Christmas Traditions in 3 Countries
GERMANY The BUZZ: In Germany, Santa Claus visits twice: on December 6 in the form of St Nicholas, who places small gifts in polished shoes, and again...
Christmas Facts
The Big Christmas Quiz
1. Which city is furthest from Bethlehem? a) Cairo b) Jerusalem c) Nazareth 2. Which South African archbishop was born on Boxing Day? a) Buti Tlhagale b)...
Jesus, born in a cave in about 4 BC
Debate continues about when Jesus was born and whether Bethlehem was the actual birthplace. Still, some sense can be made of the Gospel accounts of Matthew and...
Cribs: A Brief History of the Nativity Scene
The Nativity scene that forms such an important part of our celebration of the Christmas season was invented by St Francis of Assisi. GUNTHER SIMMERMACHER takes a...
How St Nicholas Became Santa Claus
Santa Claus dominates the public image of Christmas, but he was based on a great Christian. GÜNTHER SIMMERMACHER looks at the history of St Nicholas of Myra,...
A Priest Put the Hook in Candy Canes
A sweet that has become symbolic of Christmas treats owes its mass-produced existence to a Catholic priest who once kicked Elvis Presley out of his church hall,...
Christmas Fun Facts You Didn’t Know
Father Christmas’s traditional red suit was first invented by Coca Cola and was seen in their advertisements in 1931. The name Santa Claus made its first...
Where Do Our Christmas Traditions Come From?
We celebrate it, eat through it, give gifts on it, and carry out the traditions our parents, and probably our grandparents, carried out. FR DESMOND NAIR finds...
6 Christmas Myths You May Have Fallen For
There were three wise men Mathew 2:1 tells us that when Jesus was born, wise men came from the east to Jerusalem. And that’s all. It makes...
Christmas Goes Pop
GUNTHER SIMMERMACHER presented the Rhythm & Truths music show on Radio Veritas a while back. Here he discusses some of the songs he played on the Christmas...
