Christian Apologetics Society: Why Christmas Is December 25th

Scripture Memorization

Isaiah 55:11
So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it

Gen 1:3
Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light

Matthew 26:26
And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body."

Malachi 1:11
My name will be great among the nations, from the rising to the setting of the sun. In every place incense and pure offerings will be brought to my name, because my name will be great among the nations," says the LORD Almighty.

John 20:23
If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.

James 5:16
Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

James 2:14
What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?

Luke 20:38
For He is not the God of the dead but of the living, for all live to Him.

Rev 21:27
Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life.

1 Cor 3:15
If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.

Psalm 51:5
Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me.

John 3:5
Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

Titus 3:5
Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

1 Timothy 3:15
but if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.

Acts 22:16
And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.

Why Christmas Is December 25th

While reviewing our analytics, we discovered that a number of folks have visited seeking the true answer to "Why is Christmas on December 25th?" We also have had one visitor leave the popular, but erroneous myth of Christmas being of pagan origin as a comment.

As we stated in our reply to the misinformed commentor, It's not because "the feast of the Son of Isis (Goddess of Nature) was celebrated on December 25." While that is a happy coincidence, its not the true reason for the season. The true reason for why December 25th commemorates the birth of Jesus is because its about nine months after Easter. Nine months is the gestation period for a human, including God incarnate."

But why take our word for it? Why not read and dwell on what William J. Tighe, Associate Professor of History at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania, researched and wrote for Touchstone, a Journal of Mere Christianity. In his article, Calculating Christmas, professor Tighe explains the true reason for how Christmas came to be observed by Western Christians on December 25th and by Eastern Christians on January 6th. Professor Tighe aptly explains "why" far better than we can.

By the way, for those fond of the pagan origins of Christmas myth, while the myth seems to explain why Western Christians celebrate on December 25th, the myth fails to satifactorily explain why Eastern Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus on Januray 6th. Thus the myth is true only for one date, but not both dates. If something is true for one date, but not all dates, then one does not have the truth. Its a simple, but effective test.

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Source: Calculating Christmas

Labels: Christmas, Church History, Early_Church