Many traditions on modern-day Christmas do not come from Biblical accounts. They may have originated from outside traditions, satirical stories, or misinterpretations. In this series of blogs, we will look at some of these origins and how they fit into the modern-day vision of the Christmas season, which is celebrated by not just Christians but people of many different beliefs.

This article will focus on decorating the Christmas tree.

---

Several stories and myths exist as to the origin of what we call the "Christmas tree" today because customs, folklore, and superstitions regarding trees have existed worldwide for millennia.

The modern tradition most likely stems from St. Boniface of Germany. As the story goes, in AD 722 he overheard a group of pagans discussing their plan to sacrifice a child at the base of a large oak tree. Before they could fulfill the plan, he cut down the tree, which thwarted the plans and saved the child. Over time, a fir tree sprung up from where the roots of the oak tree where. St. Boniface saw this as a holy sign of life springing from death, symbolizing the birth of Jesus. As he converted many German pagans to Christianity, he spread this story.

At this time, the tree really had no holiday significance for centuries. The migration of a tree symbol to wider-spread significance for Christmas was most likely due to the popular 11th century Paradise Play, in which a fir tree with apple adornments was the only prop. The play covered the story of Eden and the Banishment. The play ended with the promise of a coming Savior's birth, to remove the tarnish on mankind of the banishment.

The most likely connections to the eventual Christmas holiday came from numerous European winter traditions (Yule, Saturnalia, etc.), whether secular or pagan, in which the conifer trees were seen as a symbol of hope in the cold winters that spring would soon come. These trees would become a focal point of houses so much that decorating them would seem no different than decorating any other focal piece in a house.

It is believed that the spread of the Christmas tree from mainland Europe came when Queen Victoria of England brought those traditions from Germany in 1830. Other nations eventually picked up these same traditions.

Still, Christmas (not just the tree) was slow to catch on in the United States - due to its incorporation of non-Christian traditions. It was not until 1851 that the fir tree took on a significance when farmer Mark Carr traveled to New York City with two ox sleds full of trees for sale, where he sold them all. Over the next 80 years, popularity continued to grow. It was not until the Great Depression that tree farmers capitalized on the symbol by cutting down their unsold stock to sell as Christmas trees.

As with the origin of Santa Claus, the Christmas tree does not have complete basis in Christianity. Some elements of the tradition do come from interpretations through history of the birth of Jesus, but others were incorporated into Christmas from various cultures as the people converted to Christianity.

---

Note that parts of this article come from the following sources: www.allaboutjesuschrist.org, www.christmas-tree.com, http://www.simpletoremember.com

---

Stay tuned for the next articles, which concern Dec 25th, candy canes, the Magi, lights, gift-giving, and more.