西方和中国人是怎么过圣诞节的？一年一度的圣诞节又来啦！圣诞节的由来是什么呢，西方国家的人是怎么过圣诞节的呢?今天来给大家普及一下圣诞节的小知识吧。
圣诞节的由来传说（英文）
圣诞节是一年一度纪念耶稣基督诞辰的节日，圣诞节主要在12月25日举行，是全世界数十亿人宗教和文化的庆祝活动。圣诞节是世界上许多地区的公共假日，大多数基督教徒在宗教上庆祝圣诞节，而许多非基督教徒在文化上庆祝圣诞节，并以此为中心构成假日季节不可或缺的一部分。
Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. Christmas Day is a public holiday in many of the world s nations, is celebrated religiously by a majority of Christians, as well as culturally by many non-Christians, and forms an integral part of the holiday season centered around it.
在《新约》记载的传统圣诞节故事，即耶稣的诞生中说到，根据弥赛亚的预言，耶稣出生在伯利恒。尽管不知道耶稣的出生月份和日期，但在公元四世纪初的教堂将日期定为12月25日，这与罗马历上的夏日相对应。大多数基督教徒在公历12月25日庆祝，而世界各国几乎也都普遍采用公历。对于基督徒来说，庆祝圣诞节的主要目的是，相信上帝以人的形式来到世上为人类的罪孽赎罪，而不是知道耶稣的确切生日。
The traditional Christmas narrative, the Nativity of Jesus, delineated in the New Testament says that Jesus was born in Bethlehem, in accordance with messianic prophecies. Although the month and date of Jesus birth are unknown, the church in the early fourth century fixed the date as December 25. This corresponds to the date of the solstices on the Roman calendar. Most Christians celebrate on December 25 in the civil calendars used in countries throughout the world. For Christians, believing that God came into the world in the form of man to atone for the sins of humanity, rather than knowing Jesus exact birth sate, is considered to be the primary purpose in celebrating Christmas.
