The big idea: could we do Christmas differently? | Books | The Guardian

The big idea: could we do Christmas differently? | Books | The Guardian: The%20puritan%20MPs%20who%20banned%20Christmas%20in%2017th-century%20England%20had%20a%20point.%20They%20thought%20holy%20days%20should%20involve%20contemplation%20rather%20than%20waste%2C%20extravagance%2C%20disorder%2C%20sin%20and%20immorality%2C%20so%20outlawed%20not%20just%20Christmas%2C%20but%20Easter%20and%20Whitsun%20too.%20%u201CChrist-tide%u201D%20%28renamed%20to%20eliminate%20Roman%20Catholic%20associations%20with%20the%20mass%29%20was%20to%20be%20marked%2C%20if%20at%20all%2C%20with%20fasting%20and%20prayer.