Christmas: Celebrating the Birth of Our Savior, or is Christmas Pagan?

Introduction: We never infer that one should or should not celebrate Christmas. This article is for people to know Christmas's factual, researched historical background. The word Christmas was not invented until @1000 ad. This word is a Roman Catholic term and has no bearing on the birth of our Savior. The angels in heaven celebrated the birth of our Savior in Luke 2. This time of the year is about the Gospel for the lost. That was the point of Christ's coming. Has God supernaturally provided a time for people to hear the Gospel? We think so. When one hears that Christmas is pagan, this article should help you decide. Blessings. 

By Biblestudycompany.com Ric Joyner

We will state upfront that Christmas is not a biblical holiday. But it is not unbiblical to celebrate the birth of Christ. We should also not equalize materialistic Christmas with our Savior's advent (coming). The Old Testament prophesized the birth of the Savior to come. The current secular traditions of Santa, who has almost god-like qualities and manipulates kids to "further fantasize" a jolly old man who can give all children on earth toys or even an "elf on the shelf" that watches how they behave, is unbiblical. Still, some feel it is acceptable to create a myth around Santa Claus while children are young. We disagree. It is always best to be honest with children about Santa.

Giving presents at this time of the year is not wrong because the Magi gave Christ's family gifts in worship to the young boy Messiah. These gifts were providential because they provided money and helped the family flee to Egypt. Consumerism and greed are wrong and sinful, but only the Holy Spirit can lead you to that truth, and He knows your heart. Grace-filled gifts that point people to a saving and loving relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ are essential during this time of year. 

Frustration mounts as we approach this time of year in the Christmas season because of the Internet. Shouts of "Christmas is pagan" escalate into a crescendo with arguments against Christmas on social media and by some bible teachers. But could these be a veiled attack on the Gospel in the name of "we don't want to be idolators?" Therefore, is the theory that Christmas is pagan or from pagan sources accurate? Or is the reverse true? In this article, we aim to get to the historical truth in our research. Don't accept what others teach, not even your favorite Bible teachers, without researching. I did mine. And you can verify it. We think there are ulterior motives to capture and captivate Christians into doing "other" holidays or even attack people who do not believe Christmas is pagan. 

Let's take a look. Please reread these scriptures prayerfully as we begin our biblical study.

Matthew Chapters 1-2 highlights

• Jesus Christ's genealogy to be the King of Israel
• Angel's perspective on why Joseph should marry Mary.
• Many Old Testament prophecies about the birth of Christ were fulfilled at His birth.
• Is the current Christmas season the actual time of arrival of the Messiah?
• Why did God's Son come? "To save the people from their sins." (Matthew 1:21) Paul defined the Gospel in 1 Cor 15:1-4. The Pharisees interpreted scripture as the Messiah coming and rescuing Israel from Rome's rule. The real problem was Adam's sin, which infected us, and God's intention in the first coming of Christ was to fix sin and death. God dealt with the eternal consequences for both Jews and Gentiles by people believing in the Gospel. We don't want to miss this distinction. 
• His name announced is "God with us." How interesting! Because in Judaism at this time (second temple), a man could rise to become the Messiah (the Lord's anointed) but not be "God with us" in the form of a man. Simeon's prophecy in Luke 2:25-35 expresses the Gospel to us, and the Gospel begins here at the birth of Christ. Genesis 18 shows that an Angel came to Abraham as a man and accepted worship from Abraham. So God could put on the body of a man.

Simeon's prophecy Luke 2:30 For my eyes have seen Your salvation, 31 Which You have prepared in the presence of all peoples, 32 A LIGHT OF REVELATION TO THE GENTILES, And the glory of Your people Israel."

