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Celebration isintrinsic to human nature. As God's image bearers we are compelled to celebrate—just as He did when He called His creation good, just as He did when He exalted His Son on top of a mountain, just as the angels and elders do around His throne. God even commanded celebrations in His name, providing the Jews specific instructions for feasts and holidays.

With the coming of Christ things changed a bit. God's people were no longer required to hold specific holy days above all others, because that was a feature of the Law that Christ fulfilled in our place and freed us from. The apostle Paul summarizes in Romans 14:5: One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.

That's not to say there aren't good reasons to observe certain holidays, especially those memorializing key events or elements of the Christian faith. We look to the Sabbath, or Lord's Day, as our day of worship, and the Christian calendar is a good guide to those days traditionally observed by the Church, with special emphasis on Advent and Christmas, Easter and Lent, and Pentecost. If you're so inclined, there are a bajillion saint days in honor of famous and lesser-known champions of the faith.

Many will argue that Christians should celebrate none of these holidays. The point isn't that the events commemorated aren't central to the Christian faith, but that their formalized celebration by the Church was simply a "christianization" of similar pagan holidays in the Roman and Near Eastern worlds. For instance, Christmas as observed on December 25th is really a Christian version of the Roman Saturnalia, a festival devoted to the sun; Easter is named after the Babylonian fertility goddess, and celebrates her union with the god Tammuz.

The similarities between the Christian holidays and their pagan counterparts are indeed fascinating. However, we take this as affirmation of God's sovereignty, not as a reason to avoid holiday celebrations. Through His death and resurrection, Christ redeemed all things and reclaimed them in His name.

"All things" includes holidays. Indeed, what Christ has done and what He gives us should be celebrated every day of the year, but to choose specific days for observance can help re-center our all-too-often selfish existences on Him. We do need to be careful not to simply accept worldly standards for our holidays (the commercialization of Christmas, the nonsense Easter bunnies, etc.), but we need to be equally sure we aren't refraining from genuine celebration just because those standards exist. God has given us all cause for joy, and it's our duty and pleasure to thank Him.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he is a husband and father, teaches adult Sunday school in his Presbyterian congregation, and likes weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here. 

 

