Quote Originally Posted by VTJess03
As far as the whole Christmas tree vs. holiday tree, I think that's gotten a bit ridiculous. There has never been a tree used to represent a holiday other than Christmas at that time of year...and the tree itself really has nothing to do with the religious beliefs anyway...it's just something that started as a tradition at the winter holidays back in Europe however many years ago.
The Yule tree was actually a pagan tradition adopted by Christianity. The tree was a symbol for deity because rather than going brown and lifeless over the winter the evergreen remains lush and bright. The trees were decorated with symbols for prosperity, and eventually some pagans brought them indoors to invite fae or small folk into their homes. Christianity adopted the practice of bringing decorated trees into their houses sometime during the 16th century.

Kind of like how does the Easter bunny have anything to do with remembering the crucifixion/resurrection of Christ? Umm, nothing, but it's now a harmless part of the springtime holiday season; I have no problem with that.
Easter was originally Ostara, a pagan celebration of spring. The Easter Hare was a companion to Eostra, the goddess of spring, and also a symbol of fertility, since celabration of fertility was a huge part of the celebration of spring. The Easter Hare often brought children gifts...usually....colored eggs!


I like to talk about religion, learn about it, even debate it in a civil manner. This forum is the only forum I've ever seen do that successfully, I think it says a lot about the caliber of people here.