[Alex Murphy]

The Tannenbaum (which simply means "fir tree") came to be associated, apocryphally or not, with Martin Luther. Because of that, many Catholics in Germany once disdained it. The "aversion of many Catholics went so far," Mr. Brunner writes, "that at the end of the nineteenth century many simply called Protestantism the 'Tannenbaum religion.' " As late as the 1930s, the Vatican was recommending manger scenes instead of Christmas trees as a more theologically sound sort of decoration....

....the jingoistic editorialist at the New York Times...denounced "the German Christmas tree" as "a rootless and lifeless corpse." The trouble, it seems, was that the upstart immigrant tradition had displaced the Christmas stocking as the symbol of seasonal celebration, a change that "has been sincerely lamented by persons of artistic and devout tastes."

[HarleyD]

The "aversion of many Catholics went so far...that many simply called Protestantism the 'Tannenbaum religion.' " As late as the 1930s, the Vatican was recommending manger scenes instead of Christmas trees as a more theologically sound sort of decoration.

Christmas tree arrives at the Vatican

I guess they surrendered. :O)

[Berlin_Freeper]

“a rootless and lifeless corpse.”

Kind of like a homosexual, except festive.

[JRandomFreeper]

I had a Christmas tree. Once.

I have catz. Catz and Christmas trees go together like gasoline and lit cigarettes, or teenage boys, whiskey and motorcycles.

Chaos waiting to happen.

/johnny

[SaxxonWoods]

Like most early Christian rites, including baptism, the Christmas tree started as a pagan ritual. It was connected with the pagan Feast of Saturnalia, or winter festival.

Adoption of pagan rituals made it easier to convert the populace by using rites they already found familiar.

If you go to St. Peter’s and take the Scavi Tour (2 levels below the main altar), you will tour pagan burial rooms with receptacles built into the floor to receive pagan blood sacrifices.

And so, that which is old becomes new again.

[AndrewB]