Should Our Calendar Be Christian?

Yes, I know our calendar of the names of weekdays and names of months was created without consideration of Christian issues, but what if it were based on Christian issues?

The days of the week were named after the Moonday (Moon worshipers’ day); Tiusday (Anglo-Saxon god of war, Tiu); Wodensday (Woden, the chief god of Norse Mythology); Thorsday (Thor, the Norse god of war and fertility); Freyaday (Roman goddess of love and beauty); Saturnday (after the largest planet); and Sunday (worshipers of the sun)

The months’ names are not chosen any better: Janus+uary (two-faced Roman god of the beginnings and endings); Februas+uary (goddess of forgiveness); Martz (Roman god of war); Aprilius (goddess of new life); Mai (goddess of abundance, Juno (Jupiter’s wife and sister, goddess of women, families, and weddings); Julius Caesar (Roman emperor); Caesar Augustus (Roman emperor and Julius’ great-nephew); Sept+ember (7^th numbered); Octo+ber (8^th numbered); Nov+ember (9^th numbered); and Dec+ember (10^th numbered).

With respect that the last 4 months are off by two, there is a good reason to explain that. When the Romans were bound to the decimal number system, counting by 10’s, they considered that the Egyptians might be superior because they used the 12’s numbering system. Twelve in Egyptian is do+zen -- get it? dozen -- the two plus ten counting system. Therefore, Julius and his great-nephew August determined they were to be immortalized by naming two additional months by their own names and inserting them in the summer months right after June. They also made their months larger than the others by adding one day to each of theirs. Where did they get the other days? Thank you for asking. They stole the two days from Februas because she was the most forgiving of the other months’ namesakes.

I think mindful Christians would respect Biblical names of the months. How about: Matthewary, Markuary, Lukuary, and Johnuary, with some other Biblical names to finish out the year. Then weekdays could be named such as: Adamsday, Mosesday, Noahsday, . . , then Jesusday, and Godsday.

No one asked me for my opinion when the calendar was being created. What do you think??

We welcome you in church this Sunday, or whatever day it should be called -- perhaps “Son’s Day?”