Christmas Page

We often hear it said that Jesus was not “really” born December 25th; that this date is a mere fiction, surreptitiously appropriated by church authorities in an attempt to Christianize the pagan solstice, or festival Sol Invictus. However, such charges are actually recent. For almost all of church history, December 25th was received as the actual date of Christ’s birth, handed down from earliest times. Learn the Truth! Defend the Faith!

Ecclesioclasm 2023 Christmas Special

How We Can Know When Christ Was Born

Why do we celebrate the Nativity of Christ on December 25th? There’s a lot of myth and distortion, as well as outright deception, regarding why Christians celebrate Christmas on December 25th. You’ve probably seen many of the strange claims about it. They are all completely false, and a simple examination into these claims reveals their falsehood.

The Biblical Case for the Dec. 25th

We often hear it said that Jesus was not “really” born December 25th; that this date is a mere fiction, surreptitiously appropriated by church authorities in an attempt to Christianize a pagan festival, but for most of church history, but the evidence from scripture and sacred history supporting the December 25th birth of Christ is actually very substantial.

The Origins of Christmas and the Date of Christ’s Birth

Although many Reformers took no exception to Christmas, various Calvinist sects, including Puritans and Scottish Presbyterians, saw it as a piece of fiction, and went so far as to prohibit its observance in England, Scotland, and the American Colonies such a position is no longer academically defensible or sound.

Calculating Christmas

William Tighe explodes the notion we were all taught in public school about the ‘Christianization’ of a pagan festival for the date of Christmas. It is perhaps interesting to know that the choice of December 25th had nothing to do with pagan festivals. The “pagan origins of Christmas” is a myth without historical substance.

Census Considerations

On the Dateline NBC’s “The Birth of Jesus” episode, Dr. John Dominic Crossan, co-founder of the wildly popular Jesus Seminar. Said Crossan: “Luke tells us the story that at the time Jesus was born Augustus had decreed a census of the whole earth. Now, every scholar will tell you there was no such census ever.” Is Crossan correct? Is the Canon corrupt?

A Pagan Records the Slaughter of the Holy Innocents by Herod

Matthew says that when Herod realized the magi were not going to return, he ordered the slaughter of all male children two years old and under in Bethlehem (Matt. 2:16-18). John alludes to it in Rev. 12:1-4, and thus becomes a witness to Matthew’s record. The Slaughter of the Innocents is also corroborated by a pagan writer named Macrobius.

Six Men Who FAILED to Paganize the Origins of Christmas

Every Christmas season, the usual myths are hauled out. We’ve all heard or read them. All of them were invented in the 18th- and 19th-centuries by specific writers, who were looking for ways to finally destroy traditional Christianity. Six writers of such legends have had the most long-reaching influence.

In Defense of the Christmas Tree

Was the Christmas tree originally just pagan evergreens? The Christmas Tree? Pagan? The Christmas tree does not date from early Germanic times. Its origins are to be found in a tradition that has virtually disappeared from Christianity, the Liturgical Drama.

How to Avoid Holiday Depression

Much of the post-holiday blues and Christmas depression that occur in the United States may have to with the way Christmas is celebrated in the U.S. People often feel deprived and lonely, in stark contrast to all of the pre-Christmas cheer. Changing the way the holiday is celebrated can yield completely different results.