The Christmas Card-To Send or Not To Send

Strictly speaking, a Christmas card is a greeting card specifically oriented for the Christmas celebrations of December 25th. The Christmas card is a message to all the people here and gone that we will remember them every year when the weather gets a bit colder. More often than you might like to admit, a Christmas card is the only news your friends and family get from you over the year. A Christmas card is the way to bring our love and wishes of happiness and health to all people we know. The Christmas card is a charming addition to traditional seasonal pop music. In theory sending a Christmas card is a gesture of regard so straightforward that it borders on the banal. Most Christmas cards are printed on a premium paper and comes with matching envelopes.
The Christmas card is not a Danish invention, but came to the country from England where the first Christmas card was sent in 1842. The first Christmas card is thought to have been designed by British artist John Horsley in 1840, a Royal Academician. The Christmas card is a Victorian creation, which began as a kind of stationery. The founder of the American Christmas card is said to be Louis Prang of Boston who printed a wide variety of album cards and visiting cards. The corporate Christmas card is a later invention, that wonderfully heart felt standard issue message from one company to another company. In fact the corporate Christmas card is a relatively modern invention.
A more recent invention is the photo Christmas card which is not likely to make it to the rubbish bin but more likely to be kept and either framed or placed into a photo album. A personalized Christmas card is a wonderful way to connect with friends and family during the holiday season. A handmade Christmas card is a great present to give. Even Prime Ministers send Christmas cards, Mr. Tony Blair's Christmas card is illustrated by a picture of him and his young family on the steps of No 10 Downing Street. When you want to surprise someone with a unique gift for Christmas, a personalized Christmas card is the best option for guaranteed originality. If the photo Christmas card is high quality, it will surely be displayed on friends' and family's mantels long after Christmas is over. A hand-made Christmas card is always a treasure to keep. Receiving a handmade Christmas card is somehow more special. Of course, making your own photo Christmas card is becoming easier than ever, with the introduction of the low cost color printer and the many services on the internet which specialize in making personalized Christmas cards.
The most apparent of what you're looking for in a Christmas card is the look. Think the Christmas card is the least important part of the Christmas present? Sending a business Christmas card is more than just a nice touch; business Christmas cards let you build a relationship with your clients and prospects. Creating a company Christmas card is an opportunity to send festive greetings to clients and customers. You may think a humorous Christmas card is hilarious, but this is not the time to test to see if your clients have a good sense of humor. Make certain that the type face used on your business Christmas card is large and clear enough for all your clients to read easily.
A Charity Christmas Card is a simple and effective way of giving to someone less fortunate than yourself. Of course, in the age of email, a Christmas card is a rare opportunity to send a message (such as a key fingerprint) by a pretty secure channel. The most important consideration for choosing a Christmas card is the picture. A lighthouse Christmas card is one of the most sought after cards during the festive season. It has to be said that the life of a conventional Christmas card is extremely short, particularly those sent business-to-business, you can increase the length of its life by making it stand out.
In order for a photo Christmas card to be aesthetically pleasing, great care should be given to the photo that will be used. So when Christmas is here celebrate with family and friends the gift of a photo Christmas card. There are many photo Christmas card companies on the internet that are offering unique, original, personalized designs. In spite of all the difficulties, there are few things more valuable or worthwhile than enclosing a family photo within a Christmas card. With your family's photo and the wording of your choice you will have the perfect Christmas card to spread the Christmas joy this season. Surprise loved ones with updated family photos on your personalized photo Christmas Card.
We truly believe that Christmas just isn't the same without a personalized Christmas card on your mantle, above the stockings, and we're here to help. Nothing personalizes this holiday season more than a photo Christmas card. Remember that a well thought out and personalized Christmas card can help build and cement relationships. Personalized Christmas greeting cards, what better way to stay in touch with close friends and family members than to send them a Christmas card. Surprise your child this Christmas with a personalized Christmas card from Santa Claus and the North Pole.
Should you include a business card with your business Christmas card? Should you send business Christmas cards to clients and customers? Business cards are Powerful ways to promote your Business. This allows you to feature your company logo, business related photographs or personal photographs as part of the finished Christmas card design. Get just the right business Christmas card or corporate holiday card for your profession or occupation. Will you be sending a business Christmas card to your clients this holiday season. Just let me say, forgetting to send a card to an important client is considered the ultimate snub in certain business circles. Business Christmas, Holiday and Thanksgiving cards can be personalized with your company name or logo. Most business professionals believe that it is not tactful to include your business card in with a Christmas card, but I will leave that extra step up to your judgment.
Clearly the Christmas card is a must at this festive time of year if you want to show your how important friends, family and business associates are to you. The question is not, should you send a Christmas card but, what form should that card take. With the many options available to you from the e-mail card, to the photo card to the traditional Christmas card there is no reason not to show your appreciation to your friends and business associates.

