Explaining to Friends What is "Wrong" with Christmas

Other Issues - Article - M.0013

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1. After many years of questioning the traditions of Christmas, and several years of weaning ourselves from those traditions, we decided a couple of years ago [quite a few years ago now] to stop celebrating Christmas altogether and completely. As you think about our decision to do this, please be open to considering and to researching each line of thinking we present, without assuming we have 'thrown the baby out with the bathwater." At the end of the study, we believe that you, too, may find there was no baby in the bathwater to begin with.

2. Like us, you may have known 'peripherally' for some time that controversies brew within Christianity regarding the origins of Christmas. And knowing the supposedly 'obvious fact' that "Jesus is the Reason for the Season," you might hold the view that no further investigation of the issue is necessary, right? We did. But, we no longer hold that view.

3. If the Word of God is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction and for instruction in righteousness (II Tim 3:16), then we believe that we should not rely on clichés as alternative support for that doctrine - clichés such as: "Let's remember the TRUE meaning of Christmas", "Jesus in the Reason for the Season", "Let's put 'Christ' back into Christmas", etc. Nor should we rely on "tradition" as our final authority; and as a judge of truth.

4. As an introduction to our research, please consider these thoughts:

a. What is the plain meaning of the text written in Jeremiah 10? If you are unfamiliar with it, please read this scripture from the King James Bible (perhaps another topic of discussion), which I have pasted below for your convenience:

1 Hear ye the word which the LORD speaketh unto you, O house of Israel:

2 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.

3 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.

4 They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not.

5 They are upright as the palm tree, but speak not: they must needs be borne, because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do evil, neither also is it in them to do good.

b. Cut a tree out of the forest with an axe? Must needs be borne (from the forest) because they cannot go? Fasten it with nails and hammer (on a wooden cross) that it move not? Deck it with silver and gold?

c. Is this the "way of the heathen" that we are to "Learn not"?

d. From another point of view, let's consider the Christmas tree for a moment. And here is the question: How could a dead evergreen, cut from the forest, decorated with silver and gold, and fastened that it move not actually relate to the birth of Jesus? This, and ALL the questions we ask are not posed to be disregarded out-of-hand. They really need to be answered.

e. Many people say: "Let's remember the TRUE meaning of Christmas." OK, .... let's do:

i. Christmas - Compound word, "Christ" meaning anointed one of God and "mas" a shortened suffix of masse, literally meaning "mass of Christ".

ii. Mass is a service that is held to remember the death of any person for whom the mass is held. Mass is a 'celebration' service (as in "Celebrate the Mass").

iii. So "Christmas" is literally a celebration of the "death of Christ." Worse yet, HO, HO, HO, "Merry Christmas" is literally "Merry Death of Christ", or "Merry celebration of the death of Christ".

f. Who would be merry about the death of Christ? SANTA? (Oops) SATAN? OK, we may remember his death, burial and resurrection, but that would be another holiday altogether, and another email topic too, wouldn't it be?

g. Jesus never celebrated his birth.

h. His disciples never celebrated his birth.

i. The early church never celebrated his birth.

j. In fact, Jesus never even said to celebrate or even to remember his birth in any form.

k. The fact that Jesus commanded us to remember his death, not his birth, makes perfect sense. The bible says in Ecclesiastes that the day of one's death is better than the day of one's birth. (Eccl 7:1)

l. Some have asked, "Who started Christmas?" Good question; let's look at that.

m. Given the origin of the word "Christ-mass," as above, it may be little surprise to know that Christmas was first celebrated under Constantine, a Roman, as a catholic (universal) tradition that sought to unify all religions (World Religion?) under one umbrella (hence Roman Catholic), including all pagan earth worshippers, roman sun worshippers and the increasing number of Christ worshippers or "Christians".

n. That is why December 25th was selected as the date of celebration - for recognition by the Pagans as the season of Yule, the winter solstice (21st) and the return of the stag god, Holly King and winter god; and for the sun worshippers celebrating Saturnalia, the birth of Tammuz, the resurrected/reincarnated sun-god Nimrod, Baal, etc.

o. "Everyone knows" (so I'm told) that Jesus wasn't born on Dec 25th

5. "But, who cares" (some ask) if we celebrate his birth on that day anyway? Well, the bible says, "Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. (I Thess 5:21) So, the answer is: we all should care. There are at least three scriptural reasons for why Jesus was not born in the winter time. The simplest one is that 'the shepherds were in the fields watching over their flocks by night' and they couldn't do that in the winter. They come in from the fields by mid-September because the nights are otherwise too cold and wet for the sheep.

6. Here are some other questions:

a. What connection does a dead evergreen tree have with Jesus' birth anyway? (Life some might say? And we should respond: They would kill a tree to celebrate Life??)

b. Are the tree and other decorations idols? Is an idol something we use to represent or to facilitate the worship of something we worship? Do Roman Catholics worship their statutes? Do the statues just represent and facilitate the worship of whatever they are worshipping? Is there really any difference between these perspectives?

c. Jesus said, this is my body which is broken for you .... This do in remembrance of me. We must eat his flesh and drink his blood - not in a ritual - but, in the sense of searching the scriptures daily whether these things be so; and consuming his WORD (John 6:54-56). Give us this day our DAILY BREAD - the manna, the Bread from heaven, THE WORD, Jesus himself, his flesh - because the WORD BECAME FLESH. (John 1:1,14; 6:54-56)

d. what does the Christ-mass tree actually represent?

e. what do the lights represent?

f. the balls?

g. the Holly?

h. the Ivy?

i. the garland?

j. the mistletoe?

k. the red and green colours?

l. the candles in the window?

m. the Yule log (and/or Christmas cake)?

n. the date?

o. etc, etc, etc

7. Pagans have answers to all of these questions, and many more, because these are all pagan trappings in a pagan celebration, and they teach these things to their initiates. But, in our opinion, Christians have no intellectually honest answer to these questions in the context of worshipping Jesus.

8. Jesus spoke against the religious leaders a number of times, rebuking them for teaching their own traditions and rituals rather than teaching the people to be faithful to God's commandments. In Mark chapter 7:

⁶He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.

⁷Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.

⁸For 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.

⁹And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.

¹⁰For Moses said, Honour thy father and thy mother; and, Whoso curseth father or mother, let him die the death:

¹¹But ye say, If a man shall say to his father or mother, It is Corban, that is to say, a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; he shall be free.

¹²And ye suffer him no more to do ought for his father or his mother;

¹³Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye.

8. Certainly, Christians don't support Santa. But when you realize the evil of Santa, you will adopt a very healthy hatred of him, as God surely has. The traditions of Santa Claus are not harmless; nor cute.

9. There are many more things to consider, but when should one stop? With question upon question that remain unanswered as to why we might celebrate Christmas, and reason upon reason as to why we should not celebrate it, there comes a point when (as painful as it was for us) we had to conclude that we would prove all things; hold fast that which is good. (I Thess 5:21)

10. One semi-final thought. The Israelites said that they were worshipping the God that brought them out of the land of Egypt, when they made the golden calf and held a great feast. They wanted something to see, something to touch, and something to celebrate. But God considered the whole celebration and practice an abomination.

11. We realize you are very busy and may not have time to respond thoroughly to our thoughts. That is fine. You may not have time to thoroughly research these things either. That too is fine. But, we would gladly welcome whatever comments you might have.

Rejoicing that our names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life,

Mike Wright