Luke Chapters 1 and 2. Pay attention to what the angels say a couple of times: "Good news," translated as the same word…Gospel. The birth of Christ was good news for Jews because their long-awaited Messiah was finally here, and the prophecy was being fulfilled. We write this paper 2,000 years later for Gentiles, grateful that the apostles preached the Gospel to us: Good news: Christ came as a child to break the back of sin and death and allowed us Gentiles an eternal "home" and become children of God! Gentiles are not part of the nation of Israel, but we are part of God's family! (Eph Chap 1-4) We celebrate the birth of Christ because of the Gospel!

Read John 1 for a view from heaven of why Christ came.

"9 There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. 11 He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. 12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the intention of man, but of God. 14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us. We saw His glory as the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 John testified about Him and cried out, saying, "This was He of whom I said, 'He who comes after me has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.'" 16 For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace. 17 For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him."

Is Christmas pagan?

If it is, then are you a pagan for celebrating the day of Christ's birth? The historical false proof that Christmas is pagan is thrown at you with overwhelming emotional authoritarianism. Is emotionalism based on biblical truth? How about historical facts? We know the origin of Christmas (birth of Christ) is biblical. The story of our Savior starts with His birth because the prophets mentioned He was coming. We suspect the anti-Christmas vehemence is agenda-driven. We ask this question because born-again believing Christians are not worshipping pagan deities by participating in the birth of Christ called Christmas today. Why weren't Christians who were committed to Christ worshipping pagan deities? Because most were fleeing for their lives from persecution.

I spoke to a Torah-keeping brother who said, "Yes, Christmas is pagan." I asked how that could be, and he shared, "When you put a present under the tree, you are 'bowing' down to the tree." I was stunned. The logic he displayed defied logic. Yeah, no. Worshipping a pagan deity requires one to engage the diety knowingly.

In our research, there were pagan celebrations that started around the time of 274 AD, but they appear to be in response to Christians in Rome celebrating the birth of Christ! We then ask what came first, the "chicken or the egg?" "However, it has also been argued that, on the contrary, Emperor Aurelian, who in 274 instituted the holiday of the Dies Natalis Solis Invicti, did so partly as an attempt to give a pagan significance to a date already important for Christians in Rome.[76]

Is the nearness of a pagan holiday make Christmas pagan? When I sift through the concerns of 'Christmas is pagan,' people, did you know there was a pagan holiday at this time? We will deal with this later, but does that make celebrating the birth of Christ pagan today? Let's ask another question: Is Hanukkah pagan? The answer is no. Yet, Hanukkah is square in the middle of this pagan holiday called Saturnalia. Do you see how this is done? The proximity of time to another holiday makes the people celebrate a different holiday, which is equal to pagan practices. And we know that Hanukkah is not pagan. The true church pushed hard against these wicked holidays, and to assume born-again believers were participating in pagan festivals doesn't make much sense since Christians had to live outside of society for several hundred years because of severe persecution.

Calling Christmas pagan because of the nearness of the same period of a pagan holiday would be the same as calling Easter (the resurrection of Christ) and Passover pagan. The proximity does not work because a pagan spring festival may happen simultaneously.

Wess Huff, a biblical scholar, went through the history of Christmas. He discovered the same thing I did. The celebration of Christmas was not centered on a pagan holiday in Roman times. Still, Rome may have started a pagan holiday to CO-OP (replace or compete with) what Christians were already celebrating: the birth of the Savior. Remember, they were celebrating the birth of the Savior in Luke 2, not modern Christmas celebrations. https://youtu.be/5zcaQlBbk6s?si=pajb3K2Vh6NnZFWT

It's commonly asserted that Christmas has pagan origins. This idea, although popular on the internet and on History Channel (has HC really done any history in the last two decades or is it just all Ancient Aliens and Pawn Stars now?), the reality is that when you actually dig into the origin of these supposed pagan roots they really start to fall apart. Sol Invictus - 3:14 Saturnalia - 5:14 Brumalia - 6:18 Origin of Dec. 15th - 7:30 Christmas trees - 9:19 "It's not in the Bible so don't do it" - 15:31

We can confidently say that born-again believers would not have observed a pagan holiday and dishonored our Lord Jesus Christ, who rescued us from sin and death. Born-again believers do not participate in pagan rituals today, and Christmas is about the birth of Christ. We think it is grossly unfair to attribute pagan status to Christmas, especially in light of the historical facts. Looking back from our vantage point today and being able to judge people of another time is arrogance indeed. There is a word for this, and it is presentism. 

