Both Christmas and Chanukah have similar symbols: lights. Both are winter holidays. One could examine the symbols of Easter and Passover and find similarities. The egg for one. This symbolizes birth, rebirth, new beginnings. Joyce ----- Original Message ----- From: Betty Alfred <[log in to unmask]> To: <[log in to unmask]> Sent: Thursday, December 23, 1999 1:54 AM Subject: Re: Solistice > In a message dated 12/22/1999 4:28:47 PM Eastern Standard Time, > [log in to unmask] writes: > > << WINTER SOLSTICE CELEBRATIONS: > a.k.a. Christmas, Saturnalia, Yule > >> > This is fascinating! I knew that Christmas traditions had pagan origins, but > you posted a lot that I didn't know. Just tonight I saw a program on the > history channel about the origins of Christmas ("Christmas Unwrapped"). The > show didn't cover nearly as much as you did, but corroborated what you said > in terms of pagan influence. The only difference was that they said the > birth of Jesus was thought to have occurred in the spring rather than the > fall, but there is probably an argument supporting each supposition. > > This was really interesting and informative Trisha. Thanks for taking the > time to share. It's an honor, especially considering what your work schedule > is like right now. > Betty >