Faith & Reflection
Have you ever wondered about the origin of Christmas trees? There is no shortage of legends.
As a boy, I asked my Sunday School teacher about Christmas trees. She told me that the legend in our tradition was that in celebration of the birth of Christ, all of the evergreens, for the first and only time, burst into bloom and that our decorating of evergreens at Christmas was a replication of that miraculous event. I asked her if she believed the story and she replied, “No, I don’t think so.”
Another legend claims that Martin Luther, walking through the forest one Christmas Eve, looked up and saw a multitude of stars glimmering and twinkling through the branches of the evergreen trees. He was so taken by the sight that he cut a small tree, took it home to his family and placed candles on its branches to re-create the beauty that he had seen in the forest.
One certainty is that Germany is the acknowledged home of the Christmas tree tradition. By the 16th century, fir trees decorated with apples, candy and paper roses were common in German homes at Christmas time. By the 17th century, all Germanic lands had caught on to the tradition. The custom was introduced in North America by German immigrants in the early 1800s.
Years ago, a man told me that Christians should not have Christmas trees in their home. I suggested that while there was no real scriptural evidence or Christian heritage in the primitive church for the practice, I personally found no offense in having a Christmas tree.
He agreed that there was no scriptural evidence for a Christmas tree. In fact, he stated emphatically that there is a clear scriptural command against having Christmas trees and referred me to Jeremiah 10:3,4. This passage says, “the customs of the peoples are futile; For one cuts a tree from the forest, The work of the hands of the workman, with the ax. They decorate it with silver and gold; They fasten it with nails and hammers so that it will not topple.”
The context this passage is found in clearly indicates that Jeremiah is condemning the making and worship of idols made from trees. Any resemblance to Christmas trees is purely coincidental.
I do believe two precautions should be taken with Christmas trees; don’t bow down and worship them and don’t burn the house down because of them!
The apostle Peter writes about another tree that we should be more focused upon, even at Christmas. He wrote, “Jesus Himself bore our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness... (1 Peter 2:24). More next week ...