These trees are still erected in the living rooms of modern observers of Christmas. However, the most disturbing and controversial pagan Yule ... For Christians, the worship of multiple gods ...

Credit: Anna Efetova via Getty Images It's often claimed that many of today's Christmas traditions derive from the pre-Christian observances of pagan cults suppressed by Roman authorities.

Dressed in pagan folk costumes, Latvians gather on a square in the centre of Riga for a ceremony that some historians see as the ancient precursor to the Christmas tree tradition. But these ...