Show f 4 ai w VA 9 ekl H 1 0 fj ay i ji y M IVA t sye i i B L K c christmastide karly CIL ill till verlo i of the your 11 ln enst elst st of it tho 0 1 hixon tool vic in till nil race can be traced a period briod of 0 great great rejoicing cinc nod and resti festivities vitic from the or af december to the gill of january the maxom anil northern Dort liim nations kept it a feast 1 beginning 1 on OIL tile the december I 1 in n honor of 0 thor gi yiming I 1 ng I 1 it t ilia name naine of tile ji lother night it 1 name liichi lii jet cli lit it once fill to the alie lily tin feast of tile or of mithra iraa bashold liolia bythe by alie romang on oil tile lith S illi of december bilier T I 1 fait fi it 14 in of tile ali burghild tun bur binl hIld 10 soine of tile old argue tint is tile suli i hii worship woi wor Nhip leip or win waa orbed by CI ik its IL iii anle niL but mit lot alto ether its SUb StAnCU anally of its chent ci ent practices posed priss ril over as well thi saturnalia the most important 0 of f ra homami 11 at rest ivak was acl I 1 1 at I his s peri period I arid usually u ally listed froin eight to 11 tin days day during the tinie of tile llie sat urdalia lii mater masters and mal es were on tin ill equality tile blives chosen lang kin from among lie was invested invest rd with pot cofer cr direct ing and ordering all tile llie levels in ill the inoel magnificent manner nu inner thia king of the saturnalia Sti turu ilia resembling the english lord of minrul 3 or T c fifth night king ordained thit mn masquerades dancing arid and fea feibing stinK should iliou lil be dept up tit for the period the masters and mistred cs danced alth A ith and waited on oil the baves and the slaves freely ridiculed the masters asters in the feast of hubei anacles was held about 01 aliis time lime of the beair and it was the cus tour toni of the jews to decorate their boxi househ et with flower sand greens grf ns in guyland and v as tle the great feast of the druids druies in honor of saturn or jul whence we get tho the name yul or yule wherever druid ism isar existed the houses house were decorated with ith ever evergreens greens in december that the sylvan spirits might fid end fi a shelter in them until the milder weather relies ed thelea the leavea v es of 01 their own homes SO 0 f he most im fin posing of 0 the ceremonies were connected with the cutting of these thebe ever gl gic clis eells especially of tile mistletoe which NN was as t alie lie plant t lie iho at all I 1 leal heal of the druids druies by these feasts it iq ii apparent that the tIlL birth of christ was placid tit at a timoor time or year alre already ady marked by distinguished feasts the Chiist christians ians grafted christian festivals upon dagnan feasts for n u hen pope gregory sent st augustine to saxon eng land he directed hint him to deat deal gently with the people to accommodate as ai much as possible christiab ceremonies to the hea then ones cues ho ba found established |