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“Did you know that Christmas is a pagan holiday?”
Many of us hear something similar to this each year. As the second most important holiday in the Christian calendar approaches, let’s talk about its origins. Many claim it copied pagan traditions or that the day was selected at random, leading us to ask, did other religions influence Christmas, or can it stand alone?
Until recently I thought that Christmas Day was selected at random without any reason behind it, but I was sorely mistaken. There are logical reasons. although they are hard to find so we’re going to do some detective work to figure it out.
The Priestly Timeline
The story starts in the book of Luke 1:5 “In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah[1]”. Abija is the key word here. Abija is one of the 24 priestly divisions that were created to serve in the temple throughout the year. They would serve for one week about twice a year. We need two important names from the list: Jehoiarib who serves the first week and Abija who serves the 8th week[2].
Next is understanding when Jehoiarib begins serving. We did not know when the cycle started, but Bill Federer, a historian, references the Jewish Talmud that was recorded in 70 AD when the temple was destroyed, Jehoiarib was on duty and it was in the first week of August[3]. We know now that Jehoiarib was on duty during early August, so that means Abija would be in late September so that is about when John the Baptist was conceived. Then if we look at Luke 1:26 it tells us that 6 months after Elizabeth conceived Gabriel visits Mary and tells her of her role in God’s plan. We are now in the last week of March and then move forward 9 months it gets us to the end of December.
A Reflection
While knowing the reasons behind the date of Christmas is fun and encouraging to our faith we must remember the real reason for Christmas. It is not to win arguments or to give gifts. Christmas points to the cross which is the only way sinful people could come into a relationship with a holy God. Therefore, Christmas is about looking forward to salvation from sin. If in this Christmas season, you ever get into a conversation about whether Christmas is Pegan or not remember what our goal should be. Not to prove we are right but to point to Christ. We should only argue if it shows Jesus to others. Otherwise, our words are wasted and have no eternal investment.
I would encourage you after reading this go back and read the Christmas story in its entirety in Luke 1:5-2:21. It is fascinating how it comes to life a little bit more when we know more about what happened around that. Remember that the greatest gift we could ever receive was given 2,000 years ago and the greatest gift we could give is to tell others of what has happened 2,000 years ago. I encourage you to tell someone about that this Christmas season.
Works cited:
[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Lk 1:5.
[2] “The 24 Divisions of the Priests That Prepared the Way for the Coming Christ” Berit Theological Seminary, accessed November 29, 2024, https://berit.us/true-peace-magazine/the-24-divisions-of-the-priests-that-prepared-the-way-for-the-coming-of-jesus-christ/
[3] Frank Turek, “Santa, Christmas Trees, and Reindeer: Pagan or Christian? | With Bill Federer,” December 23, 2023, I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist.