Philip McDonald maintains christmas-alert.blogspot.com This content is provided by Philip McDonald. It may be used only in its entirety with all links included.

Countries Which Celebrate Christmas

Christmas is a Christian holiday that celebrates the birth of Jesus. This feast was created by the pope to promote Christianity and remove pagan festivals celebrated at the winter solstice.

During the 4th century, the pope decided to bring the Christmas day on December 25th.

This day has always been represented by religious ceremonies and gifts and greetings exchange.

Here are some Christmas symbols:

* The Advent consists of a burning candle each Sunday four weeks before December 24th; which symbolize the rebirth of light after the winter solstice.

* The December 24th Midnight Mass; which celebrates the birth of Jesus.

* The Christmas Crib; which symbolizes the birth of Jesus in Christian homes.

* The Christmas tree, a symbol from the pagan celebration and representing life.

* The Yule log; which represents the log that we put in the fireplace to warm up on December 24th Eve.

* Santa Claus, an American creation, inspired by the Christian Saint Nicholas (celebrated in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and Alsace). This character wears a luxurious red cape, he has a long white beard and wears a red miter, he also holds a golden crosier. Saint Nicholas rewards good children while his companion Pere Fouettard/Black Peter punishes nasty children) and the elf Yule Goat, celebrated in Scandinavian countries.

Over the centuries, Christmas has evolved and December 24th Eve with our family, replaced the religious ceremonies.

The gift exchange: luxurious for the rich people and useful - sometimes only one orange - for the poor people, has been replaced by the modern marketing. People not only buys gifts but also spend lots of money in decoration items, food, drink...

The secularization of our society removed the true meaning of Christmas Time; which is, obviously, becoming a pagan feast.

Here are some countries which celebrate Christmas:

Belgium:

We have a festival especially dedicated to children; which is Saint Nicholas (Sinter Klaas) on December 6th. The Great Patron of Schoolboys, who is supposed to bring candies in their shoes, brings in fact toys by the thousands to our children.

In Belgium, Noël is rather reserved for adults: the streets are decorated and illuminated, we decorate our houses, windows, gardens, trees. Belgium seems to forget that it is a Catholic country and closes more and more churches, therefore, the Midnight Mass on December 24th usually happens at 6 or 8 PM. We then eat with our family and at 12 PM we exchange our gifts. Children usually receive a book or some clothes.

Christmas Day has little meaning but practicing Catholic go to church. Belgian people visit their family on January 1st. In the Belgian Ardens, people celebrate December 31st.

France:

Noël is dedicated to children. The streets and the houses are decorated several weeks in advance. French people have lots of Christmas customs: Christmas Markets, tree, the Christmas Dinner, Pere Noel, gifts, stories, songs, turkey, The Christmas Crib, the Yule Log, and so on. In Alsace, however, Saint Nicholas predominates on Santa Claus.

The Netherlands:

They organize their St. Nicholas (Sinter Klaas) festival: the old bearded man traveling by boat and accompanied by many black aids, who distributes gifts to good children. Dutch people reserve the big gifts for Kerstmis Time because they profit for some great bargains after Sinter Klaas.

Germany:

Weinhachten in Germany lasts two days. On December 26th they visit their family and their friends. Christ-Kind offers gifts to the children on December 24th families and friends. Germany has also a Saint Nicholas festival on December 6th.

Great Britain:

This holiday is celebrated in England with enthusiasm. Children sing "Carols" in the streets, they eat the famous "Xmas Pudding" at the end their family dinner on December 25th. In England, Santa Claus fills the English children socks with gifts. British people also exchange greeting cards; which are a British creation.

Spain:

If Santa Claus has little importance in Spain (Magi distribute gifts to children on January 6th), Spanish people decorate the streets with lights during the month of December. The windows of the shops are filled with lots of gifts and Spanish celebrate the Navidad Evening with their family.

