Christmas Archives - Universal Life Church Monastery Blog
December 22nd, 2022
Did you know that the ancient Romans celebrated a holiday around the 25th of December each year? It has some eery similarities to the modern celebration of Christmas, too. Is it possible the Romans invented Christmas?
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December 19th, 2022
From a Black Santa Claus to a commercialized Target version of Hanukkah, the holidays look a bit different this year. Are these efforts to boost representation “woke” pandering, or simply a step toward inclusivity?
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December 9th, 2022
Did you know that the first 'War on Christmas' was started by the Puritans? We may view our seasonal Christmas squabbles as a modern phenomenon, but the Puritans were trying to cancel Christmas all the way back in 1659.
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December 5th, 2022
Hallmark is debuting their first ever same-sex focused holiday romantic comedy this month, 'The Holiday Sitter'. Hallmark is championing their increased representation, but accusations they've gone 'woke' are flying.
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November 30th, 2022
Did you know that many advent traditions celebrated by Christians are borrowed from ancient pagan traditions? Wreaths, candles, and Christmas trees (and decorations!) are all "borrowed" from the pagans.
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December 31st, 2021
While the holiday season is winding down for those of us in the United States, it's still in full swing until early January in Spain and Latin America, as they'll celebrate Three Kings Day on January 5th.
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December 9th, 2021
How does ritual bloodletting and sacrifice turn into eating honey baked ham? What does snogging under the mistletoe have to do with Jesus’s birth? This is the story of how Yule merged with Christmas.
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December 3rd, 2021
A Norwegian ad showing Santa falling in love with and kissing a man is being both celebrated and maligned in equal parts, with some say it's adorably wholesome, and others say it's wildly inappropriate. Which is it?
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December 18th, 2020
We're all familiar with the War on Christmas, but this year it's receiving a very 2020 twist: COVID-19. The international pandemic is opening up a whole new front on everyone's favorite seasonal skirmish.
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