Although I'm an atheist, I must confess a very deep fondness for Christmas.  Not only have I had a number of my favorite "peak" life experiences during this season, I also have spent a number of years researching the season for The Christmas Season Game © I created.  This board game is still being testing and edited.  None the less, I've read way too much about the season's history, religion, culture, music, food, rituals, etc. and I admit knowing more about Christmas than ANYONE should!

     This season has long standing traditions of merriment, switching or crossing social class, gluttony, story telling, game playing, trickery, parties, and occasional mad abandonment.  What could be more human?  Stories of Christmas "blues" and depression have been greatly exaggerated. Those things come most in February.... when the bills come due.

     The Solstice and the New Year fall at this time of the year.  One of my favorite demi-gods of the season is Janus, after whom January is named.  Janus is the two-faced god, one face looks into the past, one into the future.  We are all poised in this same position.

     Christians believe it's their season, although as the articles that follow state, the celebration is as primal and pagan as eating and sex.  Nearly all of our seasonal rituals came from non- Christians including the evergreen tree, exchanging presents, putting out lights in hopes of attracting the sun's return, kissing under the mistletoe, and so forth.  It's been said that of all this season's 

     And what about Santa Claus?  It is more socially offensive to attack Santa than it is to attack God!  Of course, I once defended Santa in the Wisconsin State Journal against a Christian who thought the image of Santa had deteriorated.  Au Contraire!  Americans turned Santa into a super-heroic individual and reduced his threatening nature by excluding his punishing helper from the American version of the myth.  Americans have done the same for God.  Although the Catholic Church de-sainted St. Nicholas back in the 1970's, it did not affect Santa's popularity!

     Lastly,  let me mention the "brooms" of the Christmas season.  Brooms were used in the earliest human rituals at the end-of-the-season slaughter.  This too was a time of gluttony to insulate one against the winter, and it was a time for crossing tribal groups to have sex! The broom —  a pole shoved in a bush -- once reminded folks of sex and was used in the dances around the bonfire.  Even today more babies are conceived on New Year's Eve than any other night of the year!

      Brooms are also used to "sweep out the old year" and welcome in the new one in some  parts of  Europe and China.  And in Italy, the good witch Befana rides around on a broom during the Christmas season.

      But best of all, is the Scandinavian tradition of putting out inverted brooms of wheat to feed the birds during this time of the year.  For the birds, this is a nice thing you should try!  HAPPY X-MAS and new millennium to all the atheists everywhere!

     Isn't that supposed to be "The Reason for the Season?" Nope. This atheist publication tells it like it is. The real story of Christmas goes something like this. 

     Once upon a time, primitive humans living away from the equator recognized some regularities about movements of the sun. When viewed from a fixed point, the place on the horizon where the sun came up and went down changed with the seasons. During winter, the sun rose lower in the sky with shorter days. During summer, the sun rose higher in the sky with longer days. 

     Our ancestors were primitive. They lacked our scientific understanding of reality, material technology and generationally transmitted cultural knowledge. They were primitive, but not stupid. Even though they lived tens of thousands of years ago, their brains equaled, or nearly equaled, our potential for observation and reasoning. They could see what went on, note regularities, and understand much of what they saw. 

      Our curious ancestors learned that after the shorter days when the sun was lower and sunrise farthest south on the horizon, the days would become longer. With longer days came spring, the growth of vegetation and more animals to hunt. As our ancestors learned to track sunrise points on the horizon, they would notice that there was a point at which sunrise moved no farther south, after which sunrise would begin to move north, with spring following. 

      Our cave-man ancestors figured out the winter solstice by reasoning about what they observed. Later ancestors would devise physical solar calendars that could identify which day was winter solstice. These physical calendars, like England's Stonehenge, identified the day of farthest south sunrise. 

      The winter solstice became a day to celebrate. As the sun waned into winter, plants went dormant, animals became scarce and people went hungry. Knowledge of the winter solstice gave people the hope that the sun was not dying but would return. The winter solstice told humanity that the sun's warmth would again bring spring's resurrection of plant and animal life. 

