No it's the one where you eat a roasted pig off of a virgin's stomach.

What did the pig do to deserve that kind of treatment?

Religion and ancient rituals. Pretty amazing the crap that humans come up with to try and control each other ain't it?

I wonder if Zurich will be overrun by Innerschwyzers today doing their Christmas shopping, that is should I take the car or the train for my own shopping trip

They instruct this because they choose to believe it, but that doesn't necessarily make it accurate.

If anyone cares to type "When was Jesus born?" into Google, there are enough references from a wide variety of sources to dispute any accuracy in any of the listed precise dates - in fact it is generally accepted that he was born 4yrs. earlier than people originally believed.

The problem with religion is that blind faith alone cannot counter logic.

Bern will probably be overrun with Dzodzets today

I always, even as a child, had the image of Mary getting gang-banged by a bunch of angels, and one of the buggers saying to Sepp (Josef) "tis allright bro, it´s the will of god!"

And he wasn't born on the 25th December either. The early missionaries chose the date to replace an ancient celtic festivitiy. Same with Easter.

That's gross

It's the only day of the year we allow ourselves to step foot in Zürich. Otherwise, we avoid it like the plague.

The good Burghers of SZ have already finished their Christmas shopping. That was what the Einsiedeln Weihnachtsmarkt was for.

Besides, we Ausser/Innerschweizers are still recovering from St. Nikolastag celebrations. Venturing beyond the comforts of home - let alone into that benighted heathen Züriland - is a discomforting thought.

So not to worry.

Easter was passover. So whilst the dates are not clear, the general time of year is. :P

Yeah right. There's All Saints, Mary's Hairdessing appointment, the Holy Ghost's casino evening and countless other "catholic day's off for no apparent reason...".

He's not the Messaih he's a very naughty boy!

In Italy, December 8 means the official start of the ski season (if there is snow, of course), and the day when you are supposed to put up Christmas decorations and the Christmas three, nativity scene, etc. (you are supposed to leave them there until January 6). I have good memories of constructing awesome multiple nativity scenes in the fireplaces and garden at my parents' house as a kid, with middle eastern villages, aluminium rivers, paper and rock mountains, the whole shebang.

Plus, if you work in Milan, December 7 is the patron saint of the city, so double day off

Maybe (certainly) I am not as good a catholic as I should be, but for me December 8 always meant Christmas tree, skiing, and days off!

Yes, but we all do this after church so it's OK.

...

Exactly. Today's feast is for the conception of Mary, free from original sin (or whatever that means). The conception of Jesus, the Anunciation, is celebrated on March 25th, exactly 9 months before Christmas day, funnily enough. So that's yet another made-up date in the christian calender

Ah religion...

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