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136 Items found Print
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Active Filters: 8th grade (Ages 13-14), Hardcover
Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr
Landmark #85
by Russel & Anna Crouse, illustrated by Walter Buehr
from Random House
for 5th-9th grade
in American Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAND)
All for Love
by Tasha Tudor, selected, edited and illustrated
from Simon and Schuster
Valentine's Day traditions for 3rd-Adult
in Holidays / Church Calendar (Location: HOLIDAY)
America During Four Wars
by Earl Schenck Miers & Felix Sutton
from Grosset & Dunlap
in American History Reference (Location: HISA-REF)
American Revolution
Landmark #83
by Bruce Bliven, Jr., illustrated by Albert Orbaan
from Random House
for 5th-9th grade
in American Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAND)
An Edwardian Christmas
by John S. Goodall
from Atheneum
for Preschool-Adult
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
Annotated Christmas Carol
by Charles Dickens
from W. W. Norton and Co.
for 6th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
B. Franklin, Printer
by David A. Adler
from Holiday House
for 6th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$8.00 (2 in stock)
Bells of Christmas
by Virginia Hamilton, illustrated by Lambert Davis
from Harcourt Brace Jovanich
for 3rd-8th grade
in Holidays / Church Calendar (Location: HOLIDAY)
Ben Franklin of Old Philadelphia
Landmark #28
by Margaret Cousins, illustrated by Fritz Eichenberg
from Random House
for 5th-8th grade
in American Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAND)
Betsy Ross and the Flag
Landmark #26
by Jane Mayer, illustrated by Grace Paull
from Random House
for 5th-8th grade
in American Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAND)
Black Heroes of the American Revolution
by Burke Davis
from Harcourt, Brace & World
for 4th-10th grade
in American Revolution (1765-1783) (Location: HISA-18REV)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Black Man in America
from Franklin Watts
for 6th-12th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Book of Christmas
from Reader's Digest
for 6th-Adult
in Christmas & Advent (Location: HOLIDAY)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Book of Christmas Carols
by Jane Lydbury
from Prentice Hall
for 2nd-Adult
in Christmas & Advent (Location: HOLIDAY)
Captain of the Minute Men
Boys of Liberty Library
by Harrie Irving Hancock
from David McKay Company
for 5th-8th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Carols for Christmas
by David Willcocks
from Metropolitan Museum of Art
for 6th-Adult
in Christmas & Advent (Location: HOLIDAY)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Carry On, Mr. Bowditch
by Jean Lee Latham, illustrated by John O'Hara Cosgrave II
from Houghton Mifflin
Biography for 5th-9th grade
1956 Newbery Medal winner
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$20.00 (1 in stock)
Charles Dickens Christmas
by Charles Dickens, illustrated by Warren Chappell
from Oxford University
for 6th-12th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Children's Letters to Santa Claus
by Bill Adler, compiler; illustrated by Yanni Posnakoff
from Essandess
for Kindergarten-Adult
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Christmas Carol
by Charles Dickens, illustrated by Arthur Rackham
from Gramercy Books
for 8th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Christmas Carol
Sterling Classics
by Charles Dickens, illustrated by Scott McKowen
Unabridged from Sterling Publishing Co.
Fantasy for 6th-10th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Christmas Carol
by Charles Dickens
from Bantam Books
for 6th-10th grade
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$3.95
Christmas Carol
by Charles Dickens, illustrated by Greg Hildebrandt
Unabridged from Simon and Schuster
Fantasy for 6th-10th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Christmas Carol
by Charles Dickens, illustrated by Roberto Innocenti
Unabridged from Stewart, Tabori, & Chang
Fantasy for 6th-10th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Christmas Carol
by Charles Dickens, illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman
Unabridged from Holiday House
Fantasy for 6th-10th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Christmas Carol
by Charles Dickens, illustrated by P.J. Lynch
Unabridged from Candlewick Press
Fantasy for 6th-10th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$19.99
Christmas Carol
by Charles Dickens, illustrated by Robert Ingpen
Unabridged from Palazzo Editions Limited
Fantasy for 6th-10th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$24.99
Christmas Carol
Macmillan Classics
by Charles Dickens, illustrated by John Groth
from Macmillan
Fantasy for 6th-10th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Christmas Carol
by Charles Dickens, illustrated by Robert Ball
from Macmillan
Fantasy for 6th-10th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Christmas Carol
by Charles Dickens, illustrated by Maraja
from Grosset & Dunlap
Fantasy for 6th-10th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Christmas Carol
by Charles Dickens, illustrated by Roberto Innocenti
Unabridged from Creative Editions
Fantasy for 6th-10th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$35.00
Christmas Carol and Other Christmas Books
by Charles Dickens, introduction by Margaret Atwood
from Everyman's Library
for 8th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Christmas Carol and Other Christmas Stories
by Charles Dickens, illustrated by Arthur Rackham
from Dilithium Press, Ltd.
