Christmas comes early this year with the bonus re-release of one of our favorite episodes exploring the strange, pagan, occasionally twisted origins of the Christmas holiday. How is Santa Claus connected to cannibalism? Which Christmastide holiday commemorates the slaughter of children? How should you decode the cryptic numerology message 20+C+M+B+22? And what's with all of those airborne reindeer?
Welcome to Ghosts of Christmases Past, in which Shane and Duncan explore how tree-worship and animal sacrifice evolved into the bizarre, festive, highly commercialized holiday we know today. So whether you're feeling the Christmas spirit or just feeling jaded and grinchy, grab a cup of heavily-spiked eggnog, get cozy by the yule-log, and join the boys as they unpack the fascinating pagan history of Christmas.
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Episode Transcript
The Wild World of P.E.T.A
(Sample) Livestream: The 5 Most Iconic Moments in Cinema
The Scandalous, Grifting History of Megachurches
Host Swap: The History of War Games and D&D
Wizards, Dragons, and White Supremacy: The Ku Klux Klan
The Darwin Awards: 2000s Edition
Prison Breaks: Alcatraz and El Chapo
Black Holes: Time-Warping Cosmic Paradoxes
Decoding Blood: The History of Genetics and DNA Profiling (Forensics Part 2)
Blood, Sweat, Fingerprints and Tears: Forensic Science
Famous Ships Lost at Sea
After Midnight Livestream - Full Episode: The Top 5 Holiday Songs (Re-Release)
Native American Mythology
Gunpowder, Treason, Masks, and Plot: The Legend of Guy Fawkes
ScamFluencers Part Two: The Worst of the Worst
ScamFluencers: Social Media Grifters and Con Artists
Legendary ”Cursed” Objects
True, Creepy, Unsolved Mysteries
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