Is Christmas a Pagan Holiday or a Christian Holy Day?

By Nana Akwasi Twumasi

Christmas, perhaps the most celebrated “holy day” within the Christendom and beyond, is ironically as foreign to the Bible as democracy is to Communist China. Neither the Christ nor the inspired writers of the Holy Book played a role in the institution and perpetuation of what we call Christmas. However, December 25 has found its way into the annals of history as the birthday of the Christ, and on this day we see, among other things: the exchange of gifts, greeting cards, and other pleasantries; playing of music; church celebrations; preparation and sharing of special meals; decorations with Christmas trees and lights, nativity scenes, mistletoes, garlands etc—all of these done in the name of the Christ, capitalizing on the fecundity of our Christian freedom. If Christians, in principle, are to be guided by scriptural mandates, and history informs us in unequivocal terms that Christmas is an extra-biblical construct, then, what is a Christian to do? The position of the author on this subject is not an appeal to anyone to return to the strict pharisaical legalism of the first century— far from it. The authorial intent in this piece, and the conclusion thereof, lie squarely within the realms of history and scriptural hermeneutics.

Any avid student of the history of Christianity must be aware of the pagan origin of Christmas and all its appurtenances (e.g., Santa Clause aka Saint Nicholas aka Father Christmas; Christmas tree and lighting; 25th December as the birthday of the Christ, etc). Christmas, a syncopation of “Christ’s Mass,” was derived from the Middle English “Christemasse,” and Old English “Cristes Maesse,” a phrase that was coined around 1038 AD. Christmas, as an occasion to memorialize the birthday of the Christ, commenced with a Roman emperor who had a penchant for polytheism. Emperor Constantine (aka Constantine the Great) was born around 272 AD and succeeded Diocletian (244 - 311 AD) as emperor of the Western Roman Empire in 305 AD. As a polytheist, he worshipped the pantheon of Roman gods, and he partook in the celebrations of festivals honoring these pagan deities in keeping with the tradition of his forerunners. On October 28, 312 AD when he was en route to engage his arch nemesis Maxentius in the Battle of the Milvian bridge, Emperor Constantine had a vision in which a cross of light was superimposed upon the Sun with the words, “In hoc signo vinces” or “With this sign you shall conquer.” Coincidentally, he won his battle and he attributed his victory to the cross he had seen in his vision. Thereafter, he converted to Christianity and began to champion the teachings of his newfound religion. Among other things, he, together with his co-emperor Licinius, signed the Edict of Milan (circa 313), which gave equal rights to the various religious entities in his kingdom. In 325 AD he convened the first Council of Nicaea to quell the promulgation of false doctrines in Christianity.

Even though he was a Christian convert, Emperor Constantine still had a lingering proclivity for paganism. He was instrumental in merging the story about the birth of the Christ in the gospels (termed Nativity) with prominent pagan festivals, which resulted in the creation of our present day Christmas. As history tells us, the debate to celebrate the Christ’s birth predates Constantine; however, he was the one to put an official stamp on it. Right from its inception, many reputable Christians rebutted the idea of celebrating the Christ’s birth. Origen Adamantius (185-254 AD) was a Christian scholar and an early “church father” who vehemently objected to the idea because, for one, it was unscriptural and, secondly, because the idea was picked from the pages of pagan celebrations. Among the latter was a festival dedicated to the Roman god of agriculture (Saturn), which spanned December 17-23. Another was a festival dedicated to the birth of the Persian god of light (Mithras). Still, another was Dies Natalis Solis Invicti or “the birthday of the unconquered Sun,” which was celebrated on December 25. Historians have noted that the initial stages of Christmas was characterized by exchange of gifts; gathering of family and friends for the purpose of feasting; and celebration of birth— all of these being cardinal traits and extracts of Roman and Persian festivals dedicated to their pagan gods in antiquity. Thus, our modern day Christmas is an amalgam of prominent and notable pagan feasts and the Nativity story of the gospels.

If, for the sake of argument, Christians could commemorate the date of the Christ’s birth, the next logical question would be: When was the Christ born? The opinions on this question are as diverse as the different species of bacteria inhabiting our planet. Titus Flavius Clemens also known as Clement of Alexadria (150-215 AD) suggested a date of May 20. The Christian writer Hippolytus (170-236 AD) suggested January 20. Other dates that were considered, include January 1, March 21, April 18, April 19, May 1, November 20 etc. So, where did 25th December come from? 25th December was recognized as the birthday of the Sun in pagan circles, and the “church” coincidentally identified this day also as the birth of the Christ. In fine, it appears December 25 was chosen, not because it was the historical birthday of the Christ, but because it was popular in pagan religious celebrations of which Constantine had been a major practitioner. What is the biblical evidence to debunk December 25 as the birthday of the Christ? The Gospel of Luke tells us, “and she [i.e., Mary] gave birth to her firstborn, a son [i.e., Jesus Christ]. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at nights” (Luke 2:7-8). According to this text, at the time of Jesus’ birth, there were shepherds keeping watch over their flocks at night. A contextual analysis of this text would reveal that a birthday of December 25 (i.e., winter) would place the shepherds in the open fields in the cold and rainy winters of Judea. At this time of the year, some have argued, shepherds would most likely seek shelter than stay outside watching their flock in freezing temperatures. This text rather points to the summer or the early fall as the potential season of the Christ’s birth.