for 5th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Cromwell's Head
by Olivia Coolidge, illustrated by Edward A. Wilson
from Houghton Mifflin
Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Daniel Boone: The Opening of the Wilderness
Landmark #21
by John Mason Brown, illustrated by Lee J. Ames
from Random House
for 5th-9th grade
in American Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAND)
Dickens: Five Christmas Novels
by Charles Dickens, illustrated by Reginald B. Birch
from Heritage Press
for 8th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Dolly Madison
Landmark #47
by Jane Mayer, illustrated by Walter Buehr
from Random House
for 5th-9th grade
in American Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAND)
Drumbeats in Williamsburg
by Isabelle Lawrence
from Rand McNally
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Drums
Scribner Illustrated Classics
by James Boyd
1st edition from Atheneum
for 5th-10th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Eating the Plates
by Lucille Recht Penner
1st edition from Simon and Schuster
for 4th-8th grade
in Pilgrims at Plymouth (Location: HISA-17PIL)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Far Frontier
by William O. Steele; illustrated by Paul Galdone
from Harcourt
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Feast of Thanksgiving: A Play
by June Behrens, Illustrated by Anne Siberell
from Children's Press
for 6th-Adult
in Holidays / Church Calendar (Location: HOLIDAY)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Fight for Freedom
by Benson Bobrick
1st edition from Atheneum
for 5th-10th grade
in American Revolution (1765-1783) (Location: HISA-18REV)
$24.99 $15.00 (1 in stock)
George Balanchine's The Nutcracker
from Barnes & Noble
for Preschool-Adult
in Christmas & Advent (Location: HOLIDAY)
George Rogers Clark, Soldier in the West
by Walter Havinghurst
from McGraw-Hill
for 7th-10th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
George Washington
by M. D. Holmes
from John C. Winston
for 6th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
George Washington & the Founding of a Nation
by Albert Marrin
from Dutton Children's Books
Biography for 7th-10th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
George Washington and the Making of a Nation
by Marcus Cunliffe
from Troll Associates
for 6th-10th grade
in American Heritage Junior Library (Location: VIN-HIS)
George Washington's World (pictorial hardcover)
by Genevieve Foster
from Charles Scribner's Sons
for 7th-10th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$38.00 (1 in stock)
George Washington, Spymaster
by Thomas B. Allen
from National Geographic
for 7th-12th grade
in American Revolution (1765-1783) (Location: HISA-18REV)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
George Washington: Frontier Colonel
Landmark #71
by Sterling North, illustrated by Lee J. Ames
from Random House
for 5th-9th grade
in American Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAND)
George Washington: Soldier and Man
by North Callahan
from William Morrow & Company
for 7th-10th grade
in Clearance: History & Geography (Location: ZCLE-HIS)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Gift of the Magi
by O. Henry, illustrated by Kevin King
from Simon and Schuster
for 4th-10th grade
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Gift of the Magi and Other Stories
Books of Wonder
by O. Henry (illustrated by Michael Dooling)
from William Morrow & Company
for 4th-10th grade
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
Gift of the Magi and Other Stories
Books of Wonder
by O. Henry, illustrated by Gordon Grant
from Reader's Digest
for 4th-10th grade
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
Gift of the Magi and Other Stories
by O. Henry, illustrated by P. J. Lynch
from Candlewick Press
for 4th-10th grade
in Christmas & Advent (Location: HOLIDAY)
$17.99
Golden Book History of the United States Volume 3
by Earl Schenck Miers
from Golden Press
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Golden Book of the American Revolution
from Golden Press
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Haym Salomon: Liberty's Son
by Shirley Milgrim, illustrated by Richard Fish
from Jewish Publication Society
for 4th-8th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
History of Plymouth
by William Bradford
from Walter J. Black, Inc.
for 8th-Adult
in Walter J. Black Classics Club (Location: VIN-LITWJB)
Holiday Song Book
by Robert Quackenbush, arrangements by Harry Buch
from Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books
for 3rd-Adult
in Vintage Nonfiction (Location: VIN-NFIC)
Hosanna in Excelsis
by David & Barbara Leeman
from Moody Press
for 3rd-Adult
in Christmas & Advent (Location: HOLIDAY)
$15.99
I Have Just Begun to Fight
by Commander Edward Ellsberg, illustrated by Gerald Foster
from Dodd, Mead & Co.
for 5th-8th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Israel
by Maida Silverman
First Edition from Dial Books for Young Readers
for 4th-8th grade
in Near & Middle East (Location: HISMC-NME)
Jack Wade, Fighter for Liberty
A Doubleday Signal Book
by Irving Werstein, illustrated by Albert Orbaan
from Doubleday & Company
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
John Treegate's Musket
Treegate Series Book 1
by Leonard Wibberly
3rd printing from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Historical fiction for 7th-10th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Joy to the World
by Ruth Sawyer, illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman
from Little, Brown & Company
for 3rd-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Lafayette in America
