What is Christmas day, and where does it come from?

 

If we look through the New Testament, which is the first 90 years of the Christian church, including 30 years of the life of Christ, therefore spanning from Matthew to Revelation, we will not find either Christ or the disciples of Christ, ever "celebrating'' or "remembering" December 25. Christian teaching comes from the Bible. The only ordinance given by Christ himself, and mentioned again by Paul is ‘to remember’ found in Luke 22:19 and 1 Cor 11:25. That is to REMEMBER the Lord’s Table (Supper).

 

The Bible, God's Word to mankind, is clear. There is no December 25 Christmas in the Bible....

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Any simple basic research will tell you that in Luke 2:8 when the shepherds were in the fields- basic common sense tells you it is not December. It is mid winter in Israel. Shepherds are indoors for the cold, snowy period. Christimas day, is an old pagan feast, of the birthday of Tammuz, and other pagan gods.....

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CHRISTMAS DAY

What is Christmas day, and where does it come from?

If we look through the New  Testament, which is the first 90 years of the Christian church, including 30 years of the life of Christ, therefore spanning from Matthew to Revelation, we will not find either Christ or the disciples of Christ, ever "celebrating'' or "remembering"  December 25. Christian teaching comes from the Bible.  The only ordinance given by Christ himself, and mentioned again by Paul is ‘to remember’ found in Luke 22:19 and 1 Cor 11:25.

In the Bible, there are two birthdays, Gen 40:20-22 and Mth 14:6.

Both are Kings, both have as the centre of their celebration death.

Origen, 245, repudiated the idea of a birthday of Christ, "as if he were a king Pharoah.".

 

Pagan Roots

The Encyclopedia Britannica reports that "The traditional customs connected with Christmas have developed from several sources as a result of the coincidence of the celebration of the birth of Christ with the pagan agricultural and solar observations at midwinter.

 

Also

Cronus is an alias for Tammuz. Tammuz was Nimrod reborn - alias, his son. His wife and mother was Rhea (Semiramis). Egyptian and Babylonian antiquities recognize his mother as Semiramis, and his birthday is celebrated on 25th December.

Ezek 8: 14-16

 

 

Colliers Encyclopedia agrees. Quote: "After the triumph of Constantine, the church at Rome assigned December 25 as the date for the celebration of the feast, possibly about A.D. 320 or 353. By the end of the fourth century the whole Christian world was celebrating Christmas on that day, with the exception of the Eastern churches, where it was celebrated on January 6. The choice of December 25 was probably influenced by the fact that on this day the Romans celebrated the Mithraic feast of the Sun-god (natalis solis invicti), and that the Saturnalia also came at this time."

 

 

Colliers Encyclopedia agrees. Quote: "After the triumph of Constantine, the church at Rome assigned December 25 as the date for the celebration of the feast, possibly about A.D. 320 or 353. By the end of the fourth century the whole Christian world was celebrating Christmas on that day, with the exception of the Eastern churches, where it was celebrated on January 6. The choice of December 25 was probably influenced by the fact that on this day the Romans celebrated the Mithraic feast of the Sun-god (natalis solis invicti), and that the Saturnalia also came at this time."

 

Both encyclopedias plainly reveal that the source of the celebration of December 25 is the birthday of Mithra, the pagan sun god.

 

Sun worshippers since the time of Babel recognized this time of year in honor of their gods.

 

In 354, some Latin people transferred it from Jan 6 to Dec 25, when the Mithraic feast, Natalis Invicti Solis, or the birthday of the unconquered Sun of Philocalus. Mithraism is an ancient Persian religion, worshiping the god of light and truth, and later the sun.

 

The Syrians and Armenians accused the Romans of sun worship and idolatry. From 354, it was the day held by the Roman church, which split from the east. In 387, the feast was reckoned to the Julian calendar. In 534 the feast of Christmas was judicial. In England the festival was long before also a pagan feast. The Angli celebrated Dec 25 as the beginning of the year. They had a vigil called "modra nicht" or "mother's night".

