Christmas
By Manly P. Hall
A WOR Radio Talk.
First published in The All-Seeing Eye, 5th February, 1931, Volume 5, No.5.
From the remote periods the illustrious pagans celebrated the 25th of December or, as the Latini called it, the 8th day before the Kalends of January, as the most sacred day of the year. Turtullian, Jerome, and several other distinguished fathers of the early church have written that upon this holy day and the night that preceded it the Gentiles in all parts of the world celebrated the annual birth of the Solar God. At least one ante-Nicean bishop went so far as to affirm that the mysteries of this light-child under the name of Adonis were performed in the same cavern or grotto in which Jesus himself was born. Godfrey Higgins writes that in the first moments after midnight of the 24th day of December all the peoples of the earth by common consent celebrated the birth of the god Sol–the hope and promise of all nations and the Saviour of mankind. The learned Roman Catholic, Father Lundy, has carefully examined the evidence preserved to us in ancient works and monuments, and in his work. Monumental Christianity describes at some length the pre-Christian celebration of the annual birth of the Redeemer and admits unhesitatingly that the advent of an annual solar Preserver was marked with appropriate festivities at the period of the winter solstice by several ancient peoples.
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