- Hardcover: 1 pages
- Publisher: Zondervan (3 Nov 2003)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0310248809
- ISBN-13: 978-0310248804
- Product Dimensions: 18 x 13 x 2.3 cm
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,075,152 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
Stories Behind the Great Traditions of Christmas
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Synopsis
The cheer of a crackling hearth fire. Colorful cards from friends and loved ones. An evergreen tree festooned with ornaments. The golden traditions of Christmas--gifts, wreaths, stockings, carols, mistletoe, and more--infuse our celebration of the season with meaning and glowing memories. And, in ways you may not realize, they point us to the birth of Christ. Stories Behind the Great Traditions of Christmas reveals the people, places, and events that shaped the best-loved customs of this merriest of holidays. Here are spiritual insights, true-life tales, and captivating legends to intrigue you and your family and bring new luster and depth to your celebration of Jesus' birth. Discover how *after eighteen centuries of all but ignoring the event, churches began to open the door for believers to commemorate Jesus' incarnation. *the evergreen tree, once a central theme in the worship practices of pagan cultures, came to represent the everlasting love of God. *the magi's three gifts--gold, frankincense, and myrrh--are filled with spiritual symbolism. The traditions of Christmas lend beauty, awe, and hope to the holiday, causing people all over the world to anticipate it with joy.The stories in this book will warm your heart as you rediscover the true and eternal significance of Christmas.
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First Sentence
Advent is a word often heard during the weeks leading up to the Christmas season, but as many churches do not actually celebrate Advent, great number of people do not understand its meaning or its place in church history. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
Advent is a word often heard during the weeks leading up to the Christmas season, but as many churches do not actually celebrate Advent, great number of people do not understand its meaning or its place in church history. Read the first page
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16 reviews
37 of 46 people found the following review helpful
Does this author actually research his subjects?
29 Dec 2005
Format:Hardcover
How does Ace Collins manage to slap together a bunch of fairytales and call it history? His book on Christmas carols has a totally fictitious account of the history of "Silent Night" and this Christmas book has a completely fabricated version of the Nativity scene set up by St. Francis of Assisi. Collins wonders if the figures in Francis' Nativity were clay or carved wood. Collins supposes that Francis had figures of shepherds but probably skipped having any animals.
What?!?!?!? According to the two biographers of St. Francis (St. Bonaventure and Thomas of Celano) there were no clay or wooden figures of Mary and Joseph. There were neither shepherds nor kings in the Nativity at Greccio, Italy in 1223. There was a feeding trough (manger), a live ox, and a live ass. According to Thomas, it was beautiful in its simplicity with the manger acting as the altar for the Christmas Mass.
It's time for Ace Collins to do some real research and rewrite his Christmas books instead of foisting fairytales on an unsuspecting public.
What?!?!?!? According to the two biographers of St. Francis (St. Bonaventure and Thomas of Celano) there were no clay or wooden figures of Mary and Joseph. There were neither shepherds nor kings in the Nativity at Greccio, Italy in 1223. There was a feeding trough (manger), a live ox, and a live ass. According to Thomas, it was beautiful in its simplicity with the manger acting as the altar for the Christmas Mass.
It's time for Ace Collins to do some real research and rewrite his Christmas books instead of foisting fairytales on an unsuspecting public.
16 of 21 people found the following review helpful
Perfect for lovers of history and the Christmas season
9 Jan 2005
Format:Hardcover
In this book, author Ace Collins traces the history behind various popular Christmas traditions, from caroling and ornaments to mistletoe and yule logs. Collins provides various theories on the origins of each tradition, some of which date back to even before Christ's birth. He also does a nice job of explaining the rise in popularity of each activity as it moved into the mainstream of Christmas celebrations. Finally, the book carries a strong Christian message, as Collins talks about connecting each modern tradition back to its original roots in commemorating Christ's birth. This is a perfect little book to teach children about the history behind Christmas or for adults looking to find greater meaning in this much-commercialized holiday.
13 of 18 people found the following review helpful
Do some research!
30 Nov 2008
Format:Hardcover
I really wonder what kind of research Mr. Collins did.
Granted the only selection that I read had to do with the Nutcracker.
I have a feeling that Mr. Collins never read E.T.A. Hoffman's (sic) original story, (it was Hoffmann, not Hoffman as is indicated by Mr. Collins), even though Mr. Collins recounts it. All in all, he makes some very erroneous comments about that story.
For the last 30 years or so, it has been a family tradition to read Hoffmann's story in English and in German during the month of December. We use "E.T.A. Hoffmann Nutcracker," Pictures by Maurice Sendak, Translation by Ralph Manheim, Crown Publishers, Inc., 1984, for the English version. For the German, we use "E.T.A. Hoffmann Werke, Zweiter Band," Insel Verlag, 1967. (Manheim did a wonderful job with the translation and, of course, Sendak did outstanding work with the illustrations.)
Mr. Collins writes, "Marie was a child who lived in a home devoid of love." Nonsense.
Then Mr. Collins writes of a "fairy tale that would hardly appeal to anyone except the most cynical of readers." Again, nonsense: the story ends with a "happy ever after" note.
Most of Mr. Collins other comments are stuff and nonsense, stuff and nonsense.
I didn't bother to read any of the other selections.
I would have rated this book with a "no star" rating, but it wouldn't let me....
Granted the only selection that I read had to do with the Nutcracker.
I have a feeling that Mr. Collins never read E.T.A. Hoffman's (sic) original story, (it was Hoffmann, not Hoffman as is indicated by Mr. Collins), even though Mr. Collins recounts it. All in all, he makes some very erroneous comments about that story.
For the last 30 years or so, it has been a family tradition to read Hoffmann's story in English and in German during the month of December. We use "E.T.A. Hoffmann Nutcracker," Pictures by Maurice Sendak, Translation by Ralph Manheim, Crown Publishers, Inc., 1984, for the English version. For the German, we use "E.T.A. Hoffmann Werke, Zweiter Band," Insel Verlag, 1967. (Manheim did a wonderful job with the translation and, of course, Sendak did outstanding work with the illustrations.)
Mr. Collins writes, "Marie was a child who lived in a home devoid of love." Nonsense.
Then Mr. Collins writes of a "fairy tale that would hardly appeal to anyone except the most cynical of readers." Again, nonsense: the story ends with a "happy ever after" note.
Most of Mr. Collins other comments are stuff and nonsense, stuff and nonsense.
I didn't bother to read any of the other selections.
I would have rated this book with a "no star" rating, but it wouldn't let me....
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