The Origin of the Christmas Tree

Contrary to popular secular opinion, Christmas trees do not have their roots in paganism as the first Christmas trees didn't begin popping up in the living rooms of people's houses until about the year 1576. This is not only many centuries after the Christianization of Europe it is also after the Protestant Reformation. There are no records of Christmas trees in earlier centuries when there were still pagans around, leaving a clear gap in the historical record where after Europe has been Christianized it's only hundreds of years later that you get Christmas trees.

So where did they come from? Historians have several theories but the most common and accepted one has to do with the subject of Adam and Eve. December 24 is commonly known to Christians as Christmas Eve. But it is also the feast day of Adam and Eve. During the Middle Ages, it was common for Christians to celebrate this feast day with a play that honored Adam and Eve. The Garden of Eden was often represented in this play by a tree that had been decorated with apples.

After the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century, there were a number of German states which outlawed this play from occurring in public view. As a result, and likely as a form of protest, German Catholics began decorating trees with apples within the safety of their own homes. Over the years, these apples would turn into ornaments and we would get the Christmas trees that we know and love today.

Merry Christmas to my fellow O-Ters and may your days be merry and bright.