beseech Thee to keep Thy
wrath away from this city and from Thy holy Church, Alleluia!"

As papal Rome preserved many relics of heathen Rome, so, in like
manner, Pope Gregory, in sending Augustine over to convert the
Anglo-Saxons, directed him to accommodate the ceremonies of the
Christian worship as much as possible to those of the heathen, that
the people might not be much startled at the change; and, in
particular, he advised him to allow converts to kill and eat at the
Christmas festival a great number of oxen to the glory of God, as they
had formerly done to the honour of the devil. The clergy, therefore,
endeavoured to connect the remnants of Pagan idolatry with
Christianity, and also allowed some of the practices of our British
ancestors to mingle in the festivities of Christmastide. The religion
of the Druids, the priests of the ancient Britons, is supposed to have
been somewhat similar to that of the Brahmins of India, the Magi of
Persia, and the Chaldeans of Syria. They worshipped in groves,
regarded the oak and mistletoe as objects of veneration, and offered
sacrifices. Before Christianity came to Britain December was called
"Aerra Geola," because the sun then "turns his glorious course." And
under different names, such as Woden (another form of Odin), Thor,
Thunder, Saturn, &c., the pagans held their festivals of rejoicing at
the winter solstice; and so many of the ancient customs connected with
these festivals were modified and made subservient to Christianity.

Some of the English even tried to serve Christ and the older gods
together, like the Roman Emperor, Alexander Severus, whose chapel
contained Orpheus side by side with Abraham and Christ. "Roedwald of
East Anglia resolved to serve Christ and the older gods together, and
a pagan and a Christian altar fronted one another in the same royal
temple."[5] Kent, however, seems to have been evangelised rapidly, for
it is recorded that on Christmas Day, 597, no less than ten thousand
persons were baptized.

[Illustration]

Before his death Augustine was able to see almost the whole of Kent
and Essex nominally Christian.

Christmas was now celebrated as the principal festival of the year,
for our Anglo-Saxon forefathers delighted in the festivities of the
Halig-Monath (holy month), as they called the month of December, in
allusion to Christmas Day. At the great festival of Christmas the
meetings of the Witenagemot were held, as well as at Easter and
Wh