Merry Christmas from Quillette

China's white paper revolution, a Bowie retrospective, and a Quillette Christmas message

Claire Lehmann

24 Dec 2022 · 4 min read

Four hundred years ago, the Puritan Governor of Plymouth Colony, William Bradford, came across some Christmas revellers celebrating on the 25th of December—and ordered them to get back to work. Because the Bible did not record Jesus Christ's birthday, the Puritans did not mark the holiday, and December 25 was not a special day for family, fun, or rest. Festivity was suspiciously pagan, and the Puritans would have none of that.

Thankfully the Puritan ban on Christmas did not outlast the 17th century. Wherever you are this Christmas, I hope that you are able to take a rest from work and have fun, and hopefully enjoy a pause in your regular schedule.

Before December 25 became Christmas, the Winter Solstice punctuated the year’s coldest season—at least for those living in the Northern Hemisphere. Because it was cold, and meat cuts would keep, it was the right time to feast. European pagans celebrated the solstice with feasting, drinking, gift giving, decorative trees, and singing. The Puritans were not wrong when they surmised that Christmas had pagan roots.

In our more curmudgeonly moments, our inner Puritan may emerge. We may view Christmas as excessively commercialized and confected—a product of twentieth century marketing. Yet these special rituals and traditions have ancient origins. Their invention is not recent.

Unlike ancient Europeans, or Puritan settlers, we do not live our lives by the seasons, and we do not have to ferment our own beer or hunt our own deer. However it still remains important for all of us to pause and recognise these punctuation marks in the yearly calendar. Periods of rest and reflection—as well as shared revelry with our family and wider communities—are to our spirit a restorative medicine.

So wherever you are this year, I hope you are safe and warm and are lucky enough to have time off to be with your family. From everyone at Quillette we wish you a very Merry Christmas and we look forward to joining you again in the new year.