I decided to split this post into two different blog posts (Part 1 here) because this is where everything takes a turn in the information I’m sharing. My previous thoughts have been based mostly on information that support my personal opinion. Today focuses on the facts of the origins of Christmas. So I have spent extra time praying and gathering my thoughts. It is my intention to convey the Truth of the matter while also being kind to the reader. This is not an easy thing to say, and it’s most certainly not an easy thing to hear. I know there will be disagreements with me. I ask you to remember that I am not writing these things because it matters to *me* where you stand on the issue. It matters to God where you stand on the issue. And there is no gray area.
It may come as no surprise to you that my fifth reason that we are done with Christmas is that it is tied to centuries of paganism. What may surprise you is the depths of those pagan roots.
Christmas as the observance of the Savior’s birth did not come into existence immediately. It was not observed for at least three centuries after His birth. But Christmas as a pagan holiday traces back thousands of years to a man named King Nimrod, founder of ancient pagan Babylon. “Nimrod began a counterfeit religion in the Book of Genesis that was to compete with the True Faith of the Bible in every conceivable way down through the centuries. The Bible refers to it as the religion of Mystery Babylon — the mother of false religion that will be destroyed when the Savior [Yeshua] comes to set up His throne on earth.” The story of Nimrod is lengthy and can be found here. What should be made note of is that Nimrod’s son, Tammuz, is considered by pagans to be Nimrod reincarnated. And in Ezekiel 8:14-18, the scriptures condemn any celebration or worship of Tammuz.
Historically, there was (and is) a winter celebration that revolved around the solstice. In those days, Mithras (also known as Baal to the Babylonians and Amon-Ra to the Egyptians), the pagan sun god, was renown. Joscelyn Godwin, professor at Colgate University, writes that Mithras was “the creator and orderer of the universe, hence a manifestation of the creative Logos or Word. Seeing mankind afflicted by Ahriman, the cosmic power of darkness, he incarnated on earth. His birth on 25 December was witnessed by shepherds. After many deeds he held a last supper with his disciples and returned to heaven. At the end of the world he will come again to judge resurrected mankind and after the last battle, victorious over evil, he will lead the chosen ones through a river of fire to a blessed immortality.” Godwin remarks, “No wonder the early Christians were disturbed by a deity who bore so close a resemblance to their own, and no wonder they considered him a mockery of [the Messiah].” If you didn't pay attention, you'd think that was a description of Jesus until you get to the "river of fire" part. Scary!
In a society where both pagans and Christians fought to honor their respective savior, the Roman government offered a compromise, hoping to appease both sides. What was given as the final decree was an official calendar day of pagan traditions and gods that so closely resembled the Christian Jesus Christ that they tacked on the incorrect date of His birthday so that everyone could celebrate at the same time.
However, this caused some confusion. A mass is a celebration of the Eucharist or the emblems of the death of the Savior. Yet, “Christ-mass” is an observance supposedly in honor of Christ’s birth. Why? “The answer is found with the secular ancients. Mithras was known as the Sun Deity. His birthday, Natalis solis invicti, means ‘birthday of the invincible sun.’ It came on December 25, at the time of the winter solstice when the sun began its journey northward again. Pagan peoples were overly concerned with life and fertility. They saw life fading in the darkness of winter and so held festivals in honor of and to beckon back the sun to give life and light to the earth once more. A funeral mass came to be celebrated as the supposed birthday of the Savior.” So going to mass serves the duel purpose of commemorating the Son/God's death while also celebrating a pagan sun god's birth?!? How devastatingly ironic.
God-fearing Christians have always spoken up about the pagan roots of Christmas and the need to stop participating in their traditions. During his reign, Pope Leo I (440-461) chastised Christians for celebrating the birth of the sun deity on Christmas. The very Catholic church that helped create the holiday began speaking out against it! But Christians liked their celebrations.
This link is a very informative, very thought-provoking lesson on the history of pagan Christmas. It is two hours long, but so very worth it. However, if you will not watch it for yourself, here are some bullet points:
*Christmas is sun god worship, not Son God worship
*Catholic ‘halos’ behind saints are in fact sun discs for sun worship.
*This sun disc is then represented as the star on top of the Christmas tree. This tree star use predates the story of the star of Bethlehem that is commonly told today by over 1000 years.
