mass• December 25th of every year• Christians are celebrating the birth of Jesus on this day.• They celebrate by going to church, reading scripture, singing

hymns and Christmas carols, decorating in expectation of the holiday and giving gifts to loved ones to express the joy of the season.

• It is important to realize that gift giving is not the focus of the holiday. It is a time when Christians give thanks to God for the birth of their Savior.

Christians worship on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day

Where did the Christmas Tree come from?

• The decoration of Evergreen foliage is a tradition that dates back thousands of years.

• Hold its most recent traditions in the Roman celebration of Saturnalia; a celebration of the lengthening daylight on the winter solstice on Dec. 20th

• Considered by Christians to be Pagan practices, these traditions were not specific to the Romans and were practiced all over Europe and the Middle East.

• Early Christians did not celebrate Dec. 25th as a holiday.• Early Catholic missionaries struggled for way to minister to

Pagan worshippers. An early decree from the Catholic church claimed that these practices should be sanctified and made Christian.

• This is how things like the Christmas tree became an acceptable staple of the holiday.

Easter• The date changes every year, but it is always on a Sunday in the

Springtime.• Christians are celebrating the miraculous resurrection of Jesus

from the dead.• Easter Sunday is a joyous celebration. Christians go to church,

read scripture, and sing hymns to celebrate. • The week before Easter is a very solemn time in the Christian

church as Christians remember the last days and the death of Jesus.

Worship Service at SunriseEaster Lilies: Easter Flowers

• Many children participate in Easter Egg Hunts, but that is not part of the religious celebration. The egg is often seen as a symbol for Spring.

• The rabbit and egg are again symbols of celebrations of old religious beliefs many Christians saw as Pagan.

• Both the rabbit and egg symbolize fertility and are natural symbols of the Spring-time ideal of re-birth, new life and for early Christian missionaries, the resurrection of Jesus.

Where did the Bunny and Eggs come from?