The following link is to St. Gregory's Homily on the Theophany of Christ. It is not known whether this homily was delivered on the 25th of December or the 6th of January. Originally the Birth of Christ was celebrated on the 6th together with our Lord's baptism. Beginning during the time of St. Constantine the nativity began to be celebrated as a distinct feast on the 25th. This transfer of the feast was a gradual process and it is therefore not clear if this practice of the Nativity celebration on the 25th of December was that which St. Gregory kept. As a small aside it is interesting to note that in the Armenian Orthodox Church the Nativity and Epiphany continue to be a joint feast held on the 6th of January. This presumably because the Armenian kingdom adopted Christianity before the conversion of Konstantine whom the transfer of the nativity is attributed.
http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf207.iii.xxi.html
The following Link is to a site where you can download the complete text of Charles Dickens's the Christmas Carol.
http://manybooks.net/titles/dickenscetext92carol13.html
Enjoy both texts and if you get a chance we would love to hear your thoughts on how the two texts compliment one another and what you think there essential difference is.
Καλά Χριστούγεννα!
No comments:
Post a Comment