Portugal:

Natal Eve is a holiday. The Portuguese attend the Midnight Mass; which is the "Missa Do Galo". If there is no Christmas tree in Portugal, there is nevertheless a "Wooden Natal".

Italy:

Natale lasts three days, from December 24th till 26th. However, Natale traditions vary from one region to another one and, depending on the region it is Babo Natale (Father Christmas) or the "Gesu Bambino" (Little Jesus) who brings gifts on December 25th. The Italian Christmas dessert is "Panettone".

Scandinavian Countries:

During the Christmas Dinner, Scandinavian people reserve a place for the souls of the deceased members of their family. Once they finish to eat, they read the bible. The whole family is singing Christmas songs and dance around the Christmas tree.

Other European countries:

In Romania, on December 24th, there is a Christmas candle burning until the morning of December 25th. In Russia, Christmas Day happens on January 7th, according to the Orthodox calendar. In Greece the Christmas period begins on Christmas Eve and ends at the Epiphany. Christmas is less important than Easter.

USA:

The Saturday after Thanksgiving, Santa Claus is coming to announce the beginning of the Christmas shopping season. American people love to celebrate Christmas and set up a decorated Christmas in their home. Children hang empty stocks empty on the fireplace and on the Christmas morning they find them filled with candy and small toys.

Canada:

Houses, shops and streets are decorated with lights. Canadian people decorate their house with a Christmas tree, a Christmas wrap, a Christmas Crib... After the "Midnight Mass" people have a Christmas Eve with their family. Turkey and the Christmas log are the essential ingredients of a Canadian Christmas Dinner. They send greeting cards to their friends and family who live far away.

South America:

Peruvian people have Christmas parties but also learn to live better on christmas time. Their Christmas season lasts a full week. Mexican people celebrate Christmas with Las Posadas (pilgrimages representing the path by the Mary and Joseph). They celebrate the last Posada on the Christmas morning and then start the Christmas dinner. I Guatemala, immigrants have imported their German customs and the Christmas tree is essential but the Christmas gifts are reserved to the children. Gift exchange for adults is on January 1st.

Australia:

Christmas happens during the summertime, so Australian people celebrate Christmas at the beach. People eat cold turkey and pudding.

New Zealand:

If there are few decorations, New Zealand people organize Christmas parades and people sing in the parks. They also organize their famous "Christmas barbecue".

Japan:

Christmas is merely commercial significance in Japan. This festival represents Saint Nicholas and it is an opportunity to offer gifts to small children.

China:

If Christmas Day is not a holiday, Christmas is celebrated in Chinese cities. This festival was imported into this country by foreign missionaries. For the Chinese people who celebrate it, Christmas is a religious event.

Prosperity66 is an European History, Holidays and Tarot cards passionate. She writes articles and creates websites dedicated to these subjects.
For more Christmas Costume, Christmas Cards, Christmas Recipes, Christmas Traditions Information, feel free to visit Christmas Time Guide [http://www.webinfos.prosperity66.com/christmas]. You may also ask for a Letter From Santa To Your Child [http://www.holidays.prosperity66.com/santa/].