Further, according to Luke, “In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) And everyone went to his own town to register. So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David…While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born” (Luke 2:1-6). This text shows that Joseph and his family went to Bethlehem to participate in the said census. On this score, it has been argued logically that census did not take place during the winter when temperatures often dropped below freezing point and roads were in poor conditions. This position argues against the fabricated day of 25th December as the birthday of the Christ.

God, the Creator of all, knows the inclination of man’s heart and He has always known how to deal with him. For example, when his servant Moses died, God knew that the stiff-necked Jews would possibly enshrine his body or grave. Resultantly, archangel Michael disputed with the devil over the body of Moses (Jude 9), and Moses’ body was buried, and it has not been found to date (Deuteronomy 34:5-6). Could it be a sheer coincidence that the Bible is silent about the birth date of the Christ; and further, that this date has eluded man just like the body of Moses? To make another point, the Bible chronicles the Christ’s earthly rites of passage: his birth, his life, and his death. Of these three, the early Christians, as the Bible tells us, were instructed to commemorate the death of the Christ; for Christians are saved by the death of the Christ, not by his birth or the life he lived per se. Of course, this writer is cognizant of the fact that some people celebrated the birth of the Christ in the Bible, including the shepherds (Luke 2:8-20) and the Magi (Matthew 2:1-12). However, there is no scriptural evidence that the birth of Jesus was celebrated in a ritualistic manner, year after year on the 25th December. As a side note, we do celebrate the birth of a child into out society, so the act of the Magi and the shepherds was not necessarily an anomaly…in a way.

The truth of the matter is that man does not tell God how to worship Him. On the contrary, God calls the shots on matters relating to Christian worship. Man was not the first to come up with the idea that the Christ had to be commemorated. Jesus Christ himself instituted the Lord’s Supper by which he was to be remembered. Paul, under divine inspiration, recounted the purpose of the institution of the Lord’s Supper in 1 Corinthians 11:23ff, “For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; DO THIS IN REMEMBRANCE OF ME.” In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, IN REMEMBRANCE OF ME”’ (Quoted from the NIV; emphasis mine). The first century Christians commemorated the Christ by observing the Lord’s Supper (Acts 2:42, 20:7), not Christmas.

We are presented with two unambiguous choices: One, commemorate the Christ by celebrating the Lord’s Supper as he himself instructed; or, two, commemorate the Christ by celebrating his birthday on December 25 as proposed by “man.” What’s the view within the Christendom? Some ecumenical establishments don’t bother to research the scripturality of Christmas. Some remain nonchalant about it. Still, others don’t think it is a big deal because man has become accustomed to it. If we don’t see anything wrong with Christians partaking in Christmas celebrations ( as a holy day) in spite of the overwhelming evidence of its pagan origin, then we should not bother proselytizing those who are into ancestral worship or those of other religious persuasion, since they may also be accustomed to their religion. Perhaps we can appeal to biblical characters, such as Uzzah (2 Samuel 6:1-8) and Nadab/Abihu (Leviticus 10:1-2) to help us to better understand how God feels when we put our well-meaning intentions above His direct instructions. In the former scenario, Uzzah held the Ark of God to shield it from dashing on the ground and breaking into pieces. God killed him instantly in spite of his noble intentions. In the latter case, Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu offered “unauthorized fire” before God because it was convenient for them to do so. The Lord killed them instantly. The crux of the issue is that man does not dictate to God the best way to worship Him based on his sincere feelings. Those who violated this rule did not get a second chance to right their wrong. Yes, we are living under “grace” but we should not forget that the God we worship is immutable. In the words of Christ, “Give unto Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s” (Matthew 22:21). To paraphrase him, Christians must learn to differentiate between what God requires of man from what man requires of his fellow man. To Christians, Christmas must be viewed as a holiday (NOT A “HOLY DAY”) and it should be “celebrated” as such, because it neither has Christ nor apostolic seal of approval.

The author can be reached via nanakwasitwumasi@gmail.com