Christmas: The Real Story

I loved Christmas. It was my very most favorite time of year. The decorations, the lights, the families coming together, the good-will, and the faces of my kids Christmas morning. I grew up celebrating Christmas, as did my husband. We both knew it was to celebrate the birth of Jesus- that he was the reason for the season, and all that other stuff was just fun. We continued the tradition in our own home. Lights, tree, nativity, stockings, Santa Claus. We saw no harm in it as long as our kids knew the REAL reason we celebrated Christmas. As we grew in our faith and drew our family closer to God, studying His word for truth and answers in our lives, we came to find out that WE as parents and Christians didn’t know the real reason.

We’d always known Jesus wasn’t really born on December 25^th. No one really knows. It was likely the fall or spring because the shepherds were still in the fields with their sheep. Not a big deal, really. What was a big deal was whose birthday we discovered that it actually was. It goes back to the tower of Babel, with the death of Noah’s great grandson- Nimrod’s-execution by his uncle Shem for offenses against God. His wife declared that he had gone to the Sun and was a god, and that

she was the goddess of the moon. Her son (born on or around December 25) Tammuz, she declared, was the sun god reincarnate. Thus began the history of paganism and sun worship. Tammuz  has been given many different names through the centuries and different cultures worshipping him. Baal. Ra. Mithra. Apollo. Helios. Sol. And many, many more. In 273 A.D.,  Aurelian brought the worship of Baal, from Syria, back to Rome, and instituted the cult of Sol Invictus, which combined the worship of all the pagan sun gods into one - "Sol Invictus."  A few years earlier, the Roman emperor Elogabalus had unsuccessfully attempted to make the worship of the sun god Baal the predominant religion in Rome.  The way Aurelian was able to get everyone, with their own specific sun gods, to be happy, was by proclaiming December 25th to be the birthday of Sol Invictus.  They recognized December 25th as the birthday of their own god, therefore they were happy with the new name "Sol Invictus" - The Invincible Sun.  Because of the association with December 25, They recognized Sol Invictus as their own God.

 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. In the Roman world the Saturnalia (December 17) was a time of merrymaking and exchange of gifts. December 25 was also regarded as the birth date of the Iranian mystery god Mithra, the Sun of Righteousness."

So how did a pagan holiday (holyday) become a holy day for Christians as well? After the death, resurrection and then ascension of Jesus, Christianity was spread like wildfire. Paul and the disciples were at the forefront of bringing the gospel to the world. Christianity began facing persecution heavily by pagan Rome. Several disciples were martyred, as was Paul, under the reign of the Emperor Nero. Christians were tortured, torn apart by lions and burned. Regardless, Christianity boomed. “The blood of Christians was as seed…” Tertullian (c. 160-c.220 AD). The followers of Christ and Christianity grew and grew. When Constantine became emperor, he (though a pagan believer) saw the conflict between paganism and Christianity in Rome. He merged the two in an unholy marriage, under the name of Christianity but retaining pagan customs, such as the pagan feasts, worship of idols, pagan ‘communion’ rites and baptisms. They took the gods and goddesses, changed their names to Jesus and Mary, and erected statues to be prayed to. This was the birth of the Roman Catholic Church. The festival of Sol Invictus on December 25 became Christmas, or “Mass of Christ”. Evidence of paganism is still evident today in the RCC in its buildings, idols, clothing, and doctrines.

Colliers Encyclopedia states "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 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."

Today visitors to Bethlehem are taken to a subterranean cave, under the "Church of the Nativity" and are told that Jesus was born there on December 25th.  It was Helena, the mother of Constantine, who declared

The supposed birth place of Jesus (Niche for the idol of
Tammuz-Note the celestial sun Shape)

that site to be the birth place of Christ. Jesus was not born there.  It is a pagan sun worship cave in honor of Tammuz.  The "church" historian Jerome, who wrote the Latin "Vulgate”, tells us that Tammuz was worshipped there.  The back door of his school leads into the temple of Tammuz.  In spite of all these facts, thousands of unknowing Christians bow down and kiss the spot in the niche where the idol of Tammuz was placed.

“Big deal”, you say.” Everyone knows the traditions like the tree and the yule log have pagan origins. What matters is how you personally celebrate it. It draws your family closer to God because you are thinking about Him the most during this time of year.” I tried that one too. Because I desperately did NOT want to give up a holiday so close to my heart.  

Contrary to what so many (I was, and maybe you) are saying these days, it is not "OK" for Christians to "reclaim" pagan symbols and holidays. It is a deception of Satan.  God never allowed Israel to do this, and it is never taught in the New or Old Testament as acceptable.  I am now appalled that professing believers would even suggest such a thing, but apparently there is no end to the lack of reason when once one sets out to justify Christmas traditions at all costs.  Where do we draw the line when once we start to "reclaim" pagan symbols?  Where will this form of logic lead us?

 2 Corinthians 6:14-18 Says clearly: “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? Or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.”

The Bible also States:

“Take care that you be not ensnared to follow them, after they have been destroyed before you, and that you do not inquire about their gods, saying, ‘How did these nations serve their gods?—that I also may do the same.’ You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way, for every abominable thing that the Lord hates they have done for their gods… “Everything that I command you, you shall be careful to do. You shall not add to it or take from it.” Deuteronomy 12:30-32

Matthew 15:9 – “But in vain they do worship me, teaching [for] doctrines the commandments of men.”

Mark 7:6-9 – “This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do. And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.”

Ezekiel 20:39- “As for you, O house of Israel, thus saith the Lord GOD; Go ye, serve ye everyone his idols, and hereafter also, if ye will not hearken unto me: but pollute ye my holy name no more with your gifts, and with your idols.”

Jeremiah 10:1-4 “Hear ye the word which the LORD speaketh unto you, O house of Israel: Thus saith the LORD, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them. For the customs of the people are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe. They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers that it move not.”

Our Christian ancestors were not blinded. The celebration of December 25th was illegal in England.  It was outlawed in New England from 1649 to 1658.  The December 25th celebration was condemned for its pagan roots by the Puritans, the Methodists, the Quakers, the Amish, the Presbyterians, and the Baptists. Christmas was only made a legal holiday in Massachusetts after 1856. 1st century believers, taught personally by Christ, did not celebrate His birthday. 2nd century theologians condemned the thought. Only after severe persecution, destruction and inaccessibility of biblical scripture and the blending of pagan doctrine with the worship of God was the Mithraic celebration of December 25th proclaimed to be "Christian" in nature.

That being discovered, and the scales taken off of our family’s eyes, we agreed to remove this pagan holyday from practice within our home.

“Choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15.