The Church can always be relied upon to suck the fun out of everything but even they surpassed themselves when they banned all things Christmas in the 17th Century who believed that people needed strict rules to be religious and that any kind of merrymaking was sinful.
The laugh-a-minute Puritans in England and America helped pass laws making it illegal to observe Christmas, believing it was an insult to God to honour a day associated with ancient paganism so it became illegal to dance, hold seasonal plays, sing carols, play games or drink alcohol
Christmas trees and decorations were considered to be unholy and the Puritans also banned traditional Christmas foods such as mince pies and pudding. Puritan laws required that stores and businesses remain open all day on Christmas, and town criers walked through the streets on Christmas Eve calling out 'No Christmas, no Christmas' just to drive home the message that Christmas was banned.
In England, the ban on the Festive season was lifted in 1660, when Charles II took over the throne. However, the Puritan presence remained in New England and Christmas did not become a legal holiday there until 1856. Even then, some schools continued to hold classes on December 25 until 1870.
It’s still technically illegal to eat mince pies or Christmas pudding on Christmas Day in England as the 17th century Oliver Cromwell law banning them has never been fully rescinded.
Only the Church can take their own holiday and have a problem with people celebrating it.
2 comments:
Our food is notoriously awful, it isn't until you go abroad you realise just how bad it is.
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