      When humanity invented spirits and god, they were associated with meaningful days like the winter solstice. Winter solstice myths included gods that were born in human form, died, and came back from the dead -- just like the sun seemed to die and be reborn. 

      Man-gods that died to be resurrected were sometimes linked with fertility gods who died and rose from the dead during spring's explosion of new life. These man-gods were sometimes born and/or resurrected at the winter solstice, other times at the spring equinox (midway between the summer and winter solstices) -- Passover and Easter dates. 

      But how did Christmas become the birthday of Jesus? A bit of history will help us understand. 

      Towards the end of the 200's CE (Current Era), Rome celebrated the birth of Sol Invictus ("the unconquered sun") on December 25th. Sol Invictus was the state religion of Rome. December 25th was then the date of the winter solstice by the Roman calendar. 

      Romans had long celebrated winter solstice. Older Saturnalia festival traditions of joyous and erotic practices survived within Sol Invictus celebrations. 
 Mithraism was also a very popular Roman religion, particularly with legionnaires and men. Mithras was the ancient Indo-Iranian god of light and protector of oaths. Mithras came into the Roman Empire about 70 CE with Roman soldiers who fought against the Persians or who were recruited from middle eastern areas where Mithraism was active. As a god of light, Mithras was regarded as a sun-god whose birth was also celebrated on the winter solstice, December 25th. 

      Mithras had been born in a stable with animals and shepherds present. The Mithras rituals included the consumption of flesh from sacrificed bulls, sprinkling of holy bull's blood on congregants, breaking and eating loaves of bread with the shape of a cross (a Mithraic symbol) impressed on them, drinking wine mixed with water, altars with crosses, and priests with vestment symbols which were similar to some Catholic and Orthodox priestly symbols. 

      The popular winter solstice sun-god festivals put Christianity at a disadvantage. The date Jesus was born was unknown, as Paul's letters reveal. Christianity had no competing birth festival. Popular sun-god festivals would also attract Christians. 
 Sometime before 300 CE, Christians began celebrating the birth of Jesus on the winter solstice, December 25th. After Constantine the Great (emperor 306-339) made Christianity Rome's state religion, Christian persecution destroyed the religions of Sol Invictus and Mithras. Some Mithraic symbols and mythology were co-opted into Christianity. 

      Christmas, then, is Christianity's version of a winter solstice sun-god festival copied from competing Roman religions. The winter solstice, Sol Invictus and Mithras are the real reasons for the Christmas season. 

      The reason for the original winter solstice celebrations is, however, reason itself. Without the power of reason, primitive humans would never have been able to observe the sun's movements and figure out the seasonal day of the winter solstice. 

      Reason made the season. 

      The Winter Solstice is the shortest day of the year, when the sun reaches its lowest point on the horizon. ("Solstice" literally means "sun stop.") In ancient times, pagans celebrated this day as a "rebirth" of the sun or a sun god, and the beginning of a new year.

     In some cultures, the Winter Solstice was also a time to celebrate the birth or rebirth of a savior man-god (who was often connected with the sun). He was usually believed to be the offspring of a god father and a goddess or human mother, who was often a virgin.

     Tammuz of Babylon, Attis of Phrygia, Horus of Egypt, Mithra of Persia, Krishna of India, Heracles of Greece and, last of all, Jesus of Nazareth are just some of the ancient man-gods whose births were celebrated on the Winter Solstice.

     In 46 B.C.E., Julius Caesar adopted the Julian calendar. The Winter Solstice and the beginning of the new year fell on December 25th. Caesar declared this date the "Birthday of the Unconquered Sun." (Later, Christians called it the "Birthday of the Unconquered Son.")

     The ancient Roman festival of the Saturnalia (honoring Saturn, the god of agriculture) lasted from December 17th to December 24th. The event concluded with a great feast, the Bumelia, held on December 25th.

