Dr. Craig Mobey
Jesus is not pagan. I am not pagan. Christmas is not pagan.
Christmas is about Jesus Christ, the Son of God, and as with everything, we want to see Jesus in all things and see all things in light of Jesus.
Scripture Reading: Luke 2:8-14 (NIV)
8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.
9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.
10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.
11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.
12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
To Celebrate or Not?
Christmas is a term that comes from late old English meaning Cristes mæsse. Technically, Christmas is a “Church festival observed annually in memory of the birth of Christ.”
While it is true that the Bible does not instruct us to celebrate Christmas, it is also true that there are many other things the Bible doesn’t specifically address, for example, the Bible does not instruct the Festival of Hanukkah (Chanukah), yet it is clear from John 10:22-23 that Jesus attended Hanukkah.
The Bible does not forbid celebrating Christmas. On the contrary, biblically speaking, there is good reason to celebrate Christmas, for example:
- Zechariah 2:10, “Shout and be glad, Daughter Zion. For I am coming, and I will live among you,” declares the LORD.”
- Psalm 87:6-7, “The LORD will record in the register of the peoples: ‘This one was born in Zion.’ Selah. Singers and pipers will proclaim, ‘All my springs of joy are in You.’”
- Luke 2:20, “The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.”
Good news is always cause for celebration. It is appropriate to remind ourselves that when we celebrate the birth of Christ, we celebrate God becoming man (God with us, Matthew 1:23). This is the reason for our celebrations: God got involved in our hopeless position and He redeemed us. He lovingly reconciled us to Himself through His Son, Jesus Christ, the Messiah who willingly died on the cross in our place, for the forgiveness of our sins.
Concerning how we celebrate, I must highlight Luke 8:14, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace…” Whatever you choose to do, glorify God. Peacefully.
What About Saturnalia and Sol Invictus?
Christians do not have to find an “opening” in the pagan calendar to celebrate anything. Likewise, I don’t think pagans are going to keep a day open for Christian purposes.
Because pagans hold a festival on a given date does not mean that this date cannot be used for anything else. Christians and pagans can celebrate something completely different on the same date.
Saturnalia is a Roman festival in honour of the god, Saturn. The Northern Hemisphere winter solstice links with the festival of Saturnalia, bringing the date to around 25 December. Saturnalia originated as a farmer’s festival to mark the end of the autumn planting season in honour of Saturn. Although at Saturnalia, because there is feasting, goodwill, gifts etc. we can see that Saturnalia’s practices are similar to Christian practices at Christmas, but Saturnalia’s origins are very different to Christmas. Saturnalia celebrates an ending. Christmas celebrates a beginning. Indeed, Christians are not celebrating Saturnalia come 25 December, they are celebrating God becoming man.
Sol Invictus means “unconquered sun.” Sol Invictus was the official sun god of the later Roman Empire and a patron of soldiers. Emperor Aurelian established the cult of Dies Natalis Solis Invicti on December 25th A.D. 274 and decreed this day as the day of the Winter Solstice celebration. This is more than 50 years after Sextus Julius Africanus established Christ’s birthday; 72 years after Hippolytus had done so, and probably at least 100 years after Irenaeus established March 25 as the Annunciation. In other words, there is evidence that suggests that the first Sol Invictus celebration, at A.D. 274, is after the coupling of 25th December with Christmas. Christians are not celebrating Sol Invictus on 25 December, they are celebrating Christmas.
How Should We Think About Pagan Gods?
Compared to the magnificence of God, Saturnus, and Sol Invictus arguably don’t qualify for the status “god” (small “g”). The context in which Christians should see pagan gods is given in 1 Corinthians 8:4-6, “So then, about eating food sacrificed to idols: We know that ‘An idol is nothing at all in the world’ and that ‘There is no God but one.’ For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords”), yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live.”
25 December Might or Might Not Be the Exact Date of Jesus’ Birth, but It Is Very Close
Let’s agree that we are not celebrating the date, but the happening, i.e., the event.
Having said this, according to Jewish tradition, a prophet had a perfect lifespan. This is understood to mean that the prophet died on the date that they were conceived.
Working from annunciation to birth, the early church celebrated the annunciation on 25 March and roughly 9 months later His birth, around late December, possibly the 25th (c.f. Luke 1:26-31). Working from death backwards to conception and forward to birth, evidence points to Jesus being crucified around April 3rd, AD. 33. With the Annunciation (You will conceive …) around March 25th, His conception could have taken place a few days later and His birth would’ve taken place roughly 9 months after that, around December 25th. Furthermore, when Mary heard she was pregnant, Elizabeth was already 6 months pregnant with John. The Byzantine calendar celebrated John’s conception on September 23rd and his birth, nine months later would be June 24th. The Annunciation of March 25th is 3 months before John’s birth and roughly 9 months before December 25th.
The church father Chrysostom traces Zechariah’s service to the Day of Atonement, thus making the conception of John the Baptist happen in the Northern Hemisphere autumn. Add six months and Jesus’ conception is in the Northern Hemisphere spring, around late March. Nine months later is late December. By A.D. 221, 3 Christian writers had independently calculated the date of Jesus’ birth as 25 December. Irenaeus identified the date of his annunciation before the end of the second century. Hippolytus using a different method to Irenaeus arrived at 25 December (in his A.D. 202 commentary on Daniel 4:23) and Sextus Julius Africanus, in his “Chronology of the World” in A.D. 221 had also calculated 25 December.
25 December might not be the exact date, but if not exact, it is very close. As I said, we are not celebrating the date, but the happening.
In Conclusion
There is nothing in the Bible that says, “celebrate Christmas” and there is nothing in the Bible that says, “don’t celebrate Christmas.”
Having said this, we celebrate Christmas because, as the angel said, the birth of Jesus Christ is “good news.” Good news is meant to be celebrated. In fact, the angel said the news of Jesus’ birth would cause “great joy” and would be “for all the people” (Luke 2:10-11).
Even the shepherds took note of Jesus’ birth and instead of returning to the sheep with a sense of deep disappointment, Luke 2:20 explicitly states that they “glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen.”
Every day belongs to God (Hebrews 2:10-18), including December 25th.
Therefore, my Family and I Will Celebrate Christmas on 25 December.
I continue next week by looking at the symbols of Christmas and will also touch base on matters such as sheep and the time of the year.
God bless,
Amen.