Download or read book Santa Claus The History and Mythology of a Christmas Icon written by ChatStick Team and published by ChatStick Team. This book was released on 2023-11-13 with total page 91 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Discover the captivating journey of Santa Claus! 'Santa Claus: The History and Mythology of a Christmas Icon' takes you on a sleigh ride through centuries of folklore, tradition, and history. Crafted by the ChatStick Team, this enlightening volume traces Santa's origins from Saint Nicholas, explores his connections to Norse gods, details his transformation in America, and analyzes his global image and influence. Learn about the commercialization of Santa Claus, his portrayal in popular culture, and his role in modern Christmas celebrations.
Download or read book A Visit from St Nicholas written by Clement Clarke Moore and published by Boston : Atlantic monthly Press. This book was released on 1921 with total page 20 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A poem about the visit that Santa Claus pays to the children of the world during the night before every Christmas.
Download or read book When Santa was a Shaman written by Tony van Renterghem and published by . This book was released on 1995 with total page 222 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Yes, there is a Santa Claus -- and this provocative book will tell you who he really is! Travel back in time to view Santa's pagan origins -- and his fascinating connections to the Horned Shaman, the Greek God Pan, the Norse god Wodan, and Robin Hood. Learn how we are influenced by this ancient myth everyday. Based on ten years of extensive research.
Download or read book Santa Claus Last of the Wild Men written by Phyllis Siefker and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2006-11-27 with total page 227 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Much of the modern-day vision of Santa Claus is owed to the Clement Moore poem "The Night Before Christmas." His description of Saint Nicholas personified the "jolly old elf" known to millions of children throughout the world. However, far from being the offshoot of Saint Nicholas of Turkey, Santa Claus is the last of a long line of what scholars call "Wild Men" who were worshipped in ancient European fertility rites and came to America through Pennsylvania's Germans. This pagan creature is described from prehistoric times through his various forms--Robin Hood, The Fool, Harlequin, Satan and Robin Goodfellow--into today's carnival and Christmas scenes. In this thoroughly researched work, the origins of Santa Claus are found to stretch back over 50,000 years, jolting the foundation of Christian myths about the jolly old elf.
Download or read book RetroChristianity written by Michael J. Svigel and published by Crossway. This book was released on 2012-04-30 with total page 322 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Evangelicalism is in trouble. Surveying the modern evangelical landscape, professor Michael Svigel asks, "Why does evangelicalism appear to be spinning out of control, losing appeal to younger generations, dwindling in numbers, or selling out to pop culture to muster a crowd?" He seeks to answer this question by looking to the past—to a Retro Christianity. Calling for a return to evangelicalism's historical and theological roots, Svigel begins by addressing some of present-day evangelicalism's problems and explores what can be done to help churches regain a healthy perspective on doctrine. He then gives practical examples of what establishing a biblical, historical, and theologically sound foundation will mean for Christians as they think through aspects of church life and worship. As the numbers of those confused or disenchanted with evangelicalism continue to grow, Svigel's book meets a timely need and will benefit many readers with his balanced argument for preserving the evangelical faith.
Download or read book The True Story of Santa Claus written by Janet Giovanelli and published by Centennial Books. This book was released on 2020-10-13 with total page 99 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: He's a symbol of hope and hapiness, of generosity and benevolence. Santa Clause is simply one of the most beloved legends ever embraced. The Story of Santa explores the history of Father Christmas. Who is he, really? Where did he come from? (His origins may surprise you!) Why does he fulfill our wishes? And what can we learn from him? He's become a ubiquitous figure during the Christmas season with his white beard, red suit, and prominent belly, but just how much do those celebrating the happy holiday really know about Santa Claus? Here is the whole story from the beginning—including the pre-Santas like Sinterklaas, Father Christmas, and of course, St. Nicholas. This beautifully illustrated book celebrates all things Santa ranging from the much-loved poem "The Night Before Christmas" to the songs, movies, images, and stories that are loved by both young and old. Along the way, it explores the favorite stories that have sprung up around him, including Santa’s elves, his workshop, Santa’s beloved reindeer and the legend of Mrs. Claus and the North Pole abode where she and her husband make their home. You'll even learn the secret to how Santa has time to visit every house around the world in just one night (a mathematician explains how it’s physically possible).
