Legends aside, Christmas time is season of sharing with the less fortunate

The season of goodwill to all men (and women) is here with us again.

People in Europe have been marking the mid-winter for much longer than the 2,000-odd years since Jesus came to earth and even that might be in doubt as nobody knows the precise date of his birth, neither did he ask anybody to celebrate his birthday as we do. It was only in 340 AD that Pope Julius I fixed the date of Jesus’s birthday at 25th December.

Prior to that it was celebrated on at least three other dates; 29th March, 6 January and some time in June- which historians today think is the most likely date, given that the nativity is said to have occurred during a census-taking.

It was not until 250 years later that Julius’s successor, a few times removed, Pope Gregory gave the job to Saint Augustine to convert the heathen Brits to Christianity.

Fortunately, with the birth of Christ now firmly fixed at 25 December, it gave Augustine a bit of leverage with the population who were already marking several mid-winter festivals, ensuring they could take this new-fangled religion in their stride without losing the annual December piss-up.

There were two major pre-Christian festivals of note, which roughly coincided with Christmas: the Roman Bacchanalia, or Saturnalia, and the Yule Feast of the Norse countries.

The Saturnalia began on 19 December and lasted the better part of a week, which sounds just about right for those currently enmeshed in the Christmas party rush. Morality and restraint were politely shown the back door, schools were closed and no criminals were punished, otherwise the jails would have been full to the rafters.

Slaves were allowed to swap places with their masters and one of them would be elected king for the duration of the festival. The wealthy distributed gifts to the poor.

The Roman god Saturn, in whose honour the festival was staged, was no benign Christ-figure, or benevolent Santa, even though his party was eventually absorbed into Christmas.

Ancient astrologers believed that being born under the sign of Saturn was a bad omen. As the god of the harvest, he wielded a vicious scythe, and devoured his own children. Perhaps that is why we eat a lot more at Christmas!

Northern European tribes celebrated their chief festival Yule to commemorate the rebirth of the sun.

Christmas Eve is traditionally a time for restless spirits to walk the earth, something old Ebenezer Scrooge in Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol knows too well.

Should you be brave enough, legend has it that if you venture into a graveyard on Christmas Eve and dig a hole, you will find gold. On that night cattle are said to kneel down and speak in human voices while those leaving while the consecration is still going on are guaranteed to meet a procession of ghosts wending their way through the streets.

According to folklore, about 350 AD, Saint Nicholas of Asia Minor heard of three sisters who had been forced into prostitution to earn enough money to eat, so he tossed three coins down their chimney to help them out, which landed in the girls’ stockings drying on the hearth. Hence Father Christmas, Santa, Saint Nick.

The magazine Harpers’ Weekly published what is thought to be the first image depicting the modern Santa in the 1860s, wearing green robes associated with the “green man” of the woods and forests in pagan belief.

Coca Cola is often said to have created the Santa we know today in a 1931 advert featuring Father Christmas enjoying a Coke with a smile, swapping the traditional green livery for the red of Coke’s branding.

Nearer home, I remember in my village, Kibichoi, during the 1960s, young men and women would spend Christmas Eve singing Christmas carols going from home to home in a tradition known as “murekio”.

Each household would contribute what they could afford, be it maize-on-the-cob, eggs, vegetables, chicken or cash for those who were well-to-do. The gifts would be taken to church on Christmas Day and shared amongst the poor.

Neighbours would share food with the poor in their homes so that everybody experienced the spirit of God’s provision. Christmas was a family day where all would share and celebrate together.

Unfortunately, after security became a concern the tradition of “murekio” gradually faded out.

At a global level Christmas became ever more commercialised and we seem to have gone back to those pagan days of overindulgence, especially of alcohol. Many people see Christmas as an opportunity to go on holiday and have fun away from home.

2018 has been a milestone year for Kenya. After two contested and highly divisive elections in 2017, the first of which was nullified by the Supreme Court in a landmark decision for Africa, the country was left highly polarised politically.

In an unprecedent gesture the two main protagonists President Uhuru Kenyatta and his rival Raila Odinga, stood side by side, shook hands and pledged reconciliation on 9 March 2018. Kenya was once again pulled back from the precipice.

The handshake was further reinforced with what has come to be known as the “hugshake” between the two principals and others during the National Prayer Breakfast of May 31, 2018.

This Christmas let us reignite the true spirit of Christmas by sharing goodwill and pledging reconciliation. Let us hug our neighbour and shake their hand irrespective of their tribe, party affiliation, religion or social status. Let us share gifts with the less fortunate in our communities.

Merry Christmas!