Archive for 2019
History of New Year’s Day: Why on January 1?
History of New Year’s Day: Why on January 1? It wasn’t always on this date. This article discusses its history.
Read MoreHistory of 2020: The Beginning of the New Decade?
ISN’T 2020 THE BEGINNING OF THE NEW DECADE? With the beginning of the New Year, you’ve seen articles everywhere discussing the end of the decade or declaring that 2020 is the beginning of the new decade. Q: Isn’t 2020 the beginning of the new decade? 2020 is the beginning of a new decade —…
Read MoreHistory of Childermas: Feast of the Holy Innocents
HISTORY OF CHILDERMAS Childermas, from an Old English word meaning the Mass of the Infants, is the festival in the church calendar begun in the fifth century — celebrated in the Western Church on December 28 and in the Eastern Church on December 29. It commemorated the date when King Herod ordered the massacre of the…
Read MoreHistory of the Feast of St. John: Which St. John?
History of the Feast of St. John. Who was St. John the Apostle and what was his role in history?
Read MoreHistory of Boxing Day: and Feast of St. Stephen
History of Boxing Day: how is it related to the Feast of St. Stephen?
Read MoreHistory of the Christmas Truce of 1914: Peace in the WWI Trenches
History of the Christmas Truce of 1914: The Surprising Peace in the WWI Trenches
Read MoreHistory of Christmas Eve and the Battle of the Bulge: 75 Years Ago
HISTORY OF CHRISTMAS EVE AND THE BATTLE OF THE BULGE: 75 YEARS AGO On Christmas Eve, 1944, my father, Staff Sergeant John Petro, had arrived in Strasbourg with the 42nd “Rainbow” Infantry Division. Eight days earlier, the Battle of the Bulge had begun, and the 42nd Division, along with others, supplied much-needed reinforcements to the…
Read MoreHistory of the Santa Tracker: How a Typo began Christmas tracking at NORAD
History of the NORAD Santa Tracker: How a typo began Christmas tracking at NORAD
Read MoreHistory of Chanukah: The Festival of Lights
History of Chanukah: The Festival of Lights, the historical, political, and religious background of this Jewish celebration.
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