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The
Romans celebrated the new year, the early Catholic Church
condemned the festivities as paganism. But as Christianity
became more widespread, the early church began having its
own religious observances concurrently with many of the
pagan celebrations, and New Year's Day was no different.
New Years is still observed as the Feast of Christ's Circumcision
by some denominations.
During the Middle Ages, the Church remained opposed to celebrating
New Years. January 1 has been celebrated as a holiday by
Western nations for only about the past 400 years. Other
traditions of the season include the making of New Year's
resolutions. That tradition also dates back to the early
Babylonians. Popular modern resolutions might include the
promise to lose weight or quit smoking.
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