When was the birth of Christ?

Note: This is another argument over the date of the birth of Christ, which is again a straw man. The logic that stems from this is that "Christ wasn't born on December 25, so we should not celebrate the birth of Christ on that day. But really, we should not celebrate it all anyway." That argument is like arguing over what we had for Thanksgiving dinner 10 years ago. The world is celebrating Dec 25 as the day we stop and celebrate Christ's birthday. That is a fact. 

Let's go through some history anyway. 

• According to Luke, the shepherds were in the fields with their sheep, which some scholars say can happen twice yearly. Here are some clues.
  • No crops would be in the fields because sheep can devastate crops. Winter is likely due to cold and rain and is free of crops, but it can be miserable. According to Luke, the shepherds were staying in the fields. However, shepherds could still be in the areas during winter with good tents. I will link a video below of William Federer's excellent research, which I found just after writing this piece. It shows the shepherds were out most of the year because they raised sheep for the temple sacrifices. "Since Luke 2:8 says shepherds were in fields at Christ’s birth, some assume Christ wasn’t born in December. However, this objection is without merit as the Jewish Mishnah Seqal. 7:4 confirms flocks were kept in fields near Bethlehem, even in the winter. 1. Israel is not extremely cold, and snow is very unlikely due to the warm Mediterranean current, although it has occurred occasionally. Sheep wear natural wool that keeps them warm so that they can walk about even in Israel’s rare snowfalls." source
  • Another time the shepherds may be in the fields is early summer after the wheat harvest, from late April to June.
  • Some speculate that Roman Caesar would not call for a worldwide census in the winter, thus making travel difficult. However, this is speculation only; there is much evidence that winter was indeed the time for travel, as farming or agriculture was on break. 
  • Dr. Baruch Korman of loveisrael.org indicates a definite break between verses in the Greek language in Luke 1:26. "In the sixth month" of the Jewish year, the angel Gabriel visited Mary. He has a video and believes the time of the Lord's birth is at the beginning of the summer. Baruch's view is that the sixth month of the Jewish year. He says that the 6th month is Elul and that Jesus was born in the month of Sivan (June into July). However, Judaism has two "firsts of the year" with different focuses; thus, there are two sixth months, and they can be either Adar (Feb into March) or Elul (August into September). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uf0anBqse-w Start at 4:17.
  • Here is an article with actual historical evidence from Roman tax records showing that they registered in Bethlehem on December 25. I am forwarding this to you for review. This article is from an anti-Jehovah's Witness site that seeks to show that their views on Christmas are incorrect. https://www.4jehovah.org/facts-jehovahs-witnesses-need-to-know-about-christmas/
  • The issue is that the world is focused on Christmas time this time, which is terrific for sharing the Gospel. Baruch's commentary is excellent and helpful. However, it does not change that we can still celebrate the birth of Christ with family and friends. Please note that Europe was asking people to stop gathering in groups to prevent the spread of COVID-19, not solely stopping Christmas parties. We stop gathering with friends or family if we are sick. The assumption that it is to prevent "Christmas parties" is not solely the focus...it is safety. 
  • Our research from Jewish sites shows that the sixth month of the Jewish calendar is Adar, which corresponds to February and March of our calendar. The dates of March and February may be why early Christians thought December to early January was our Lord's birth date. 
  • However, the plain reading of scripture in Luke 1:26 and beyond focuses on the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy. The contextual reading also focuses on Mary's pregnancy. The conclusion may be why scholars say "we don't know" the date of birth of Christ. Dr. Daniel Goepfrich of Theology is for Everyone, a Greek professor, confirmed my study on this matter. And this makes sense since the whole concept is not about a date but a Who! 
  • Before 400 AD and after, many early Christians viewed March 25 as Christ's conception date (in the month of Adar); thus, nine months later, it was December 25. Is December 25 the actual date? Are we focused on dates or the birth of Christ? Some anti-Christmas people concentrate on the dates because pagan holidays appeared around those dates in December. Thus, they need to link the celebration of Christmas with pagan holidays to bolster their claims that Christmas is pagan and call you a pagan for celebrating Christmas. However, the logic derived from this is nothing more than agenda-driven, and at the heart of it is an anti-Christian church attitude with the goal that we can practice another form of religious tradition. 
• Are "near" dates of pagan holidays worshiping the return of the sun synonymous with the birth of Christ? No. Why? We are not pagans, and we are not celebrating pagan deities; we are celebrating the birth of Christ, and so were the early Christians. 
• There are several Roman holidays in December. If a religious holiday falls on any of those holidays, why are the other holidays not called pagan as well? Only Christmas?