Christmas Customs and Traditions

The Christmas holiday abounds in interesting customs and traditions. Some of these Christmas customs and traditions are wholeheartedly religious, while others are secular and relaxed. Some countries also have a national flavor in their customs of Christmas. So evidently, the customs and traditions of Christmas are neither singular nor homogenous all over the world. These keep varying from region to region, and from country to country. Popular Christmas traditions such as the exchanging of gifts, decorating the Christmas tree, the Yule log, the holly bough, the kissing under mistletoe etc are more or less common to all places.
In Christian countries, Christmas has become the most significant holiday of the year, economically speaking. Christmas is celebrated for a span of twelve days following December 25 in the United Kingdom. This twelve-day Christmas tradition is marked by huge celebration and feasting and ends on the Twelfth Night or the Feast of the Epiphany. This custom of elongating the Christmas celebrations is gaining popularity by the year. Christmas celebrations begin weeks before the actual day in the United States and the United Kingdom to lengthen the shopping season of Christmas and also to allow more time for meetings and greetings.
The countries celebrating Christmas on December 25, call the day before 'Christmas eve' and the day after by varying names. Some like Germany, Poland call it the Second Christmas Day, some Commonwealth countries call the day after Christmas 'Boxing Day' while the Irish and Romanians call it St. Stephen's Day. Some pagan Christmas customs and traditions have been incorporated by some Chrirtian missionaries into their celebration of Christmas, but the conservative Christians refrain from any such celebration of Christmas. Christmas celebrations were banned in the Soviet Union for 75 years after the Russian revolution and the extremist Christian fundamentalists still consider Christmas a pagan holiday, unsanctioned by the Bible and hence strictly keep off from celebrating it.
But apart from these religious and serious overtones in the Christmas customs and traditions, there are also secular and more relaxed observances of the Christmas holiday. For instance, the tradition of giving Christmas gifts is one of the commonest traditions of the holiday irrespective of region or country. Friends and families exchange gifts and greetings, children hang stockings in the United States or keep empty toy-boxes for Santa Claus to fill it up with toys, candies or other gifts. In some places, it's a custom and tradition for children to put up shoes on window sills on the Christmas night.
One of the very popular and inseparable customs and traditions of Christmas is the Christmas card. Be it your closest pal, or a distant relative, your teacher or your colleagues, your family or your neighbor, each one gets a card on Christmas. Even when people are separated by miles, a 'Miss You' Christmas card is sure to reach more often than not.
Decorating homes and the Christmas tree are again well-known Christmas customs and traditions. It's great joy getting the whole family together decking up the halls and doorways with streamers, candles, stars or holly boughs or being with the entire bunch of friends as you decorate the Christmas evergreen. Candy canes are a very favorite Christmas candy, which are also used as decorations. Traditionally people also decorate the outside of the house as much as the insides. Sometimes Christmas decorations are sponsored by the municipalities.
Christmas parties form the fun part of the holiday and are more a celebration than a custom and tradition of Christmas. Special Christmas meals having a special Christmas menu are customarily served in many countries. While in other places, especially in Eastern Europe, families fast for a few days before the Christmas feast.
In many countries, Christmas dances and Christmas pageants (retelling of the story of Christ) are traditionally held every year. Going caroling in groups is yet another very popular custom and tradition of Christmas. In this, people go singing carols from door to door just to keep the spirit of the holidays alive and fresh. Sometimes people visit the neighborhood houses for a good cause too, like for raising donations and funds for the downtrodden and destitute.
With all the boisterous celebration of Christmas staying fine, Christmas is still observed as a chiefly religious holiday for many people across the globe. It is the time for soul-searching, spiritual renewal, silent prayers, reading out quotes from the Bible, seeking religious blessings and wishing joys and good tidings to everyone for the days to come. The ceremonies are much toned down in a religious celebration of Christmas. Carols and hymns are sung in the churches and in homes, funds are raised for a good cause, volunteer works are conducted and people visit friends, neighbors and dear ones' places for get-togethers and traditional Christmas meals. The air's filled with a sweet peacefulness and warmth. A sense of joy and well-being reverberates all around. People wish each other peace, prosperity, happiness and a very 'Merry Christmas'.
The religious customs and traditions of Christmas begin with Advent (the day when Jesus Christ's birth was anticipated). This is around early December. Customs and traditions of this religious celebration include Advent carols and calendars, sometimes also candies and other goodies for the children. Midnight mass or a Mass of the Nativity, featuring Christmas carols, prayers and hymns, are usually held on the Christmas Eve and on the Christmas Day.
Other religious faiths like Islam or Judaism are also giving way to some secular traditions of the Christmas holiday into their own winter celebrations. Islamic countries refer to Jesus as a prophet and the Judaists celebrate their winter festival and an equivalent of Christmas, Hanukkah in December. Thus, Christmas customs and traditions are many, and are modified or incorporated differently by different cultures and ethnicities across the globe.

Sean Carter writes on holidays, Christmas Day and world events. He also writes on family, relationships, Christmas, religion, love and friendship. He is a writer with special interest in ecard industry and writes for 123greetings.com. He is an active blogger at Christmas Blog

Should Christians Celebrate Christmas?

