- The New Testament / Markus Bockmuehl, Evangeline Kozitza
- Roman Catholicism / Anne McGowan
- Eastern Orthodoxy / Mary B. Cunningham
- Lutheranism / Kirsi Stjerna
- Anglicanism / Martyn Percy
- Reformed and Dissenting Protestants / Andrew R. Holmes
- The Holy Family / Holly Taylor Coolman
- Gabriel and the Angels / David Lyle Jeffrey
- Bethlehem and the Census / Leroy A. Huizenga
- The Magi and the Star / D. H. Williams
- The Inn, the Manger, the Swaddling Clothes, the Shepherds, and the Animals / Jody Vaccaro Lewis
- The Dating of Christmas: The Early Church / Paul F. Bradshaw
- The Winter Solstice and other Celebrations of the Season / Daniel Gifford
- St Nicholas to Santa Claus / Adam C. English
- Trees and Decorations / David Bertaina
- Gifts and Charity / Ellen M. Litwicki
- Children and Childhood / Marcia J. Bunge
- Food and Drink / Paul Freedman
- Carols and Music to 1900 / Tova Leigh-Choate
- Carols and Music since 1900 / Todd Decker
- Paintings / Barbara von Barghahn
- The Middle Ages / Kati Ihnat
- Plays / Frances Clemson
- Poetry / Emma Mason
- Fiction / Natalie McKnight
- Film and Television / Mark Connelly
- Bethlehem and the Middle East / Elizabeth Monier
- Catholic Europe / Nadine Cretin
- Germany and Scandinavia / Joe Perry
- Russia / Francesca Silano
- The United Kingdom / Martin Johnes
- The United States / Daniel Vaca
- The Reformation and Early Modern Periods / Katrina Jennie-Lou Wheeler
- Africa / Joel Cabrita
- Asia / Joseph Tse-Hei Lee
- Latin America and the Caribbean / David Thomas Orique O.P.
- Public Holidays and the Law / Richard W. Garnett, Jackson C. Blais
- Commercialism and Consumerism / John Schmalzbauer
- Secularity / David Nash
- Culture Wars / Gerry Bowler
- The Nineteenth Century / Timothy Larsen
- The Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries / Christopher Ferguson
- The Old Testament / John Barton
- Jesus Christ and the Incarnation / Katherine Sonderegger
- The Blessed Virgin Mary and the Virgin Birth / Katherine G. Schmidt
The Oxford Handbook of Christmas provides a comprehensive, interdisciplinary account of all aspects of Christmas across the globe, from the specifically religious to the purely cultural. The contributions are drawn from a distinguished group of international experts from across numerous disciplines, including literary scholars, theologians, historians, biblical scholars, sociologists, anthropologists, art historians, and legal experts. The volume provides authoritative treatments of a range of topics, from the origins of Christmas to the present; decorating trees to eating plum pudding; from the Bible to contemporary worship; from carols to cinema; from the Nativity Story to Santa Claus; from Bethlehem to Japan; from Catholics to Baptists; from secularism to consumerism. Christmas is the biggest celebration on the planet. Every year, a significant percentage of the world's population is draw to this holiday-from Cape Cod to Cape Town, from South America to South Korea, and on and on across the globe. The Christmas season takes up a significant part of the entire year. For many countries, the holiday is a major force in their national economy. Moreover, Christmas is not just a modern holiday, but has been an important feast for most Christians since the fourth century and a dominant event in many cultures and countries for over a millennium. The Oxford Handbook of Christmas provides an invaluable reference point for anyone interested in this global phenomenon.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)
