“O Christmas Tree, Thy leaves are so unchanging.” Today we sing old carols underneath its branches and regard it as a symbol of winter and undying hopes. But what is the true story of the Christmas Tree?
Today, we think of the Christmas Tree as an immemorial tradition. But the truth is the story of the “modern” tree only began in the 19th century, imported from Germany. The immigrant Germans brought along this tradition, integrating it in pop culture. During the Franco-Prussian war, the German army would decorate trees in the barracks and in hospitals. At the beginning of the 20th century, the decorated and lit Christmas tree we have today appeared in churches and in virtually every house around the world.
Nevertheless, such a… unique tradition had to have ancestral roots. To find them, we need to travel in time, exploring the distant past of the first Christian centuries. In fact, establishing 25th of December as the date of the Birth of Christ was pure convention. The first historiographic mention of Christmas was recorded in Rome 354 AD.
Before that, around the Roman Empire, people celebrated the Saturnalia, pagan celebrations that occupied the most part of December. These celebrations impressed with their debauchery and excess, so the Christian Church, newly established as the sole religion of the Empire, in search of new ways to attract new followers, adopted an intelligent strategy. By associating Christmas with the Saturnalia (“Interpretatio Romana”), they gained new adepts. But those pagans kept some of their traditions.
Long before Christianity, the Asheira cult used to venerate nature and decorate trees brought from the forest. The Christian Church tolerated this practice and even “shrouded” it in new veils of meaning. The polytheistic Scandinavians also decorated trees (which they invested with magical attributes) to scare off devils.
But it is also good to remember that the undying tree is a universal sign. People of all cultures have always felt an affinity to it. The Egyptians, Chinese and Jews also decorated the tree with unchanging leaves.