 

Thus Christmas night was celebrated as a seasonal, pagan, religious and national practices, full of legend and superstition. Winter and summer solstice have different meanings. Early, most peoples were sun worshippers, as the lives depended on the sun; in northern hemisphere, winter, so the people built big fires to warm the sun god; in the southern hemisphere, given as an offering of thanks to the sun god.

In 440, the Roman church selected Dec 25, close to the solstice, as the day of commemoration. 467ad, Rome fell, and Christianity took over many of the feasts, giving them “Christian interpretation".

 

Pope Gregory 1 in 601 said “Let the idols be taken out of the shrines, water sprinkle and clean the building, "and because they were wont to sacrifice oxen to devils, some celebration should be given in exchange for this... they should celebrate a religious feast and worship God by their feasting, so that still keeping outward pleasures, they may more readily receive spiritual joys".

 

So as “Christianity” spread, the feast in all the lands, were now "Christian" feasts. Lights and fires, bonfires, to the pagan gods, are simply substituted as "Christian". This is replaced now by the "candle" and other things, including fireworks “to ward off” evil spirits.  

 

The Christmas tree came via the 8thc by a missionary to Germany. A sacrifice to Odlin's Sacred Oak, was replaced by a fir tree. The ceremony kept, the symbol changed, now the tree adorned with tribute to the Christ child. German immigrants brought the custom to the US.

Jer 10:25- forest;

Deut 12:2; Ezek 6:13; 1 Kings 14:23; 2 Kings 16:4;  worship at spreading tree;

 

 

In 1224, the crib was introduced by Francis of Assisi, trying to bring the story to the people.

In the 6th century, the church set up "Advent", as a time of devotional preparation, ending with midnight mass on Christmas Eve. Lutherans held mass in the morning, as that was when the shepherds went to work.

 

Christmas became a feast of 12 days or more, as were the pagan feasts. In Belgium, Dec 6, is St. Nicholas' day (known as Father Christmas). He lived in the 3rd c. and the “saint” of children. The feast meaning transferred to Dec 5. (cf. Encyclopaedia Britannica).

 

Since the Reformation, many Christian churches, did not celebrate, any special days, such as Christmas, Easter, as they were clearly based on pagan ceremonies. Christian behaviour is not celebrating "special" days.

 

In the OT, special days were religious ceremonies instituted by Yahweh, which find their fulfillment in Christ Col 2:16-17. The Jews were judging the Gentile Christians because they did not join in with Jewish religious ceremonies. Col 2:17 speaks that while there "were" special days, they were a shadow (Heb 10:1) not realities. Many things that we thought were good and normal we find that they actually are in opposition to God. The god of this age, Satan, (2 Cor 4:4) has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so they do things which God hates, thinking that God likes them (Amos 5:21; 1 Cor 10:18). All of these things are done on a "special" day. Col 2:6 warns and exhorts us to continue to live "in Christ". Not to go back to human tradition; this is deception. The rules of religion Col 2:21-23, are to end, and this was one of Jesus constant struggles with the Pharisees-Mark 7:13.

 

When should these religious rules end? When we come to Christ, these traditional rules should end, as they are based on human tradition. They appear good but have no value. Religious tradition ended with Christ. Yet many religions seek to impose new restrictions on behaviour. Gal 4:10-11, Paul speaks to the Galatians, who came out of a "religious" background, to stop!

 

We therefore see that the NT church saw worshiping special days as not necessary; It is the happening of the event which is important, not when.  The NT church's emphasis is on what the Incarnation meant, not certain days. There is no known day of when Jesus was born. He did not seem to think it necessary that the NT church should know.

 

So why do we  “celebrate” Christmas?

We do not. Christians do not. Pagans do. 

 

To say Jesus is xxxx years old, is not understanding his eternal divinity, and his pre-Incarnation appearances Jn 8:56-59; 1 Cor 10:4; Gen 18-YHWH in flesh; etc.

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