North Star Books #15
by André Maurois
from Houghton Mifflin
for 6th-8th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Lafayette!
Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales #8
by Nathan Hale
from Amulet Books
for 4th-8th grade
in Comic Books & Graphic Novels (Location: FIC-COMIC)
$14.99
Landing of the Pilgrims
Landmark #2
by James Daugherty
from Random House
for 5th-8th grade
in American Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAND)
Landing of the Pilgrims
Spencer Press Landmark #2 (RH#3)
by James Daugherty
from Spencer Press
for 5th-8th grade
in American Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAND)
Lexington, Concord and Bunker Hill
by Francis Russell
from Troll Associates
for 6th-10th grade
in American Heritage Junior Library (Location: VIN-HIS)
Liberty or Death
by Margaret Whitman Blair
from National Geographic
for 4th-9th grade
in American Revolution (1765-1783) (Location: HISA-18REV)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
Life & Times of Washington
by Mario Rivoire
from Curtis Publishing Co.
Biography for 8th-12th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Life & Times of Washington
by Mario Rivoire, translated by C.J. Richards
from Arnoldo Mondadori Editore
Biography for 8th-12th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Life of Saint Patrick
World Landmark #17
by Quentin Reynolds, illustrated by Douglas Gorsline
from Random House
for 5th-9th grade
in World Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAN)
Little Christmas Carol
by Charles Dickens, illustrated by Joe Sutphin
from Moody Press
for 3rd-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$29.99
Lover's Posy
by Celia Haddon
from Michael Joseph
Valentine's Day Poetry for 6th-Adult
in Poetry Anthologies (Location: POET-ANTH)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Marquis de Lafayette
World Landmark #34
by Hodding Carter, illustrated by Mimi Korach
from Random House
in World Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAN)
Mary Did You Know? - Book and CD
by Mark Lowry
from Thomas Nelson Publishers
for 6th-Adult
in Christmas & Advent (Location: HOLIDAY)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Meggy MacIntosh
by Elizabeth Janet Gray, illustrated by Marguerite de Angeli
from Viking Press
for 7th-10th grade
1931 Newbery Honor Book
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Military Buttons of the American Revolution
by Don Troiani, photographs by Michael O'Donnell, foreword by James Kochan
from Thomas Publications
for 8th-Adult
in American Revolution (1765-1783) (Location: HISA-18REV)
Miracle on 34th Street
by Valentine Davies
from Harcourt
Realistic Fairy Tale for 6th-9th Grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$19.99
Miracle On 34th Street
by Valentine Davies, illustrated by Tomie DePaola
from Harcourt Brace Jovanich
Realistic Fairy Tale for 6th-9th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Mission Accomplished
by Scott James
from New Growth Press
for All ages
in Easter & Lent (Location: HOLIDAY)
My Brother Sam Is Dead
by James & Christopher Collier
from Simon and Schuster
Historical Fiction for 5th-8th grade
1975 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
My Brother Sam Is Dead
by James & Christopher Collier
from Four Winds Press
Historical Fiction for 5th-8th grade
1975 Newbery Honor Book
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Nicholas: A Manhattan Christmas Story
by Annie Carroll Moore, illustrated by Jay Van Everen
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
for 5th-8th grade
1925 Newbery Honor Book
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Nutcracker
by E. T. A. Hoffmann
from Harcourt, Brace & World
for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Nutcracker
by E. T. A. Hoffmann
from Unicorn Publishing House
for 4th-8th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
O Come, All Ye Faithful
by Bobbie Wolgemuth, Joni Eareckson Tada, Robert & Bobbie Wolgemuth
First Edition from Crossway Books
for Preschool-Adult
in Christmas & Advent (Location: HOLIDAY)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
by Jonathan Gibson
from Crossway Books
for 6th-Adult
in Devotionals (Location: XCL-DEV)
$29.99
O Sacred Head, Now Wounded
by Jonathan Gibson
from Crossway Books
for 6th-Adult
in Devotionals (Location: XCL-DEV)
$26.40
Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving
by Louisa May Alcott, illustrated by Michael McCurdy
from Holiday House
Family Stories for 4th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving
by Louisa May Alcott, illustrated by Michael McCurdy
from Lippincott
Family Stories for 4th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
One Dead Spy
Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales #1
by Nathan Hale
from Amulet Books
for 3rd-8th grade
in Comic Books & Graphic Novels (Location: FIC-COMIC)
$15.99
Our Independence and the Constitution
Spencer Press Landmark #4 (RH#5)
by Dorothy Canfield Fisher
from Spencer Press
for 5th-8th grade
in American Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAND)
Paul Revere and the Minute Men
Landmark #4
by Dorothy Canfield Fisher, illustrated by Norman Price
from Random House
for 5th-8th grade
in American Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAND)
Paul Revere and the Minute Men
Spencer Press Landmark #3 (RH#4)
by Dorothy Canfield Fisher
from Spencer Press
for 5th-8th grade
in American Landmark Books (Location: VIN-LAND)
Peter Treegate's War
by Leonard Wibberley
from Ariel Books
for 7th-10th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
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