Both atheists and concerned Christians often claim that Jesus was definitely not born on December 25 and that day is a pagan holiday. Are they right?
Atheists will claim that Christians borrowed the idea of Jesus being born on December 25 from leading figures in pagan religions. Known as the “Christ myth,” these ideas were invented in the nineteenth century and have no historical support. Some Christians are concerned that they might be inadvertently celebrating or worshipping pagan deities instead of Jesus by celebrating Christ’s birth on December 25.
At the outset, it should be stated that Jesus probably was not born on December 25. Since the Bible does not tell us the date on which he was born, we essentially have a 1 in 365 chance of it being on December 25. Also, there is no question that many characters (Santa, Rudolph, Frosty, etc.) and items (wreaths, holly, mistletoe, etc.) are used to take the focus off Jesus at this time of year. But do these things mean that Christians cannot celebrate on December 25 and praise God for Jesus Christ, the greatest gift ever given?
Date of Jesus’ Birth
Some Christians are adamant that Jesus could not have been born on this day for a variety of reasons. Alexander Hislop argued that it was just way too cold in Bethlehem at that time of year.
It would have been helpful if Hislop left his native Scotland to visit Bethlehem in December. He would have learned that the average low temperature there in December is 47.3 degrees Fahrenheit (8.5 degrees Celsius). While this is by no means balmy, it is not too cold for shepherds to spend the night in the field with their flocks.
A more sophisticated argument has been lodged against the traditional date. Since Zacharias (father of John the Baptist) was of the division of Abijah (Luke 1:5), it is assumed that we can determine when he would have served in the temple. From there, it is assumed that Elizabeth conceived immediately after Zacharias came home from Jerusalem.
We know that Elizabeth was in her sixth month of pregnancy when Gabriel informed Mary of her virginal conception (Luke 1:36). However, we do not know if Mary conceived immediately after this meeting, and we do not know if her pregnancy lasted precisely 40 weeks. Even more difficult for this view is that we do not know when the order of Abijah served in the temple.
They were listed as the eighth order in 1 Chronicles 24:10, but that was prior to the exile when the temple was out of service for approximately 70 years. Upon their return from exile, the order of Abijah is listed as the 11th, 12th, and 17th in the lists given in Nehemiah, and they are not even mentioned in the list found in Ezra 2. As such, there is just far too much speculation in this argument to rule out or pinpoint any date, including December 25.
Finally, some Christians have argued that Jesus was born during the Feast of Tabernacles. Since Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection corresponded to Passover and Firstfruits, respectively, they assume that each of the national feasts described in Leviticus 23 must correspond to major events in Jesus’ life and ministry. And since Tabernacles has to do with dwellings and since Jesus is the Word who became flesh and “dwelt among us” (John 1:14), then Tabernacles must be the time of Jesus’ birth.
This festival is celebrated in late September or early October. While this is an interesting argument, there is nothing in Scripture that tells us that major events in Jesus’ life and ministry had to occur at the times of these other festivals. And even if he was born at Tabernacles, it would mean that the Word actually became flesh about nine months earlier, which would have been in late December.
A Pagan Holiday?
There simply are no watertight arguments against December 25 being the date of Christ’s birth. But what of the claims that this date was a pagan holiday? Such claims are groundless.
The dates of Saturnalia do not overlap with the traditional date of Christmas. Further, the records of Sol Invictus being celebrated post-date the birth of Christ by several hundred years. We also have records of Christmas being celebrated on December 25 by the early church before the advent of Sol Invictus. Even if pagans celebrated Saturnalia and Sol Invictus during this time of year, it does not follow that Christians celebrating the birth of Jesus are worshipping Saturn or the sun when they praise God for sending his Son.
Furthermore, every day of the week is named after a pagan god, so if Christians cannot celebrate on a day claimed by pagans, then we could never worship God on any day.
—Tim Chaffey
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