Conclusion. We will focus on the birth of Christ currently and not conflate the past to today. 

"Certainly today, the mix of consumerism (AKA Santa Claus) can take people's eyes off Christ, but our job is to bring them back to the salvation message of the Gospel. Will you join us?" BSC. 

Christmas is a Roman Catholic tradition and is celebrated around the pagan holiday of Saturnalia; thus, Christmas is pagan.

Note: In our extensive research, we stumbled upon a Wikipedia article. We usually would bypass Wikipedia as higher education frowns on the use of Wikipedia; however, this article has stood the test of time (2001) and is updated continually, even in 2021. Once you dive into the article, you will see the extent and expanse of the research on Christmas. 

"Got you, Biblestudycompany…see, Christmas is pagan". Well, no, and not so fast. This Wikipedia article on Christmas is excellent and thorough for a balanced perspective.

Here are some highlights:

• What does the name Christmas mean? For example, we celebrate Christ's birth, which is our focus. However, some insist on focusing on Christmas as a Roman Catholic tradition, but is it? This article and Wikipedia is about the origins of the name Christmas:

"Christmas" is a shortened form of "Christ's mass." The word was recorded as Crīstesmæsse in 1038 and Cristes-messe in 1131.[22] Crīst (genitive Crīstes) is from Greek Khrīstos (Χριστός), a translation of Hebrew Māšîaḥ (מָשִׁיחַ), "Messiah," meaning "anointed";[23][24] and mæsse is from Latin missa, the celebration of the Eucharist.[25]”

• Christians celebrated the birth of Christ long before the Roman Catholic Church formally began. The first few hundred years after Christ, the Christians did not celebrate birthdays of any kind, and thus, the logic goes, they would not have celebrated Christ's birth. The first record is from Saint Augustine.

"December 25 was the winter solstice date in the Roman calendar.[16][53] A late fourth-century sermon by Saint Augustine explains why this was a fitting day to celebrate Christ's nativity: "Hence it is that He was born on the Day which is the shortest in our earthly reckoning and from which subsequent days begin to increase in length. He, therefore, who bent low and lifted us chose the shortest Day, yet the one whence Light begins to increase." [54]

We conclude by the historical facts that the Roman Catholic Church did not exist at the beginning of Christian recognition of the birth of Christ.

• When was the Roman Catholic Church founded? Why do we ask? One argument against Christmas is that Christmas is Roman Catholic, and our research shows this is incorrect. Several sources agree with this website.

"The Roman Emperor Constantine established himself as the head of the church around 313 A.D., which made this new "Christianity" the Roman Empire's official religion. The first actual Pope in Rome was probably Leo I (440-461 A.D.), although some claim that Gregory I was the first (Pope) (590-604 A.D.). This ungodly system eventually ushered in the darkest period known to man, called the "Dark Ages" (500-1500 A.D.). Through popes, bishops, and priests, Satan ruled Europe, and Biblical Christianity became illegal."