My family always has a Christmas tree every year because it was the popular thing to do. We have ornaments, holly wreaths, presents and everything else that goes along with the Christmas celebration. I know it was borderline but in that everyone liked it so much and it's supposed to be in honor of our Lord's birthday I went along with it all these years. This year I have looked at the weight of Scriptural evidence that has caused me to reconsider how harmless and good this holiday is. Just where in The Bible does it tell us not to celebrate Christmas?

Christmas Not a Bible Doctrine

In the first place, Christmas is not a Bible Doctrine. If our blessed Lord had wanted us to celebrate His birthday, He would have told us when to celebrate it and how to celebrate it. But Christ never told anyone to celebrate His birthday. Furthermore, we know from the Bible and from church history that the apostles and the early church never celebrated Christ's birthday.

The Bible is God's complete and final revelation to man, and it tells us everything we need to know for our spiritual lives (II Timothy 3:16). We don't have to go outside the Bible for anything. God's Word tells us how we're to worship, how we're to give money for the support of the Lord's work, how to evangelize the lost, how to observe the Lord's Supper and everything else pertaining to the Christian life. But not once in the Bible does God tell us to celebrate Christmas! We're told to remember the Lord's death, but nowhere are we told to celebrate His birth.

God's people are supposed to be Bible people. We are supposed to live by the teaching of the God's Holy Word. So the very fact that Christmas is never mentioned in the Bible is sufficient reason for us not to have anything to do with it. But that's not all.

Christ Not born on December 25

The second reason I not to celebrate Christmas is that Christ was not born on December 25th. Notice:

"And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night." Luke 2:8

Don't miss the point: the shepherds WERE IN THE FIELDS taking care of their flocks on the night Jesus Christ was born. As the shepherds were watching their sheep, the message came to them of the birth of Jesus Christ.

It's a well known fact that December falls in the middle of the rainy season in Palestine, and the sheep were kept in the fold at that time of the year. The shepherds always corralled their flocks from October to April. They brought their sheep from the mountainsides and the fields no later than October 15th to protect them from the cold, rainy seasons that followed that date. So the birth of Christ could not have taken place at the end of December.

Secondly, Luke 2:1,3 tells us that at the time of the birth of Jesus Christ it was decreed that, "all the world would be taxed...And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city." This couldn't have taken place in the winter. Caesar Augustus, the ruler of Rome, would certainly not call for such a taxing in the depth of winter. Travel at this time of the year is extremely difficult; hence, it would be virtually impossible for everyone to comply with the decree if it had been given then. The Lord Himself testified to the rigors of traveling in winter, for He told the people to pray that their flight at the end of this age would not be in winter (Matthew 24:20).

No one knows the exact day when Jesus Christ was born, but in all the probability He was born sometime during September. We can be reasonably sure of this because His earthly ministry lasted approximately 3 1/2 years, and He was crucified on the 14th day of the month of Nisan, which corresponds to our April (John 19:31, Leviticus 23:5). If we go back about 3 1/2 years to the time when Jesus Christ was 30 years old - when He began His public ministry - we come to the month of September. This was probably the month when our Lord was born into the world.

Origin of Christmas

Thousands of years before Jesus Christ was born, heathens in every country observed December 25th as the birthday of a god who was called the sun-god. Semiramis, the widow of Nimrod, was his mother. She claimed to be the queen of heaven. And she had a son who was supposed to have been born on December 25th; his name was Tammuz.

According to all the heathen religions of that time, Tammuz had a miraculous birth; and for centuries his birthday was celebrated with feasts, revelry and drunken orgies. The heathen celebrated Tammuz birthday according to the very example he set for them. He was the world's greatest lover of women, strong drink, dirty jokes and other sensual fun. It is said that he loved everybody and that everybody loved him. And it was on December 25th that all the pagan religions celebrated the birthday of Tammuz, the son-god.

This is all clearly brought out in Alexander Hislop's great book, "The Two Babylon's". Any reputable encyclopedia will also verify these facts.

It's plain to see, isn't it, that Christmas is a pagan holiday that came out of old pagan Babylon.

Christmas From Around the World

Christmas is both a relhgious holiday and increasingly a secular holiday heavily influenced by local culture. As a result, Christmas traditions are as diverse as the world is diverse culturally.
In the United States, for example, Christmas traditions are a literal potpourri of the Christmas traditions brought by immigrants, mostly European. For example, Yule log (English), Christmas tree (German), carols or noels (France), Santa Claus (Dutch). In more recent times, newer Christmas traditions have arrived with the most recent immigrants such as luminaries (Mexico) and "Feliz Navidad!" greeting (Latin America generally).

