From: utzoo!decvax!cca!csin!cjh
Newsgroups: net.followup
Title: Re One More Thing on Christmas
Article-I.D.: csin.251
Posted: Wed Jan 12 10:41:38 1983
Received: Fri Jan 14 02:04:10 1983

In response to your message of Fri Jan  7 14:31:55 1983:

   I'm curious about your contention that the early Christians moved the
celebration of Christ's birthday to a "safer" time; what I've read strongly
indicates that the solstice festivals were coopted by dominant Christians
as a way of gaining converts or controlling subordinate peoples. With
certain exceptions (e.g. during the reign of Nero) the early Christians were
treated better than the way they treated assorted pagans once Christianity
became dominant (don't believe everything you were told in Sunday School about
early Christian martyrs---remember who was doing the telling). In fact, once
Christianity became significantly hierarchical (by ca. 100 AD) it was
distinguished by intolerance and schisms even within its own small group.