     Pagan celebrations of the Winter Solstice included social gatherings, lights, singing, gifts, feasts, yule logs, mistletoe, holly, and decorated trees. These festivities were later adopted by many Christians.

     The Christian Bible acknowledges that decorating trees is a pagan idea. Jeremiah 10.2-4 states: "Learn not the way of the heathen... For the customs of the people are in vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest... They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not." It seems it is not proper for a Christian to have a Christmas tree!

     The 1911 edition of the Catholic Encyclopedia admits: "Christmas was not among the earliest festivals of the Church... the first evidence of the feast is from Egypt."

OSIRIS / HORUS / ISIS

     About 3000 B.C.E., Egyptians began worshiping the god Osiris, who was associated with the sun. He was portrayed as a trinity: a heavenly god, an earthly god, and a falcon. (Later, Christians depicted their trinity as God, Jesus, and a Holy Spirit dove).

     The king of Egypt claimed to be the earthly god. He acted as a link between humanity and the heavenly god. It was believed the earthly god king became the heavenly god after death. Later, the heavenly god, Osiris, was said to have fathered (through Isis, a virgin) an earthly god son, Horus, who was actually a rebirth of Osiris.

     According to legend, this birth of Osiris/Horus was announced by Three Wise Men, symbolized by three stars in Orion's Belt pointing to Osiris' star in the east. Angelic voices hailed his arrival. His birth was often depicted in a manger, with Isis as the Madonna standing over him, and was said to have occurred on the Winter Solstice.
 Belief in Osiris, Horus, and Isis became popular in the Roman Empire, until believers began to be persecuted under Christianity.

MITHRA

     About 2000 B.C.E., Persians began worshiping the man-god Mithra, who was supposedly born from a god father and a human virgin mother.

     Mithra's birth was said to have occurred in a cave or stable, and was witnessed by shepherds who brought him gifts. Later, his followers celebrated this event with a ceremony at midnight on the eve of the Winter Solstice.

     Mithra was viewed as a Redeemer. He was believed to have performed miracles, such as raising the dead, healing the sick, making the blind see and the lame walk, and casting out devils.

     According to legend, Mithra celebrated a Last Supper with his twelve disciples before he ascended to heaven. In memory of this, his worship-pers partook of a sacramental meal of bread marked with a cross.

     In subsequent years, a stone image symbolizing Mithra was buried in a tomb. It was then withdrawn and he was said to live again. Followers of Mithra believed a person had to be baptized in order to ascend into the heavens after death. Mithra is supposed to return at the end of time to judge the human race.

     In 67 B.C.E., Mithraism was introduced into the Roman Republic. Later, Mithraism stood as a powerful rival to the newly emerging Christianity. In fact, by 307 C.E., Mithra was officially designated the "Protector of the Roman Empire." However, by 358 C.E., followers of Mithra began to be persecuted under Christianity.

     In addition to being a man-god savior, Mithra was connected to the sun god. Later, Christians began referring to their own man-god savior, Jesus, as the "Light of the World" and the "Sun of Righteousness." Christians moved their Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday (sun-day).

     The Seventh-Day Adventists, however, are an example of one modern Christian group which has kept its Sabbath on Saturday.

 KRISHNA

     The Hindu man-god Krishna was believed to have been born c. 1200 B.C.E. He was said to be an incarnation of the god Vishnu, born of a human mother, Devaki. Krishna's birth was celebrated on the Winter Solstice.

     According to legend, Krishna's birth was announced by a star and angelic voices. Shepherds and wise men hailed him as the Redeemer and gave him gifts. King Kansa tried to kill Krishna by ordering the death of all male infants born on the same night as Krishna. A heavenly voice warned his earthly foster father (a carpenter) to flee with his family.

     Krishna was said to have taught moral lessons, forgiven sins, performed miracles, and defeated demons. It was believed that the Lord and Savior Krishna atoned for the world's sins by pouring out his blood while lying on a cross-shaped temple rock.

