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Did you know that Great Britain and many Commonwealth countries celebrate Boxing Day on Dec. 26 every year?
For most Americans, Christmas consists of two big days: Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day, both of which we celebrate to honor the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. But our BritisH neighbors across the pond, and our Canadian counterparts, keep the Christmas festivities going into the following day. (POLL: Do You Prefer Giving Gifts Over Receiving Them?)
The origins of this bonus celebration date back to the Victorian era, when servants and tradespeople would typically receive gifts. Servants worked on Christmas Day, so would have the next day off to be with their families, reports USA Today. The upper classes apparently gave leftover food, goods, or money in boxes for the poor, hence the name “Boxing Day.”
What Else Is Celebrated On Dec. 26?
Dec. 26 is also Saint Stephen’s Day, in honor of a Christian deacon in Jerusalem who many believe is the first Christian martyr, according to Britannica. Roman Catholics celebrate the Feast of St. Stephen on Dec. 26. (POLL: Do You Enjoy The Holiday Season?)
“You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always oppose the Holy Spirit; you are just like your ancestors. Which of the prophets did your ancestors not persecute? They put to death those who foretold the coming of the righteous one, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become. You received the law as transmitted by angels, but you did not observe it.” When they heard this, they were infuriated, and they ground their teeth at him. But he, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked up intently to heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” But they cried out in a loud voice, covered their ears, and rushed upon him together. They threw him out of the city, and began to stone him. The witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul. As they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he fell to his knees and cried out in a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them;” and when he said this, he fell asleep. ~Acts 7:51–60
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