How banning Christmas in Scotland helped to create Hogmanay
A ban on Christmas in Scotland led to the development of Hogmanay. This is the story ...
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More stories in life
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From St Stephens to the Epiphany to Candlemas: what are the unusually named Christian celebrations around Christmas and New Year?
The days and weeks following Christmas are meant for much more than turkey leftovers. Throughout the ages churches have designated particular days to remember important Christian stories – and to celebrate – and the period following Christmas is particularly full of them.
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Rediscovering the true reason for the season
Only the God of Christmas, the God whose birth as a human being took place on 25 December, can give us the true happiness we seek in this life and eternal life in the age to come.
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How a humble folk song became the world's best-known carol
At Christmas time, the best-loved of all Christmas carols is Silent Night. This is its story ...
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What was the star that the wise men followed?
At Christmas, we remember the wise men who followed a star to Bethlehem. But what was the star? This is the story ...
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Seven good Christmas films you've probably never watched before
If you fancy a change, here are seven seasonal movies that are less well-known, yet full of Christmas spirit.
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What is Christingle?
Every year, thousands of children across the UK attend a Christingle service at a local church. This is the story ...
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Nicky Gumbel, Matt Redman to join 25-hour global Christian event
"It's so easy to underestimate just how beautiful, powerful, and vast the Church really is," said Redman.
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The little-known history of the Nativity play
In the run-up to Christmas, primary schools and Sunday schools often put on Nativity plays. This custom, however, is a surprisingly modern tradition. Here is its story.
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God's peace and the world's peace are not the same thing
The peace of God is the opposite of all that the world has to offer.
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Gifts that aren't things: presents for your loved ones that won't end up at the back of a cupboard
It might be a heartwarming sight to see a pile of colourfully wrapped presents sitting snug under a twinkling Christmas tree. But post-celebrations, the resulting pile of goods can also sometimes leave us a little bit guilty.
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Reflections on faith and family from the Old Testament and New Covenant
The Book of Genesis provides a foundational narrative not just for Christianity, but for humanity itself.
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Will the real Church of England please stand up?
Against the gloomy background of failures, scandals and resignations, thousands of Church of England churches, and many thousands more of other denominations, are working hard at the grassroots.
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The Church and the history of time
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