The following is a whirlwind tour of some of the fun and different Christmas traditions around the world.

Africa
Christmas traditions in Africa are culturally rich and diverse. In Ghana, Christmas Eve is marked by the children parading through the streets singing Christmas songs and shouting "Christ is coming, Christ is coming! He is near!" Church services are held both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Following Church services, family and close friends celebrate a meal of fufu, a past made from rice and yams, with stew or okra soup, porridge and meats.

In Liberia, oil palms decorated with bells are used for a Christmas tree. On Christmas Day, simple gifts are exchanged among friends and family, such as cotton cloth, soap, sweets, pencils, and books are exchanged. Church services on Christmas morning usually have a reenactment of the first Christmas. Christmas dinner, which consists of rice, beef and biscuits, is held outdoors. Friend and family enjoy games and night fireworks.

Asia
While the peoples and cultures of Asia are far removed from Christianity and its Christmas traditions, the local Asian Christians have uniquely blended their Christian faith with their local cultures. For example, Christmas in China (the Holy Birth Festival) has many of the traditional Christmas symbols. Chinese Christian families decorate Christmas trees, or Trees of Light, with red paper chains (red is the color of happiness in Chinese cultures), lanterns and flowers. The children anxiously await the arrival of Dun Che Lao Ren which in Chinese means "Christmas Old Man.". When permitted by local law, Asian Christians do gather in churches on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day to celebrate the birth of Christ.
Even though the vast majority of Asians are not Christian, the secular aspects of the Western Christmas traditions (Christmas trees and gifts) have become fashionable among many of the Asian middle and upper classes. Throughout Asia at Christmas time, you can find large department stores decorated with Christmas trees, Christmas lights and the occasional Santa Claus.

Europe
An American would find him or herself quite at home with the Christmas celebrations throughout Europe since so many of America's Christmas traditions originated in Europe. Of course, many Christmas traditions in England have been adopted in America - mistletoe, Yule logs, Christmas hymns ("Hark! The Herald Angel Sings", "Deck the Halls" ), carolers, Christmas stories (Dickens's "A Christmas Carol"), roasted chestnuts, wassail, hanging stockings by the chimney.

But even in England, there are unique Christmas traditions - Christmas dinners with turkey with chestnut stuffing, roasted goose with currants, Yorkshire pudding, Christmas cake. On Christmas Day, the Queen delivers a Christmas greeting by radio and television. Perhaps the most puzzling for their American cousins is Boxing Day, the day after Christmas when people give small gifts to service provides and merchants with whom they associate during the year.

Every European country has its unique Christmas traditions as well as traditions that are shared with other Western cultures. In Germany, the children excitedly count the days before Christmas with an Advent calendar. In Holland, the children anticipate the arrival of Sinterklaas on St. Nicholas Day on December 6 and it a letterbanket, a cake shaped in the form of the first letter of the family's last name. In Sweden, In Sweden, the Christmas festivities begin on December 13 with St. Lucia's Day, the patron saint of light. Early in the morning of St. Lucia's Day, the oldest daughter in a Swedish family dresses as the "Queen of Light" (wearing a long white dress and a crown of leaves). She enters the bedroom of each family member to serve them treats.

Latin America
La Navidad (Christmas) is a colorful, exciting holiday throughout Latin America. While the celebrations vary widely, the religious significance is still the focal point for the celebration. Mexico is a typical example of the focus on the original Christmas story. In Mexico, Las Posadas, the nine days reenactment of Mary and Joseph's journey to Bethlehem begins on December 16th. For the next 8 evenings, the celebrants reenact Mary and Joseph's search for lodging by going door to door with two costumed children carrying images of Mary and Joseph. On Christmas Eve (Buena Noche), the children lead the procession to the local church and place Mary and Joseph in the nacimiento (crèche or manger). Mass is held at midnight followed by church bells and fireworks.

Poinsettias, piñatas, farolitos (luminaries) and tamales are all a joyous part of the Christmas season in Mexico. Poinsettias, with their red star-shaped flowers, decorate Mexican homes and serve as a reminder of the boy who was going to church to see the nativity scene but had no gift for the Christ child. On his way, he found some small green branches which he brought and laid by the nativity scene as his gift. Some people laughed at his sincere, but humble gift. However, these small branches soon blossomed with the beautiful red poinsettias blossoms.