*Our corporate worship is on Sunday because ancient Romans were already worshiping the sun god on his day of the week – SUNday. They worshiped the sun god on his birthday, December 25th. We live by the Roman calendar today.
*Constantine was responsible for combining the pagan sun worship holiday and commemorating Christ’s birthday on December 25th.
*The Norse god, Odin, is the origin of Santa Claus. He was the god of “wisdom, magic, and occult knowledge.” His name means “the inspired one.”
*Odin traveled around the world on a horse that had 8 legs. This is where the 8 reindeer came from (Rudolph was added later!). Here's a short video of the explanation.
*Santa’s elves were originally the Krampus, a dark helper who would travel with Klaus and beat any naughty children. They worked in contrast to St. Nick/Santa Claus who brought toys and gifts to good children.
*People still dress up as these Krampuses today during St. Nick and Christmas festival times in Austria, Hungary, Germany, Italy, etc. They are very scary looking beings and are often referred to as “demons.” Here's a video so you can see just what these things look like. Warning: don't open it in the presence of your children!
*By the 1500s in Holland, Odin became Sinterklaas; a kind and wise old man with a white beard, white dress, red cloak, crosier, and riding the skies and roofs of the houses on his white (8 legged) horse, accompanied by his Krampuses, leaving gifts for people under his sacred tree, the fir tree. He would visit on his own birthday, December 25th, and bring you gifts if you’d been good and his Krampus would beat you if you’d been bad.
*Why does Santa say “ho ho ho?” In The History of a Hobgoblin, author Allen W. Wright reveals, “Robin itself was a medieval nickname for the devil” and “Robin’s trademark laugh is ‘ho ho ho.’”
*In the 1970s, the Second Vatican Council formally stated that no Roman Catholic bishop by the name of Nicholas ever existed. There has never been a Saint Nick! Furthermore, Vatican II confessed that the legends attributed to this “saint” had no Christian origin, and probably came from pagan traditions! They essentially admitted that St Nick came from Odin who had been “Christianized.”
*The belief that Santa enters the house through the chimney developed from an old Norse legend. The Norse believed that the goddess Hertha (hearth??) appeared in the fireplace and brought good luck to the home.
*Druid homeowners would leave a treat of milk and pastries to appease the god that came down into their chimney into their fireplace.
*And here's an explanation of the tree used for pagan worship.
There is nothing wrong with traditions. We have many traditions in our lives that bring joy and happiness. It is when those traditions take precedence over scripture that we have a problem. We cannot both adhere to the traditions of man that are connected to paganism and say that we are also following the commandments of God. Many Christians will say, “That’s not what it means to *me.* That’s not what *I’m* celebrating.” Except that it is. There is evidence that Christmas is NOT Jesus’ birthday. There is evidence that Christmas IS pagan. So to say that your participation is about God and not about pagans is impossible.
But here’s one more thing: Modern day pagans and atheists mock Christians for participating in Christmas. Of all the people in the world, they KNOW the history of Christmas, and it’s not at all related to Jesus. And they laugh and ridicule us believers because we participate in the same sun and Odin worship that they are participating in. We can say that we’re singing songs to our King. We can put out our Nativity scene. We can read our scriptures about Christ’s birth. But none of that changes the facts of December 25th as the birthday of the pagan sun god.
I read a statement by Alfred Carl Hottes from 1954. He said, “If the children of Israel couldn’t use a golden calf to honor the Father, what makes us think we can use the Mithraic custom of decorating an evergreen to honor His Son?” We cannot pick and choose what we say something means. History shows us what this holiday means. It is within our ability to research and see where each part of the Christmas tradition came from.
Pagan quote: “As a pagan, I laugh every time Christians whine about their ‘Christmas traditions’ being altered and abused. You guys took our traditions and don’t even have any unique ones.”
Pagan quote: “Pagans are the reason for the season.”
Reason #6 Why we’re done with Christmas
I want to thank everyone who has made it this far with me! While I welcome everyone to read and comment, I really have been speaking to my brothers and sisters in Christ. I hope I’ve made that clear and that you’ve read all the previous posts, even if you haven’t commented. I know the last post was the hardest to read. I intentionally started with the other stuff so I could create a foundation: not only so that my reasons built upon each other, but so you would see my heart and understand my compassion. I pray that has come across. I am in no way trying to have a “judgmental spirit.” I have had a tree and stockings and know all the songs. So I’m not coming from a position that says I’m better than you are. But I feel that when you have information about something that can help someone else, you are obligated to share that information. And as a Christian, when I have information about a topic that is *hurting* another Christian’s walk with the Lord, it’s also my responsibility to share that information. In this case, this information meets both of those.