Download or read book Odin s Ways written by Annette Lassen and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2021-12-24 with total page 502 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book is about the Old Norse god Odin. It includes references to all occurrences of Odin in the Old Norse/Icelandic texts, including Saxo’s Gesta Danorum, the eddic poems, Snorri’s Edda, and Ynglinga saga and analyses the high medieval reception and literary representations of Odin rather than the religious character of the god. This is the only existing study of Odin in all the Old Norse/Icelandic texts and applies a contextual method: the different guises of Odin are studied on the basis of the various textual contexts and on their background in the literary and Christian intellectual milieu of the time. Contrary to existing studies, this method is non-reductive in that it does not aim at providing a synthesis about Odin’s original nature on the basis of the differing textual uses of Odin in the Middle Ages. The book argues that the perceived complexity of Odin, often highlighted in research, is first and foremost a function of the complex textual material spanning a wide variety of genres each with its particular literary conventions and of the reception of Odin in early modern and modern mythological studies.
Download or read book Encyclopaedia Britannica written by Hugh Chisholm and published by . This book was released on 1910 with total page 1090 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This eleventh edition was developed during the encyclopaedia's transition from a British to an American publication. Some of its articles were written by the best-known scholars of the time and it is considered to be a landmark encyclopaedia for scholarship and literary style.
Download or read book The Myths That Stole Christmas written by David Kyle Johnson and published by . This book was released on 2015-11-20 with total page 196 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In The Myths that Stole Christmas, Johnson argues that Christmas has been hijacked by seven different myths-seven myths that control how people conceive of and celebrate the holiday. Myth #1: Jesus Is the Reason for the Season Myth #2: There Is a War on Christmas Myth #3: Our Christmas Traditions Are Old-Fashioned Myth #4: Christmas Spending Is Good for the Economy Myth #5: Santa Claus Is Saint Nicholas Myth #6: The Santa Claus Lie Is Harmless Myth #7: Christmas Can't Change Historically, holiday celebrations served useful social functions; they smoothed tension between social classes; they helped us prepare for the long hard winter; they turned the literal darkest days into the "hap-happiest season of all." Modern Christmas celebrations, however, serve as a source of conflict-and can make us anxious, stressed, fat, poor and stupid. Christmas owns us; we do what it wants, when it wants. But, Johnson argues, taking a close look at the history of the holiday, and the social, political and economic issues that surround it, can turn the tables and allow us to own Christmas once again. Christmas is not a Christians-only holiday that can only be properly celebrated a certain way. Christmas belongs to us all and we can each simply make it what we need it to be.
Download or read book The Legend of Holly Claus written by Brittney Ryan and published by Open Road Media. This book was released on 2012-10-30 with total page 427 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Santa Claus’s daughter sets out to break a curse and free a magical kingdom—in this beloved New York Times bestseller. Though few mortals know his secret, Nicholas is more than a jolly red-suited man who visits children all over the world on Christmas Eve—he is also the king of Forever, Land of the Immortals. Each year he gets letters from millions of boys and girls, and helps make their Christmas wishes come true. But one year, a special little boy from New York City asks something Nicholas has never been asked before: “What do you wish for Christmas, Santa?” With that simple question, a magical story unfolds. Nicholas answers that his only wish is for a child. And soon the immortal people of the kingdom celebrate the arrival of Holly Claus, the princess of Forever and the first child to grace its ground. But their happiness is dashed when an evil sorcerer places a spell on the infant, turning her heart to ice and freezing her kingdom in time. Many years later, just in time for Christmas Eve, Holly travels to New York, intent upon saving Christmas and freeing the land of Forever. Holly will make this the most magical—and memorable—Christmas the world has ever seen. This ebook features a note from Brittney Ryan including rare images and never-before-seen documents from the author’s personal collection.
Download or read book The Krampus and the Old Dark Christmas written by Al Ridenour and published by Feral House. This book was released on 2016-09-12 with total page 327 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Krampus, a folkloric devil associated with St. Nicholas in Alpine Austria and Germany, has been embraced by the American counterculture and is lately skewing mainstream. The new Christmas he seems to embody is ironically closer to an ancient understanding of the holiday as a perilous, haunted season. In the Krampus' world, witches rule Christmas, and saints can sometimes kill.
Download or read book Odin as Santa and the Norse influence Christmas written by Samantha Luccese and published by Lulu.com. This book was released on 2012-04-23 with total page 49 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Odin as Santa and the Norse influence Christmas" explores the myths of the Norse and how those myths influence modern Christmas traditions. Myths and the icons, such as the gods and goddesses, were one way for ancient societies to understand life and the environment around them. "Odin as Santa and the Norse influence Christmas" seeks to reveal the ancient, Pre-Christian story behind the modern, Christian one, associated with Christmas traditions and decorations. This work looks at the Norse mythology and its gods, Christmas symbols and flora and their Nordic backgrounds. This work looks at the image of the manger and the birth of the Scared Child.