Conclusion: Catholicism was not the leading purveyor of Christmas traditions.

1. A thorough reading of the Wikipedia article, which is well-sourced, shows many conflicting beginnings for Christmas celebrations. A prominent theme in the report is the worldwide trajectory of celebrations of Christmas. Today, the traditions hobbled and wobbled through history; today, they are celebrated in their current form. We marvel at the sticking power of the Gospel in Christ's birth to a predominantly gentile world. Is this God ordained for the opportunity to share the Gospel with the lost and religious? We think so. Or are some who focus on getting people not to celebrate the birth of Christ missing an opportunity for the Gospel? Yes.
2. Atheist countries tried to "stomp" out Christmas—the current attacks by believers on Christmas as pagans remind us of atheist countries. We wonder about the agenda of those who attack the Christmas celebration, and we think there is an anti-church and anti-Gospel sentiment buried within.
3. What about the "Christmas tree is pagan"? No. Some will point to Jeremiah 10 as proof that Christmas trees are pagan. However, a contextual reading of scripture shows this is false, and one must "read into" the scripture that the Christmas tree is pagan. Besides, the Christmas tree is relatively recent in its current form. We are serious about interpreting scripture correctly instead of twisting scripture.
4. Are we celebrating a pagan holiday today? No. Regardless of historical narratives by anti-Christmas, anti-birth of Christ people, they need to present the history correctly. The nearness of the celebration of the birth of Christ to ancient pagan holidays has no bearing on our celebration today or then.
5. What about the mistletoe, yule log, etc. didn't the pagans use them? But what about today? Are they used to worshiping deities? No. Valentine's Day was a horrible pagan festival, and the Christians turned it into a worldwide romance day. Believe me; if I find a mistletoe and my wife is under it, she will get kissed!
6. Could the celebration of Christmas give us the one-month opportunity each year to share the Good News of Jesus Christ and what He has done for all of humanity? Is the entire world's focus on Christ at this time of the year a gift from God for the Gospel? We think so. Indeed, today, the mix of consumerism (AKA Santa Claus) can take people's eyes off Christ, but our job is to bring them back to the salvation message of the Gospel. Will you join us?
7. William Federer's video has an excellent history of Christmas traditions from ancient times to today.
8. Is celebrating birthdays pagan? No. Many ancient cultures did not celebrate birthdays, but many did. And no, celebrating birthdays is not pagan. We are honoring a person. Where are the deities? Christmas is about Jesus Christ's birth. Let's keep about Him and share with the world the Gospel. 

Christmas is not a biblical holiday.

"And therefore, we should not celebrate the birth of Christ." We would say, "Tell that to the angels engaging the shepherds because heaven celebrated the birth of God's Son!" Luke 2:2-14

"And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were frightened. 10 But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; 11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 "This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." 13 And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 14 "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased."

Note: the words Good News are translated from Greek

Original word: εὐαγγελίζω

Transliteration: euaggelizó

Definition (short): preach

Description (complete): to announce good news

I think this comment that "we were never commanded to celebrate Christmas" is a logical fallacy. There are many events in the Bible that people acknowledge and celebrate that we are not commanded. 

But the main issue is what we will do with this time of the year.

Yep, evangelize during Christmas. There are hurting hearts at this time of the year, and many blindly celebrate a holiday not connected to Christ's birth. Let us help people relate it to Christ, our Savior.

If not Christmas, what should we celebrate instead? Some in Torah-keeping groups and Hebrew roots say we should celebrate Hanukkah instead to return to our Jewish roots. Hanukkah was not part of the Gospel, and the birth of Christ IS part of the Gospel. 