So that being said, I have one more reason of “bad news” about Christmas. And as hard as the last post was to write, this one is harder. Not because the information is worse, but because it leaves no room for excuses. If you’re willing to stick with me, I pray you will keep reading.
The first thing I’d like to address is the emotions that come with being faced with this revelation of Christmas. Here you are, happy and joyous, loving everything about your favorite time of year – decorating and singing, putting out the nativity set, reminding your kids that it’s not just about the presents, but Jesus is the reason for the season! And here I come, with all my reasons. And you read them because you’re curious and you like me and you want to know what I have to say and where I’m going with all this. And now you maybe wish you hadn’t. Because now you can’t unknown any of this. I suspect there’s shock at never hearing some of this. Bewilderment that what you thought is nothing at all close to the truth. Maybe anger that Christmas has such a deceptive past, not at all related to what you thought. And perhaps you’re even angry at me, a little, deep down, for ruining this for you. Why couldn’t I just keep my thoughts to myself? How about grief and loss? If Christmas is pagan and doesn’t have anything to do with Jesus, now what? (I’m going to address *that* in my next post!). But among all those feelings, what I’d like to talk about today is those of you who are thinking “So what? That’s not how *I* mean it so I don’t see any reason to change what I’m doing.”
And so here’s the hard part I said it would be today. I’m praying for all the right words and I’m asking you to pray that God will speak to your heart. Because this isn’t about me. It’s about HIM.
When this topic comes up, I usually hear one of these statements to justify why it’s still ok to celebrate Christmas:
1. "God knows my heart." Oh, sweet friend, He does! He knows every crevice, every thought, every longing. Do you know what He says about our hearts? “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9) In Romans 7:8, Paul said, “For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.” So when I hear, “God knows my heart” about that person’s feelings about Christmas, I remember that there is no goodness in our feelings outside of the change Christ makes in us. We are, by nature selfish, and self-centered. And God truly does know our heart in that (and every) way.
2. "That’s not what I mean when I celebrate Christmas so it shouldn’t matter." Except it’s not about how *we* feel. Deuteronomy 12: 4, 31 says, “Do not inquire about their gods, saying, ‘How did these nations serve their gods?—that I also may do the same.’ You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way, for every abominable thing that the Lord hates they have done for their gods.” God cannot be more plain here – He is saying that He does not want to be honored in the same way that pagan gods are honored. It is not to His glory. Even if *you* are not trying to be pagan in your practices, it IS pagan and God hates it.
3. "God made all days equal." This is true! God is the creator of time and dates and calendars. I see this scripture a lot as an explanation for why Christmas can be celebrated by Christians: “In the same way, some think one day is more holy than another day, while others think every day is alike. You should each be fully convinced that whichever day you choose is acceptable. Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God” (Romans 14:5-6). Paul was addressing those things which were ingrained in the Jews to avoid as law under Moses versus those things that they were free to do through the salvation of Christ (eating meat and esteeming one day over another). He was *not* giving permission to worship God as the pagans do. God sees every day as the same, as His created time. However, He does not see celebrations on a particular day as acceptable for His glory if those celebrations include paganism or witchcraft – especially when done under the guise of HIS NAME.
Another example is Colossians 2:16-17: “Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.” All things mentioned here are referring to Messianic Jews who continued to keep the Feasts of the Old Testament, even in their new faith in Christ. Others were mocking them and Paul told them to only be instructed by the body of believers. It is NOT speaking to celebrations outside the realm of scripture.
Many people don’t even realize that the Bible instructs us not to bring a tree into our home for decoration. “Learn not the way of the nations…A tree from the forest is cut down and worked with an axe by the hands of a craftsman. They decorate it with silver and gold; they fasten it with hammer and nails so that it cannot move” (Jeremiah 10: 2-3). It wasn’t the tree itself that was the problem – it’s the fact that this tradition was found in pagan religions. It was a form of worship (as was discussed in the last post). God is saying, “Don’t do what the pagans do and say you're doing it to honor or worship Me.”