Download or read book Christmas written by Bruce David Forbes and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 2007-10-10 with total page 198 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Written for everyone who loves and is simultaneously driven crazy by the holiday season, Christmas: A Candid History provides an enlightening, entertaining perspective on how the annual Yuletide celebration got to be what it is today. In a fascinating, concise tour through history, the book tells the story of Christmas—from its pre-Christian roots, through the birth of Jesus, to the holiday's spread across Europe into the Americas and beyond, and to its mind-boggling transformation through modern consumerism. Packed with intriguing stories, based on research into myriad sources, full of insights, the book explores the historical origins of traditions including Santa, the reindeer, gift giving, the Christmas tree, Christmas songs and movies, and more. The book also offers some provocative ideas for reclaiming the joy and meaning of this beloved, yet often frustrating, season amid the pressures of our fast-paced consumer culture. DID YOU KNOW For three centuries Christians did not celebrate Christmas? Puritans in England and New England made Christmas observances illegal? St. Nicholas is an elf in the famous poem "The Night Before Christmas"? President Franklin Roosevelt changed the dateof Thanksgiving in order to lengthen the Christmas shopping season? Coca-Cola helped fashion Santa Claus's look in an advertising campaign?
Download or read book Merry Christmas Celebrating America s Greatest Holiday written by Karal Ann Marling and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2009-06-30 with total page 470 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: It wouldn't be Christmas without the "things." How they came to mean so much, and to play such a prominent role in America's central holiday, is the tale told in this delightful and edifying book. In a style characteristically engaging and erudite, Karal Ann Marling, one of our most trenchant observers of American culture, describes the outsize spectacle that Christmas has become.
Download or read book The Gospel Driven Life written by Michael Horton and published by Baker Books. This book was released on 2009-10-01 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In his well-received Christless Christianity Michael Horton offered a prophetic wake-up call for a self-centered American church. With The Gospel-Driven Life he turns from the crisis to the solutions, offering his recommendations for a new reformation in the faith, practice, and witness of contemporary Christianity. This insightful book will guide readers in reorienting their faith and the church's purpose toward the good news of the gospel. The first six chapters explore that breaking news from heaven, while the rest of the book focuses on the kind of community that the gospel generates and the surprising ways in which God is at work in the world. Here is fresh news for Christians who are burned out on hype and are looking for hope.
Download or read book Christmas Past written by Brian Earl and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2022-11-01 with total page 193 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Behind every Christmas tradition is a story — usually, a forgotten one. Each year, as we decorate a tree, build a gingerbread house, and get ready for a visit from St. Nicholas, we’re continuing generations-old narratives, while being largely unaware of their starting chapters. But knowing how these traditions began adds a new level of depth to our Christmas spirit, as well as an arsenal of anecdotes to share at Christmas parties. Christmas Past: The Fascinating Stories Behind Our Favorite Holiday’s Traditions reveals the surprising, quirky, mysterious, and sometimes horrifying stories behind the most wonderful time of the year. With 26 short chapters, it’s a festive, digestible Advent calendar of a book. Covering traditions ancient and modern, Christmas Past is filled with stories of happy accidents, cultural histories, criminal capers (including tomb raiders and con artists), and hidden connections between Christmas and broader social, economic, and technological influences. How did the invention of plate glass forever change the Christmas season? What common Christmas item helped introduce fine art to the masses? Why do Americans typically spike their eggnog with rum, rather than the traditional brandy? And speaking of booze, does using the phrase “Merry Christmas” mark you as a drunken reveler? Christmas Past answers all of those questions, and many more.
Download or read book A Scary Little Christmas written by Matthew C. DuPée and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2022-06-07 with total page 371 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Controversial yet beloved among audiences, Christmas-themed horror movies emerged in the early 1970s and gained a notorious reputation with Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984), depicting Santa as an ax-wielding maniac. Some parents and conservative groups condemned the film, while others embraced the portrayal of Yuletide as a backdrop for fear and dread. Drawing on interviews with directors, producers, special effects artists, photographers and actors, this book celebrates the sordid, colorful history of the Christmas horror subgenre. Psycho Santa films such as Christmas Evil (1980) and 3615 code Pere Noel (1989) are examined, along with "Yule-Die" slashers like The Dorm that Dripped Blood (1982), Black Christmas (1974) and Silent Night, Bloody Night (1972). Commercial successes like Gremlins (1984) and Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (2010) are covered, as well as more recent releases such as Better Watch Out (2016), Red Christmas (2016) and Deathcember (2019). Rare photographs, promotional materials and an annotated filmography are provided.
