Christmas
What is Christmas?
Christmas is an annual Christian festival celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ, which also explains the origin of the name of the festival. Christmas is also widely celebrated by non-Christians worldwide.
When is Christmas?
Christmas is celebrated on December 25 in the Western Church and the Western world in general. In addition, the evening before Christmas is called Christmas Eve and is also part of the festivities for many people. Some Eastern Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas on January 6 and 7 instead.
Celebrating Christmas
Christmas is celebrated in different ways around the world. Many Christians attend church services to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, and many non-Christians celebrate Christmas as a family holiday. Eating and drinking, being together with your loved ones and the Christmas spirit (peace on Earth) are central themes. Light in dark days is also a Christmas theme worldwide, but not in Australia, as Christmas comes during the summer there.
Among the many ways people celebrate Christmas in Australia, some well-known examples are placing and decorating the Christmas tree, setting up a Nativity scene or miniature Christmas village, carolling or listening to Christmas songs, eating a Christmas lunch or dinner together – roast turkey is a favourite – and giving and receiving gifts. The latter is usually done by drawing names and buying a fitting gift for each other, without letting it be known who gave which gift. This is also referred to as a Secret Santa.
Some people also celebrate Christmas in July. The event is centered around Christmas-themed activities with the goal of getting in the spirit of Christmas during July. Christmas in July does not replace Christmas in December, but is enjoyed as an extra celebration.
Secret Santa
Secret Santa is a gift exchange tradition that has its roots in early Christmas traditions. The original ‘Secret Santas’ were the gift-bearing helpers of St. Nick. Today, it’s celebrated as a gift exchange occasion that renews bonds between family and friends, and as a moment to solidify connections between usually busy co-workers – like a Secret Santa office party. Creating a Secret Santa gift exchange means creating a moment of togetherness and delight. There’s always the anticipation of “who will be my Secret Santa?”. It’s always a fun surprise! Read more about the different forms of Secret Santa in this blog. For more Secret Santa inspiration and Secret Santa gift ideas be sure to check out these Secret Santa Ideas. You can even set up a Secret Santa gift exchange without email on the drawnames Secret Santa App.
Secret Santa rules
The first step to a Secret Santa is to determine who will participate, and then draw names. You can draw names from a hat, but it is much easier and more convenient to use drawnames.com.au for this. After that, you will buy each other gifts. If you use our website, you can add a wish list. This way, it is easy to buy a gift for your target using the integrated gift finder. Finally, the last step is to get together and exchange the gifts. You can find more detailed rules for Secret Santa.