Christians have been engaged in several Christmas wars: Christmas has its origins in the winter solstice festivals that most ancient civilizations observed, and Mithras, who was a Persian savior-god with a sizeable Roman following, was born on Dec. 25. By appropriating this day for the birth of Jesus, Christians felt they could more easily convert those wayward pagans. Centuries later, some early American Puritans even prohibited Christmas celebrations because of its pagan origins. So a good case can be made that Christians initiated the first war on Christmas.
MORE: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/guest-voices/post/the-war-on-christmas-a-holiday-tradition-for-all/2012/12/11/d066da66-43e2-11e2-9648-a2c323a991d6_blog.html
