Christmas: A Tradition of Gift-Giving

While Christmas traditions vary the world over, gift-giving is a central practice just about anywhere Christ's birth is celebrated. Sometimes gifts are exchanged on De­cember 6, the feast day of Saint Nicholas, and sometimes on Twelfth Night, the last day of Christmas, but most commonly on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, the of­ficial liturgical start of the season. Many people look to the gifts of the Magi as the original inspiration for Christmas gift-giving. But how the Magi’s gifts of gold frankincense, and myrrh for the Christ child transformed into the gift-giving extravaganza…