Holiday Classic: When the Puritans Canceled Christmas

Holiday Classic: When the Puritans Canceled C...

Up next

What makes a word a 'word'?

Words are everywhere -- and we're grateful, because we can't do this show without them. But all words were, at some point, just made up. So how does society decide what counts as a "real" word? In today's episode, Ben, Noel and Max dive into the history of language, and the oddly ...  Show more

The Rise (and Crash) of the Concorde Jet

What if you could hop from France to New York in less than four hours? Traveling twice the speed of sound, with caviar, lobster, champagne and cigars? This was the pitch of the Concorde jet -- a revolutionary, utterly ridiculous and brilliant craft that promised to fundamentally ...  Show more

Recommended Episodes

Christmas Traditions
Superstitions

The roots of this festive holiday reach way back through history, with links to Nordic myths and the Roman Saturnalia. For colonists in 17th century America, celebrating Christmas was controversial… and in this telling, a despairing Puritan preacher goes so far as to try and canc ...  Show more

CLASSIC: The Mysterious Origins of Christmas
Stuff They Don't Want You To Know

Chances are that you've heard of the alleged war on Christmas, which some believe is an effort to distance the celebration from its origins. But what are those origins, exactly -- and where do modern Christmas traditions come from? Tune in to learn more. Join Ben and Matt as t ...

  Show more

Pour one out for my homeboy, Jesus - History of Christmas
Ladies & Tangents

YUUUULE! The true history of Christmas has been a mystery for us and on this episode we reveal the source of some of the Christmas traditions we know and love today. Don’t shoot the messenger, but documented history states that Christmas may not have had such a wholesome beginnin ...  Show more

Why do Christians celebrate a pagan holiday? (A Christmas Special) [E119]
Weaver & Loom

I've heard the argument that Christians are wrong to celebrate Christmas... and I can understand that view point given it's DARK pagan history (i.e. lawlessness, rape, human sacrifice) (Here is one of hundreds of links you can find on the origins of Christmas and Saturnalia. http ...  Show more