There is a worldwide economic recession taking place right now and many people have lost their jobs. As a result of this, many are worried about not having enough for their Christmas celebration. But why celebrate Christmas? Where did it come from?
We came and we saw others, including our ancestors celebrating Christmas and so we follow the tradition. We assume that our actions are right and that the Bible supports what we have been told by many of our so called Christian churches. We are taught that Christmas celebrations are in commemoration with the birth of Christ and that Jesus was born on December 25.
The truth is, there is NO biblical proof or historic support for a December 25 birth of Jesus. It is not so much as mentioned anywhere in the New Testament. It was never observed by Paul, the apostles or the early “true church.”
The idea that Jesus was born December 25 is one of fables the apostle Paul spoke of in (2 Timothy 4:4) that would deceive the world in these latter days.
Now if Christmas is not Christ’s birthday and the Bible does not mention it where did it come from? The plain truth is, Christmas is not Christ’s birthday and this festival, important as it may seem to so many, is not of Christian but of pagan. Babylonish origin. This may seem unbelievable, but think about this. Jesus was born early the first century but the Christmas festival was not celebrated until the fourth century (354 A.D.) Isn’t something odd about that?
Here is another interesting fact about when Jesus was born. He could not have been born in the winter season as we suppose. When Christ was born, ‘there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night (Luke 2:8) this could never take place in Palestine in the month of December.Says The Adam Clarke Commentary Vol. 5.
The shepherds usually brought their flocks from the mountain sides and fields no later than October 15 to protect them from the cold rainy season that followed that date. Notice that the Bible itself proves (Mark 13:18, and Song of Solomon 2:11) among other scriptures that winter was a rainy season that did not permit shepherds to abide in the open fields at night .
Continuing, this authority states; during the time they were out, the shepherds watched them day and night. As the first rain began early Marcheshvan (i.e. mid October) we find that the sheep were kept out in the open (field) during the whole summer, and as these shepherds had not yet brought their flocks, it is reasonably presumed that October had not yet began or it was very early. Consequently Jesus could not have been born on December 25. The shepherds were still out in the field.
If God wanted us to observe and celebrate Jesus’ birthday, he would not have completely hidden the exact date.
The truth is that all of the customs of Christmas pre-date the birth of Jesus Christ. The date of December 25, comes from Rome and was a celebration of the Italic god, Saturn and the rebirth of the sun god. In fact Christmas is strictly a Roman Catholic word.
What Encyclopedias say about Christmas
Where Christmas originates since it came to us through the Roman Catholic Church and has no Biblical authority?
Let us examine the Catholic Encyclopedia.
Under the Caption ‘Christmas’ we will find:
‘Christmas was not among the earliest festivals of the church. The first evidence of the feast is from Egypt.’ Pagan customs centering around January calends gravitated to Christmas. And further we find this truth acknowledged in the scriptures, sinners alone, not saints celebrate their birth day: From
(The Plain Truth about Christmas)
Encyclopedia Britannica has this: Christmas (i.e. the mass of Christ). Christmas was not among the earliest festivals of the church. It was not instituted by Christ of his apostles, or Bible authority, it was picked afterward from paganism. (The Plain Truth etc.)
The Encyclopedia Americana says: ‘Christmas’, it was according to many authorities, not celebrated in the first centuries of the Christian church, as the Christian usage in general was to celebrate the death of remarkable persons than their birth. (‘The communication’ which is instituted by the New Testament Bible Authority, is a memorial of the death of Christ). A feast was established in memorial of this event (Christ’s birth) in fourth century. In fifth century the Western Church ordered it to be celebrated forever on the day of the old Roman feast of the birth of Sol, as no certain knowledge of the day of Christ’s birth existed.
Encyclopedia International states:
The actual date of Jesus’ birth in unknown, and Christians did not have a nativity feast until the 4th century. The earliest certain mention of December 25 as Christ’s birthday occurs in the Philocalican calendar 354 AD
December 25, was already a major festival in pagan Rome world i.e. the birthday of the unconquered sun. A feast honouring the renewal of sun at the winter solstice pagan celebrations on December 25 had included feasting, dancing, lighting bonfires, decorating homes with greens and giving gifts.
History proves that Christmas celebration is a pagan practice etc. State what the Bible says: Jeremiah 10:1-5; Leviticus 20:23; Romans 1:18; Romans 6:12-13, 16; Revelation 14:9-10; Revelation 18:4-5.