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Finally an answer to all your questions about everything. Not only an answer, but an answer from a Tim! E-mail all questions to AskingTim@Gmail.com or by clicking on the link on the left hand menu bar titled "Get your questions answered" and leaving a comment! I will reply (if I can) as soon as possible!

Tuesday, December 20, 2005

Christmas Tales

Is it true that we don't really know when Jesus's birthday really was? Is it true that early Christians said Christ's birthday is December 25 because it is close to other religious, such as pagans, holidays and made them easier to convert?

-Perplexed in Patagonia

Dear Perplexed,

It is true, we DON'T really know when Jesus' birthday was, but we do know it most likely wasn't in winter if we are to believe the rest of the tale. While it wouldn't be uncommon for Shepards to be tending their flock in December at night (about the time new grass begins to grow) it is more likely that it was in the Spring, when they would be there to assist with birthing of Spring lambs.

Many modern day scholars and astronomers have spent a lot time trying to determine a date based on astronomical events that were happening around that time (Star of David).

The first recorded time of Christmas on the 25th was in Constantinople (before it was Istanbul) around 379 AD after Emperor Constantine converted to Christianity on his death bed (first death bed conversion recorded as well) and Rome followed his lead.

It is believed it was done as way to get pagans to stop having their pagan fun on the 25th for Winter Solstice, but it was probably a way to get Christians to stop observing the solstice, and worship Jesus instead. It was most likely not done as a conversion tool, but a way to get current Christians from reverting to Pagan ways.

Originally, it was the Epiphany feast, celebrated on January 6th, which is where the 12 days of Christmas come from (the time between the 25th and the 6th), and many Christian religions refused to celebrate the 25th well into the 1800's.

Many Orthodox Catholics still celebrate the Epiphany on the 6th.

***Did you know*** According to Howard Clarke, in the US, Christmas cards bearing the Magi outsell those of the shepards.
:: posted by timothy, 1:31 PM | link | 0 comments |

Friday, December 09, 2005

You play it with your feet!

Where did the word "soccer" come from? Are Americans the only people in the world that call it soccer?

-Juggling in Johanesburg

Dear Juggling,

If you are like many of us, you first discovered that Soccer was known by other names when you took your first Spanish class. There you learned that "futbol" referred to soccer, while "futbol americana" is what we call football.

There is a short answer and long answer to this question, but in the interest of the meeting I'm about to adjourn too, we'll stick with the short.

Soccer was originally known as football (as it is played with the feet almost exclusively). It is often referred to as Soccer in english speaking countries where there is a rival code of football that is more popular. Codes such as Rugby football, Austrailian rules football, or even Canadian rules football (I think they call it hockey).

FIFA, known for being the world authority on soccer and its great Playstation games, refers to the sport as football.

The IOC (or International Olympic Committee) uses football as well.

Australia recently made a national change to call it only football, much to the amusement of fans. England also calls it football, and both countries will sometimes simplify it to "footie".

The term soccer first originated around the 1880's as a slang term for Association Football (yea, I don't see any R's in it either).

So America is one of the main countries that uses the phrase Soccer. There are others, like Canada, where the usage of "soccer" is so popular even in French speaking Quebec it is called "le soccer"

In white South Africa it is mainly called soccer, while black South African's generally use "football". In the language of Afrikaans, it would be "sokker".

In Irish (or Gaelic) it is "sacar", and they have a league of Gaelic football. But to go into all the idiosyncracies of Irish life would just be far too confusing for this simple post.

Outside of these few countries, everyone else calls it "football", or they speak another language so this is all a moot point.

But the term "soccer" is on the rise. Most likely due to the U.S. wanting the rest of the world to be just like us, and instituting trade embargo's until they call it what we want. It makes it easier for us to turn your interesting little town into nothing more than a tourist stop on our way to our next stop on the new Consumer based Imperialism that is all the rage right now. (Ok, there are so many things gramatically wrong with this last sentence that I don't even know how to fix it!)

That's just how we roll!
:: posted by timothy, 8:36 AM | link | 0 comments |