We encourage everyone everywhere to ask God whether one should participate in the celebration of the birth of Christ. We say YES! We can confidently push back on anti-Christmas and  Christmas is pagan with correct historical and biblical facts. You may want to tell Children there is no Santa Claus so they know the truth. We are blessing them with presents as a reminder that the Lord Jesus Christ is a gift of grace to us who were lost and now found.

Acts 26:18 gives us the motivation behind the Gospel by the Lord when he was talking to Paul on the road to Damascus. The Lord Jesus said; "to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me.'" 

Unusual Worldwide Focus on Christ

During this time of the year, people are open to the Gospel for nearly one month, meaning the world is focused on the "holidays." Can their sensitivity or openness be supernatural? We think so. Do we let this opportunity slide through our fingers to share the gift of salvation? In Matthew 28, our commission is to go and make disciples. To make a disciple, we must present the Gospel first. Will we waste our time arguing over the birth of Christ, whether it is pagan or not? To this, we say that people saying Christmas or the celebration of the birth of Christ is pagan are avoiding the Gospel! Why? Let us ask this question: Who in the spiritual realm attacks the Gospel and wants it destroyed? Satan. Think about this tidbit. Imagine a worldwide focus on Christmas, even in Buddhist countries. Why not present the Gospel at this time of the year? As Paul said, his focus was on getting people reconciled to God. (2Cor 5:18-21)

Think critically: False teachers attempt to get Christians (those who believe in Christ as their Savior) away from biblical foundations onto another system of thinking. We think this is precisely what is going on here. One area we know this is as we studied the history of Christmas, we discovered that virtually none of their view of historical facts stand up to scrutiny. That was a big surprise to me. In my graduate degrees, we learn and are trained in proper research. My career was researching specific tax guidance and helping people understand how the original writer of the tax code wrote the regulation and how to apply that for the best effect. I went where the history and facts led. I can't sugarcoat or bring an ideology to bear on the historical facts. And when we pointed this out...we were attacked. That is how we know this is a false history that Christmas is pagan. Typically, a video will start with Christmas being pagan by calling people who celebrate Christmas that they are pagans. This is called the logical fallacy of the straw man argument.   God promised by the first prophecy in Genesis 3:15 that a Savior would come. We are celebrating this prophecy:

"15 And I will put enmity Between you and the woman And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel." The Accuser is bound and determined to use people, even with good intentions, to stop the message of the Gospel of Salvation. We use the word accusation intentionally because people who celebrate traditional Christmas are called pagans. It was a severe charge but, fortunately, untrue.

God is a God of prophecy. He wants us to know what is coming. He answered His word and has "healing in His wings" to "reconcile us to God." There are no other holy books that contain prophetic words fulfilled!

Let's celebrate the Birth of Christ and spread the Gospel this season!

Every Christmas season is a literal miracle that this holiday (Holy Day) is focused worldwide on Jesus Christ, our Savior. Even the Wikipedia article acknowledges this undeniable fact.

Therefore, let us turn aside from agenda-driven history as supposed "facts" and focus on the birth of Christ and sharing the Good news of His coming to rescue us from our sin and eternal death, thus giving us eternal life works in the blood of Christ! Anyone who teaches the Bible should want the facts and present them in a manner worthy of sound scholarship. 

What can you and your family do to share the love of Christ with a hurting world this Christmas season? Here is one video that touches our hearts because it makes my point that people are celebrating with family and friends but may not know the real reason for Christmas...salvation. You can see this young woman become emotional as she learns that she has broken God's laws and needs a savior. The very holiday she is celebrating but not knowing why! 

Feel free to share the resources.

Bibliography

Melton, James. "The Plain Truth about the Roman Catholic Church." biblebelievers.com. Bible Baptist Publications, 1998. https://biblebelievers.com/jmelton/Catholic.html.

Wikipedia Contributors. "Christmas." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, October 31, 2001. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas.

———. "Christmas." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, October 31, 2001. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas