Christmas Q&A

December is here, and in a great many heads, this month brings thoughts of giving gifts. Yet, there are many people today who have serious concerns regarding the manner in which we celebrate Christ's birth. Christmas is a celebration of which many Christians are usually divided over. Let's take a few moments to consider some of the more commonly asked questions about Christmas. We have to avoid the attitude that says "Don't bother me with the facts, I have made up my mind already."

Do we have Scriptural warrant to observe Christmas?? There were feasts that Jesus observed that were never commanded by God to be observed by the people of Israel. The feasts divinely commanded by God are outlined in Leviticus 23 and they are known as the "feasts of the LORD."

However, there are two other feasts that the Jews observed that were not commanded by God, namely Hanukkah and Purim. The first feast is found nowhere in the Old Testament because it was instituted long after the Old Testament canon had been completed. The feast of Hanukkah finds it origins in the Apocrypha, a collection of non-canonical books that were never accepted as part of the Old Testament. However, the Orthodox and traditional churches do accept these books but consider as "deutero-canonical", ie. their canonicity has a secondary status.

The Hanukkah story comes from the first and second books of the Maccabees. However, this feast is mentioned in the New Testament in John 10:22 and there it is called the "feast of dedication", another name for Hanukkah. As a Jew, Jesus would most likely have observed this feast, and it would be pointless for John to mention this feast if it had no relevance to Jesus or His ministry.

Scholars have noted for the longest time that the Gospel of John revolves the ministry of Jesus around the Jewish feasts, and that Jesus is the fulfillment of those feasts. Hence, Jesus had no objection to the observance of a feast that had no basis in the Old Testament. Why? As long as God was glorified and acknowledged the people of God were free to do so.

Another example of this is seen in the feast of Purim. This feast is mentioned in the Old Testament, in the book of Esther, but like Hanukkah, Purim was never commanded by God. Rather, the Jewish community in Persia instituted this feast to celebrate their deliverance from annihilation (Esther 9:18-32).

Once again, in this case, this feast glorified God for His providential protection. As stated above, Jesus as a Jew would also have celebrated this feast. Some scholars believe that the "feast of the Jews" mentioned in John 5:1 was the feast of Purim. The intent again was to glorify God.

Christmas is never commanded nor prohibited in the New Testament. It is thus a grey area and Christians should be free to exercise their conscience as to whether they wish to observe this feast or not. One must not however, pass judgment on other believers who wish to observe Christmas. Likewise we must do the same for those who do not observe it.

Paul points out that the observance of days should never be a divisive issue with Christians. As long as the day is regarded to the Lord, it is acceptable to Him (Romans 14:4-6). Christians who celebrate Christmas do so to glorify God for His unspeakable gift, His Son.

When was Jesus born?? It is clear that the New Testament writers who wrote on the Nativity narratives, namely Matthew and Luke, were not concerned about specifying the date of Christ's birth. All we know about that time is that Luke tells us the Caesar Augustus issued a decree for a census (Luke 2:1-2). Scholars can tell us about the year that event took place, but not about the month and day, which is what we are interested in.

We do know the time of Christ's death and resurrection because it was during the Passover, and it is clear that the New Testament writers put much more emphasis and importance on this event, rather than on the birth of Christ. Indeed, it is the death, burial and resurrection of Christ that constitute the core and foundation of the Gospel (1 Corinthians 15:1-4). It is belief in Jesus as Lord and His resurrection that brings salvation (Romans 10:9-13).

Some scholars speculate probably a September/October as a likely date for Jesus' birth because Luke mentions sheep in the fields (Luke 2:8), and November was the latest month in which sheep could be left out in the fields and December would be bitterly cold for pasture and for people to migrate for a census.

The Jewish feast of Tabernacles is celebrated in September or sometimes October. This feast represented God's presence dwelling with His people. In John 1:14 it states that the Word "tabernacled" or "pitched His tent" among us. Some scholars see an allusion here to the feast of Tabernacles. It is possible that Jesus could have been born during this feast.

Notwithstanding these points however, the well known Jewish Christian scholar, Dr. Alfred Edersheim proposed December 25 as Christ's birthday and argued that it had a connection with the Jewish feast of Hanukkah which falls on the 25th day of the Hebrew month Kislev. The Jewish feast of Hanukkah always begins on the 25th day of Kislev, just as Christmas always falls on the 25th day of December.

Due to the differences between the Christian calendar (better known as the 'Gregorian calendar') and the Hebrew calendar, Hanukkah and Christmas sometimes are celebrated together or at times Hanukkah begins before Christmas. Both of these festivals emphasize the importance of light, the menorah with Judaism and Christmas lights with Christianity. The idea of the "Festival of Lights" points to Jesus as the "light of the world" (John 8:12).

What better time for the Messiah to be born? Dr. Edersheim's arguments are compelling, but he stands in the minority on the subject. Most scholars if not all reject December 25 as the actual date of Jesus' birth. The date of Jesus' birth is therefore unknown to us, we simply do not really know.

Likewise, New Year's Day is held by the Western world as January 1, however in the Bible the beginning of the year actually begins in April, and the Hebrew secular year begins in September (Rosh Hashanah).