During the Christmas season and on Christmas Day, pinatas, papier-mache Christmas figures and symbols, are filled with candy and suspended in the air by a rope while blindfolded children try to break them open with a stick. When the piñata is broken, the candy spills on the floor and the children scramble to retrieve as much as they can.

January 6th ( the Day of the Three Kings or Wisemen) marks the end of the almost month-long Christmas celebrations throughout Latin America. In Mexico, on the eve of January 5th, the children leave their shoes on the windowsill and find them filled with candy and small gifts the next morning. In Venezuela, the children leave straw next to their beds on January 5th and the next morning find that the straw has been replaced with gifts.

No matter where in the world one visits, joyous and colorful Christmas celebrations await. Merry Christmas, Feliz Navidad, Froehliche Weihnachten, Mele Kalikimaka!

Top 50 Christmas Quotations

1. "Let us remember that the Christmas heart is a giving heart, a wide open heart that thinks of others first. The birth of the baby Jesus stands as the most significant event in all history, because it has meant the pouring into a sick world of the healing medicine of love which has transformed all manner of hearts for almost two thousand years... Underneath all the bulging bundles is this beating Christmas heart." -- George Matthew Adams
2. "The rooms were very still while the pages were softly turned and the winter sunshine crept in to touch the bright heads and serious faces with a Christmas greeting." -- Louisa May Alcott
3. "Christmas Eve was a night of song that wrapped itself about you like a shawl. But it warmed more than your body. It warmed your heart... filled it, too, with a melody that would last forever." -- Bess Streeter Aldrich
4. " The perfect Christmas tree? All Christmas trees are perfect!" -- Charles N. Barnard
5. "Gifts of time and love are surely the basic ingredients of a truly merry Christmas." -- Peg Bracken
6. "The earth has grown old with its burden of care But at Christmas it always is young, The heart of the jewel burns lustrous and fair And its soul full of music breaks the air, When the song of angels is sung." -- Phillips Brooks
7. "I am not alone at all, I thought. I was never alone at all. And that, of course, is the message of Christmas. We are never aone. Not when the night is darkest, the wind coldest, the word seemingly most indifferent. For this is still the time God chooses." -- Taylor Caldwell
8. "Remember, if Christmas isn't found in your heart, you won't find it under a tree." -- Charlotte Carpenter
9. "Christmas is not a time nor a season, but a state of mind. To cherish peace and goodwill, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas." -- Calvin Coolidge
10. "Christmas, in its final essence, is for grown people who have forgotten what children know. Christmas is for whoever is old enough to have denied the unquenchable spirit of man." -- Margaret Cousins
11. "Unless we make Christmas an occasion to share our blessings, all the snow in Alaska won't make it 'white'." -- Bing Crosby
12. "Whatever else be lost among the years, Let us keep Christmas still a shining thing: Whatever doubts assail us, or what fears, Let us hold close one day, remembering Its poignant meaning for the hearts of men. Let us get back our childlike faith again." -- Grace Noll Crowell
13. "It is the personal thoughtfulness, the warm human awareness, the reaching out of the self to one's fellow man that makes giving worthy of the Christmas spirit." -- Isabel Currier
14. "Something about an old-fashioned Christmas is hard to forget." -- Hugh Downs
15. "They err who thinks Santa Claus comes down through the chimney; he really enters through the heart." -- Mrs. Paul M. Ell
16. "Christmas, my child, is love in action." -- Dale Evans
17. "Do give books - religious or otherwise - for Christmas. They're never fattening, seldom sinful, and permanently personal." -- Lenore Hershey
18. "My first copies of Treasure Island and Huckleberry Finn still have some blue-spruce needles scattered in the pages. They smell of Christmas still." -- Charlton Heston
19. "At Christmas, all roads lead home." -- Marjorie Holmes
20. "My idea of Christmas, whether old-fashioned or modern, is very simple: loving others. Come to think of it, why do we have to wait for Christmas to do that?" -- Bob Hope
21. "The joy of brightening other lives, bearing each others' burdens, easing other's loads and supplanting empty hearts and lives with generous gifts becomes for us the magic of Christmas." -- W. C. Jones
