Tough Questions: Is Christmas a pagan holiday?
Dates & Seasons
“There will never be a day when we cannot say, ‘This the day the Lord has made; We will rejoice and be glad in it’…A day that focusses exclusively on the birth of Jesus is one that should stir us to new heights of joy and gladness as we contemplate God’s love, humility and willingness to give up everything for our sakes,” says The Rev’d Charlie Lacey
It is often asserted that the 25th of December is essentially a pagan holiday. Is there any truth to this claim, and how ought Christians to respond to it?
In the Roman world, the 25th of December was a feast day dedicated to the sun, called “The Birthday of the Unconquered Sun”. It was also the final day of the week-long “Feast of Saturnalia”, which marked the passing of the winter solstice. It is entirely plausible that the early Church chose the 25th of December to celebrate Jesus’ birthday in order to redirect society’s attention away from paganism and towards Christ.
The truth is, nobody knows the month and day of Jesus’ birth. The first recorded speculation about its being the 25th of December comes from the early third century. In 202 AD Hippolytus (who later became the Bishop of Rome) claimed that Jesus was born on the 25th of December. Further, in 221 AD, the Christian historian Julius Africanus, suggested that Mary conceived on the 25th of March (nine months before the 25th of December). Whilst these postulations are unlikely to be correct, they show that Christians had been celebrating Jesus’ birthday on the 25th of December from at least the beginning of the third century.
Interestingly, the celebration of the sun god on the 25th of December was not instituted by the Roman Emperor, Aurelian, until 274 AD. We do not know how long “Sol Invictus” was unofficially celebrated prior to that date; however, it does cast doubt over the theory that Christians appropriated a pagan feast day.
We do not know that exact date of Jesus’ birth, nor can we be sure why the early church settled on the 25th of December (a decision ratified by Emperor Constantine in 336 AD). Be that as it may, it is entirely appropriate for Christians to celebrate the momentous event of Jesus’ birth, and the 25th of December has been the preferred date for most of Church history.
God is in the business of redemption. The word “redeem” finds its origin in the slave markets of the ancient world; but to understand what it means in a Christian context, we might turn to Colossians 1.13, which says, “For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves.” If God can take a sinful human being, indeed an actual pagan, and transfer that person from darkness to light, then what is to prevent him from doing likewise with a pagan festival? God takes things that are sinful, broken and evil and transforms them to be used for his good purposes.
You will not find anything in Scripture about celebrating Christmas, but then again, Scripture does not have much to say about celebrating birthdays either. In fact, the only birthday celebrations the Bible recounts are those of Pharaoh and Herod, both of whom celebrated by having someone murdered (the chief baker and John the Baptist, respectively). Yet we do not spurn birthday celebrations on the basis of this grisly history. How much less should we call into question celebrating the birth of our Lord and Saviour, just because it happens to fall on a day that was once a pagan festival?
There will never be a day when we cannot say, “This the day the Lord has made; We will rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118. 24, NKJV). A day that focusses exclusively on the birth of Jesus is one that should stir us to new heights of joy and gladness as we contemplate God’s love, humility and willingness to give up everything for our sakes.
Wishing you and yours a blessed, peaceful and joy filled Christmas!
First published on the St Andrew’s, Springfield website in December 2024.
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