Everyone recognizes the commandment “You shall have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20:3). But when it comes to “Christian” holidays, we tend to look the other way. Jesus said in Mark 7:9,13 “You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions! Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things like that.” In Matthew 15:5, Jesus said, “Why do you break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition?” How clear Jesus was! He was blatantly calling out the believers for breaking the commandment of God in order to do their own thing! We cannot justify our own way by going against His way.
If you’ve studied the Bible for a while, you’ve heard this verse many times: "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16). I would like to couple it with this verse from Ephesians: “Take no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness; instead, expose them” (5:11). THIS is my motivation! I want to point you to scripture to expose the lies and deceit that has pervaded our faith so that we may teach and correct and live righteously! We have allowed these things to come into our lives, and we have accepted them without question. It is time to get rid of them and honor God as He says to honor Him!
While I’m not usually overtly confrontational, for the sake of this conversation and for the love I have for you, I am going to openly challenge what I believe is still the most common reaction to all of this information.
There is no doubt or question now that Christmas is a pagan holiday. There is not one thing about it that celebrates Christ. No matter how many memes are made and shared, the truth is that the Son is not who is being honored with this day. It is literally idol worship and against God. Anything against God is by definition anti-Christ. Let that sink in for a moment.
But I can still hear the excuses and the justifications. My friend, that is rebellion.
*Hebrews 10:26 says, “For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins.”
*1 Samuel 15:23 says, “Rebellion is as sinful as witchcraft, and stubbornness as bad as worshiping idols.”
*Isaiah 5:20 “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!”
*2 Tim 4:3 “For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.”
My greatest heartache over this subject is not that Christmas is celebrated among the body of Christ (although that bothers me a great deal). What concerns me so very much is that there are believers WHO KNOW THE PAGAN HISTORY AND DO NOT CARE.
Imagine I am on a trip. I am driving through a state and do not know the speed limit. I get pulled over by a police officer. Although I explain I did not know the speed limit, and therefore, did not know I was speeding, I still am issued a ticket. I am held accountable for my ignorance of information I didn’t have. Now imagine that I am traveling and I see that the speed limit is 55mph, but I want to go 70mph. I get pulled over. The officer asks me if I knew the speed limit. I tell him yes, but I chose to ignore it because it was too slow for me. I get a ticket. *I knowingly and willfully ignored the law in order to do what I wanted.* THAT is what some Christians are doing with Christmas! Knowingly and willfully ignoring God’s Word in order to do what they want. And attempting to justify it!
Do you ever find that people around you aren’t interested in your faith? Do you remember the last time someone was truly interested in hearing how God has changed your life? Why do you think that is? Could it be because we Christians are so busy trying to fit in and look the same as the rest of the world that they already think they’re like us? That is the exact opposite of our calling! We are to be so different that the world wants what we have! *They* are to be drawn to *us,* not the other way around. What would it look like if Christians truly looked different from the rest of the world? Maybe we'd be taken more seriously. “Come out from among unbelievers, and separate yourselves from them, says the LORD” (2 Corinthians 6:17).
If your motivation to celebrate Christmas is truly about celebrating Jesus, you’re at a crossroads. You’ve been presented with Truth – from God’s very word. With every bit of love I know to convey, I hope that I have led you to a moment where you have to say, “It’s not about how *I* feel about it. It's about honoring God, the Father, and the Son, Jesus Christ.” Do not fall into the trap of participating in an anti-Christ holiday!
But how do you DO that? I bet you are still feeling conflicted about the “giving up” of Christmas things: the lights, the joy, the family time. Do not despair! Please, please keep coming back! I have GOOD NEWS! There IS a way to honor the Son and do it in a way that is acceptable to Him. Until that post, know that I tell you these things because I love the Lord and I love you! The intention of my heart is to draw you closer to Him in all this – even though it’s difficult.
“And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:32).
When I posted this on my personal Facebook page, I had very little response. I wasn't surprised. It's hard to argue with God about what He accepts.
But now we're at the moment to answer the question "What Now?" My last reason possibly left you feeling rather conflicted: wanting to be obedient to the Father, but also grieving giving up the traditions of Christmas. I offer you an alternative.
Hanukkah!
