The Universal History of Christmas - with Richard Rohlin

In this episode of the Universal History podcast, Richard Rohlin and I discuss Christmas, why it looks the way it does, how Christmas developed into what we have today, and why you absolutely should celebrate it if you’re a Christian.Buy the Beowulf Course (You have to have a profile on our Symbolic World community, you can create one for free): https://thesymbolicworld.com/news/the-beowulf-course-by-richard-rohlin-and-jonathan-pageau Join us at the Symbolic World Summit in Tarpon Springs, Florida. Date: Feb 29-Mar 2, 2024 Tickets start at $399: https://thesymbolicworld.com/summitTimestamps:0:00 - Coming up0:57 - Intro music1:22 - Introduction2:14 - The Christmas wars6:52 - Outline of this episode7:57 - The essence of Christmas14:51 - A glimmer of light16:19 - From the moment of conception19:57 - It's important to celebrate20:32 - A period of preparation22:48 - Winter comes with the cold26:16 - Christmas carols31:43 - Evergreenery33:00 - The Feasting of the Poor35:17 - Two rules about charity43:45 - Paraliturgical ways to participate in Christmas48:07 - Christmas in the early modern period49:21 - Medieval Christmas carols still sung today51:01 - The Christmas and Easter rhythm54:04 - The Puritans59:20 - The dangers of a feast1:03:06 - Christmas will win1:04:27 - Christmas aesthetics1:06:10 - Charles Dickens1:09:46 - Christmas in the US1:12:13 - Santa Claus and marketing1:14:54 - The Soviet Union1:15:24 - Three Kings cake1:16:40 - Commercialization1:18:24 - Richard's Midwit Defence of Christmas1:24:05 - Hamlet1:26:08 - God enters history1:28:27 - Christmas is not optional💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau 🗣 Join The Symbolic World Community for discussions about symbolism: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe 🔒 BECOME A PATRON Website: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe Patreon: http://www.patreon.com/pageauvideos 📱 SOCIAL MEDIA Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/TheSymbolicWorld Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/pageaujonathan Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jonathan.pageauOur website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson.