Skip to Main Content

The Oxford Handbook of Christmas

Online ISBN:
9780191869167
Print ISBN:
9780198831464
Publisher:
Oxford University Press
Book

The Oxford Handbook of Christmas

Timothy Larsen (ed.)
Timothy Larsen
(ed.)
Biblical and Theological Studies, Wheaton College
Find on

Timothy Larsen is McManis Professor of Christian Thought, Wheaton College, and an Honorary Fellow, School of Divinity, University of Edinburgh. He has been a Visiting Fellow at Trinity College, Cambridge, and All Souls College, Oxford. His books include Crisis of Doubt: Honest Faith in Nineteenth-Century England (2006); A People of One Book: The Bible and the Victorians (2011); The Slain God: Anthropologists and the Christian Faith (2014); and John Stuart Mill: A Secular Life (2018).

Published online:
8 October 2020
Published in print:
21 October 2020
Online ISBN:
9780191869167
Print ISBN:
9780198831464
Publisher:
Oxford University Press

Abstract

Christmas is an unrivalled annual celebration. This volume traces its history from the early Church’s decision to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ on 25 December through the medieval period and all the way into the twenty-first century. It explores Christmas around the world, including in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, as well as Europe and North America. It also presents the variety of ways that worshipping communities observe the festival from Roman Catholics to Reformed Protestants. All of the features of the Nativity Story are covered from the Holy Family to the Magi and the Star, as are the biblical and theological unpinning of Christmas, including the doctrines of the Incarnation and the Virgin Birth. Carols and music, as well as paintings, literature, and film and television, are all treated by experts, as are the more cultural aspects of the season ranging from Santa Claus to Christmas trees to food and drink. Finally, societal issues related to the law, secularity, commercialism, and consumerism are addressed as well. In other words, this volume aims at comprehensive treatment of Christmas across time, space, cultures, and the varieties of religious and secular contexts.

Contents
Close
This Feature Is Available To Subscribers Only

Sign In or Create an Account

Close

This PDF is available to Subscribers Only

View Article Abstract & Purchase Options

For full access to this pdf, sign in to an existing account, or purchase an annual subscription.

Close