I found a blog (Living for God) that has an excellent article about the true history of several of our Christmas traditions. 

Here is a small bit of the article:

………..   It would be difficult indeed for any open-minded skeptic to
seriously consider the prophecies concerning Christ without being
convinced of His deity. Yet, there are many people today who have
serious concerns regarding the _manner_ in which we celebrate
Christ’s birth.    Each year around this time, letters flood in to CRI offices
containing various questions about Christmas that range in topic
from the practice of exchanging gifts to the possible connection
between Christmas and the pagan holidays of Rome. So let’s take a
few moments to consider some of the more commonly asked questions
about Christmas.    *First, are Christmas trees a form of idolatry?* Interestingly,
this question arises out of a pronouncement made by the prophet
Jeremiah: “This is what the LORD says…the customs of the peoples
are worthless; they cut a tree out of the forest, and a craftsman
shapes it with his chisel. They adorn it with silver and gold; they
fasten it with hammer and nails so that it will not totter” (Jer.
10:2-4).     While at first blush this may seem to be referring to our
custom of decorating Christmas trees, a closer examination of
Jeremiah 10 reveals that God is in reality condemning the creation
of permanent wooden idols carved from the trees of the forest. In
the very next verse (vs. 5) God ridicules these idols because they
cannot walk or talk……………

Here is the original source for the article.

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