     However, some Indian art depicts Krishna hanging from a cross and being pierced by an arrow. It was also believed Krishna rose from death and ascended to heaven.

JESUS, CHRISTIANITY AND CHRISTMAS

     There are many parallels between these and other pre-Christian savior man-gods and Jesus. Indeed, so much of Jesus' legend has been plagiarized that a few scholars doubt whether he ever actually existed! Others claim that if he existed, his life is obscured in myth and we know virtually nothing about him.

     Most of the Roman persecution of Christianity occurred from 250 to 313 C.E. In 380, the Roman emperor Theodosius ordered all pagan temples to be destroyed and forced pagans to accept Christianity.

     The Roman celebration of the sun god's rebirth was still held on December 25th. However, due to imperfections in the Julian calendar, the actual Winter Solstice had drifted to December 21st.

     Pagan sun god celebrations proved too popular for early Christians to overcome. Therefore, they decided to superimpose their story of Jesus (which contained many pagan elements anyway) onto the sun god festivals of the Winter Solstice (Christmas) and the Spring Equinox (Easter).

     In 354, Bishop Liberius of Rome decreed that the birth of Jesus should be celebrated on the same day as the birth of the sun gods - December 25th. Before this, the Christian church had no official observance of the birth of Jesus.

     From 1652 to 1659, Oliver Cromwell and the Puritans in the English Parliament outlawed Christmas because it was not sanctioned in the Bible. Churches were ordered to be closed and shops were ordered to be open on this day. Clergymen were imprisoned for preaching on Christmas, and some parish officers were fined for decorating the church.

     From 1659 to 1680, Puritans in the colony of Massachusetts prohibited the observance of Christmas, imposing a five shilling fine on anyone caught celebrating this pagan festival.

     It wasn't until 1856 that Georgia became the first state to make Christmas a legal holiday. In 1894, Christmas was included in the first group of federal holidays. Previously, Congress had met, and mail was delivered, on Christmas Day.

     The Worldwide Church of God, the Seventh-Day Adventists, and the Jehovah's Witnesses, all Christian religions, do not celebrate Christmas.

 THE ATHEIST VIEW

     The Winter Solstice is a great time to get together with family and friends, put up some decorations, exchange gifts, and share a meal. Perhaps someday humanity will set aside divisive religious beliefs and unite to celebrate the Winter Solstice as a truly universal, secular holiday. The Winter Solstice reminds us of our common ties to nature and to each other. It is a celebration of life!

Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit our best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low stress, non-addictive, gender neutral, celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasions and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all . . .

  . . and a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling, and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2000, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make America great, (not to imply that America is necessarily greater than any other country or is the only "AMERICA" in the western hemisphere), and without regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical ability, religious faith, choice of computer platform, or sexual preference of the wishee.

(By accepting this greeting, you are accepting these terms. This greeting is subject to clarification or withdrawal. It is freely transferable with no alteration to the original greeting. It implies no promise by the wisher to actually implement any of the wishes for her/himself or others, and is void where prohibited by law, and is revocable at the sole discretion of the wisher. This wish is warranted to perform as expected within the usual application of good tidings for a period of one year, or until the issuance of a subsequent holiday greeting, whichever comes first, and warranty is limited to replacement of this wish or issuance of a new wish at the sole discretion of the wisher.)

1. Karl Marx 
2. Albert Einstein 
3. Sir Isaac Newton 
4. Charles Darwin 
5. Thomas Aquinas 
6. Stephen Hawking 
7. Immanuel Kant 
8. Rene Descartes 
9. James Clerk Maxwell 
10. Friedrich Nietzsche 
~~~~~~~~~~~~

At the November meeting, Jim Dew was elected AAW president; 
Mark Shahan was elected secretary and membership chair; 
Jim Behling was elected assistant secretary and treasurer; 
Jim Dew and Jim Cox will continue heading publications. 
The position of program director was left open.

AAW will hold its annual winter solstice potluck on Sunday, January 7th, at the home of Dennis Coyier.  Look for our flier coming soon, for more information.