Christmas is just around the corner. Every year the festival is celebrated across the world to commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ. Christmas holds religious significance among Christians especially as it is believed that this was the day, the son of God, Jesus was born.It is celebrated on December 25 as the day of Jesus's birth, but that was not the case always. In the early years of Christianity, different Christian communities celebrated Christmas on various dates, including January 6 and March 25 because the Bible is actually silent on the day or the time of year when Mary was said to have given birth to him in Bethlehem.
The church in Rome formally started celebrating Christmas on December 25 in the year 336, during the reign of emperor Constantine.There are some other theories too about the date. One prevailing theory suggests that December 25 was chosen to coincide with the Roman festival of Saturnalia, which honored Saturn, the god of agriculture, thereby facilitating the transition of people from pagan festivities to the Christian celebration of the birth of Jesus.
Some legends also suggest that the date to celebrate Christmas was strategically chosen by early Christians to make it fall close to existing pagan winter solstice festivals. The pagan population followed pre-Christian religious practices and it was for the ease of transition into Christianity that Christmas was chosen to be celebrated in December.The name of the festival 'Christmas' is derived from the words 'Mass of Christ'. On the occasion of Christmas, Christians do a mass service while recalling the sacrifices of Jesus Christ.