![]() ![]() Well, I’m here to tell you that, although there was a time when Christmas did indeed incorporate some pre-Christian traditions, virtually none of the traditions associated with Christmas in the United States today are actually of ancient pre-Christian origin. Most of my readers are probably already familiar with the sorts of claims I am referring to it is popularly believed that Christmas is really an ancient “pagan” holiday that was hijacked by early Christians and that modern, twenty-first-century, secular American Christmas traditions are actually of ancient “pagan” origin. The Christmas season is upon us and, if there’s one thing I know I’m going to get for Christmas, it’s spurious claims about modern Christmas traditions supposedly having ancient “pagan” origins. Continue reading “How Was Saturnalia Celebrated in Ancient Rome?” Author Spencer McDaniel Posted on DecemDecemCategories ancient Roman religion, Ancient Rome, classical reception, Classics, Current events, Debunking, Early Christianity, folklore, Holidays, life in the ancient world, Misconceptions, pagan survivals, Roman Empire, Roman Republic, slavery Tags ancient holidays, Ancient Rome, Christmas, Christmas and paganism, classical reception, classics, Current events, Debunking, Early Christianity, folklore, holidays, life in the ancient world, Misconceptions, Roman Empire, Roman Republic, Saturnalia, slavery, slavery in ancient Rome 8 Comments on How Was Saturnalia Celebrated in Ancient Rome? Just How Pagan Is Christmas Really? This year, however, I’ve decided to write about it again, focusing on what we know about how the holiday was actually celebrated. I’ve written about Saturnalia before-usually in the context of debunking popular misconceptions about it being the source of modern American Christmas traditions. They believed that the reign of Saturnus had been a “Golden Age,” in which all human beings had lived together in harmony and simplicity, and that Saturnalia was a temporary restoration of Saturnus’s reign on earth that could only last until the end of the festival. The Romans believed that, in very ancient times, before Iupiter became the king of the deities, the cosmos had been ruled by Iupiter’s father Saturnus. Saturnalia is an ancient Roman holiday in honor of the god Saturnus that began on December 17th.
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