22. "A Christmas candle is a lovely thing; It makes no noise at all, But softly gives itself away; While quite unselfish, it grows small." -- Eva K. Logue
23. "Were I a philosopher, I should write a philosophy of toys, showing that nothing else in life need to be taken seriously, and that Christmas Day in the company of children is one of the few occasions on which men become entirely alive." -- Robert Lynd
24. "Blessed is the season which engages the whole world in a conspiracy of love." -- Hamilton Wright Mabi
25. "The merry family gatherings-- The old, the very young; The strangely lovely way they Harmonize in carols sung. For Christmas is tradition time-- Traditions that recall The precious memories down the years, The sameness of them all." -- Helen Lowrie Marshall
26. "There is no ideal Christmas; only the one Christmas you decide to make as a reflection of your values, desires, affections, traditions." -- Bill McKibben
27. "I wish we could put up some of the Christmas spirit in jars and open a jar of it every month." -- Harlan Miller
28. "Christmas is the keeping-place for memories of our innocence." -- Joan Mills
29. "Christmas is, of course, the time to be home - in heart as well as body." -- Garry Moore
30. "What is Christmas? It is tenderness for the past, courage for the present, hope for the future. It is a fervent wish that every cup may overflow with blessings rich and eternal, and that every path may lead to peace." -- Agnes M. Pharo
31. "Mankind is a great, an immense family... This is proved by what we feel in our hearts at Christmas." -- Pope John XXIII
32. "One of the most glorious messes in the world is the mess created in the living room on Christmas day. Don't clean it up too quickly." -- Andy Rooney
33. "Christmas--that magic blanket that wraps itself about us, that something so intangible that it is like a fragrance. It may weave a spell of nostalgia. Christmas may be a day of feasting, or of prayer, but always it will be a day of remembrance--a day in which we think of everything we have ever loved." -- Augusta E. Rundel
34. "Christmas is doing a little something extra for someone." -- Charles Schulz
35. "As long as we know in our hearts what Christmas ought to be, Christmas is." -- Eric Sevareid
36. "Christmas is the day that holds time together." -- Alexander Smith
37. "Christmas renews our youth by stirring our wonder. The capacity for wonder has been called our most pregnant human faculty, for in it are born our art, our science, our religion." -- Ralph Sockman
38. "Christmas ... is not an eternal event at all, but a piece of one's home that one carries in one's heart." -- Freya Stark
39. "Christmas is a day of meaning and traditions, a special day spent in the warm circle of family and friends." -- Margaret Thatcher
40. "At Christmas play and make good cheer, For Christmas comes but once a year." -- Thomas Tusser
41. "What do you call people who are afraid of Santa Claus? Claustrophobic." -- Unknown
42. "Perhaps the best Yuletide decoration is being wreathed in smiles." -- Unknown
43. "If there is no joyous way to give a festive gift, give love away." -- Unknown
44. "Until one feels the spirit of Christmas, there is no Christmas. All else is outward display--so much tinsel and decorations. For it isn't the holly, it isn't the snow. It isn't the tree not the firelight's glow. It's the warmth that comes to the hearts of men when the Christmas spirit returns again." -- Unknown
45. "Many banks have a new kind of Christmas club in operation. The new club helps you save money to pay for last year's gifts." -- Unknown
46. "Are you willing to believe that love is the strongest thing in the world - stronger than hate, stronger than evil, stronger than death - and that the blessed life which began in Bethlehem nineteen hundred years ago is the image and brightness of the Eternal Love? Then you can keep Christmas." -- Henry Van Dyke
47. "Christmas is for children. But it is for grownups too. Even if it is a headache, a chore, and nightmare, it is a period of necessary defrosting of chill and hide-bound hearts." -- Lenora Mattingly Weber
48. "Like snowflakes, my Christmas memories gather and dance - each beautiful, unique and too soon gone." -- Deborah Whipp
49. "Somehow, not only for Christmas, But all the long year through, The joy that you give to others, Is the joy that comes back to you. And the more you spend in blessing, The poor and lonely and sad, The more of your heart's possessing, Returns to you glad." -- John Greenleaf Whittier
50. "Never worry about the size of your Christmas tree. In the eyes of children, they are all 30 feet tall." -- Larry Wilde

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