This is considered a minor day on the Jewish calendar. It is not one of the seven holy feasts given to the Israelites through Moses that they were commanded to keep. It is a commemoration of God marked by man (not unlike the stories told about Christmas). And, as if you needed any more surprises, it falls on the 25th day of Kislev (the 9th month) each year! Isn't it ironic that there is already a holiday set aside on the 25th day that *actually* means something to honor God?!
Anyway, how did Hanukkah come to be? In the time of Antiochus IV, the reign over the Jews became very harsh. Outside religions were being forced upon the Jews and their Torah teachings and Temple sacrifices were outlawed. The Temple was desecrated and thousands of Jews were killed because they refused to assimilate into the heathen lifestyle.
A man named Judah Maccabee led a revolutionary army (the Maccabees) against the forces of Antiochus and defeated them. The Temple was regained under Jewish control. However, in the process of cleansing everything and restoring it as the seat of God, it was found that there was not enough lamp oil. God had commanded that a menorah be lit every night, all night in the Temple. There was only enough oil for one night and it took eight nights to make more oil that was pure for the purpose of the Temple. But through a miracle, God multiplied the oil to last the full eight nights to allow the priests time to purify more menorah oil. Hence, the celebration of this miracle of enough oil came to be Hanukkah.
Here are some fun facts:
*Hanukkah is also known as The Feast of Dedication (rededicating the Temple to God) or the Festival of Lights (light of the menorah).
*Jesus was at the Temple during this time of year! John 10:22-23 says, "Then came the Festival of Dedication at Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was in the temple courts walking in Solomon’s Colonnade." Hebrew bibles use the word Hanukkah.
*The Hanukkah menorah has nine branches (the menorahs for the Sabbath have only seven) - one for each of the eight nights and a space for the shammus candle. The shammus is the servant candle, used to light the other candles each night. This servant candle can then be used to light other things around the house if needed, but never one of the branch candles. The servant candle must always provide the light.
*In John 8:12, Jesus said, "I am the LIGHT of the world." And in Matthew 20:28, Jesus said, "just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to SERVE." The Festival of Lights celebrates *the* Light of Jesus Christ, who came as a servant.
*In Matthew 5:14, Jesus said, "*you* are the LIGHT of the world." And Galatians 5:13 says, "through love, SERVE one another." Hanukkah reminds us that, through Christ, we now take His light into our own world to serve in His name!
Other important facts:
*Due to the Jewish calendar being based on the lunar cycle (Roman calendar is based on the solar cycle), each feast can fall at a different time on the Roman calendar each year. This year, Hanukkah begins at sundown on December 24th. Last year it began at sundown on December 6th. In 2013, it began at sundown on November 27th!
*Hanukkah is NOT a Jewish Christmas. It has been mistaken as such because it often falls around the same time of year. As a minor holiday, the emphasis was put upon remembering God's miracle of the oil by the lighting of the menorah and reciting the blessings. As Jews came to America, it grew to involve eight nights of gifts because Jewish children were watching Christmas being played out around them.
*A modern day tradition is to have foods fried in oil during the eight days of Hanukkah. Latkes are very popular as are donuts. The focus is always the miracle of the oil.
Tomorrow I'll share what our Hanukkah looks like. It's evolved over time and it will continue to as I seek and obey God. For now, I want to leave you with this link if you'd like a more in depth look at this minor feast with major symbolism of our Lord Jesus.
With all of the information I’ve posted about Christmas, I hope that I’ve also offered you a different perspective in finding an alternative through Hanukkah. But perhaps you’re at a loss as to what that should look like? The beauty of this year is that Hanukkah begins at sunset on December 24th. It literally coincides with Christmas. This creates a very special opportunity to switch gears and convert some of your efforts to a holiday that truly has meaning. It’s not nearly as overwhelming and complicated as it sounds. And if you aren’t quite ready to make the cut to Christmas, if you still need time to pray about it and figure out how to tell your family of your desire to be obedient to God in this area, don’t panic! There’s an entire year to prepare for next Hanukkah!
In the meantime, I thought you might like to know what our home looks like during this Festival of Lights. The biggest difference is that there is no tree. But we do have blue and white lights decorating our front porch outside. There are blue and silver ornaments and ribbon on our hearth. I have two menorahs sitting on my mantle that will be used during the eight nights of Hanukkah once it begins. And tomorrow I will attempt to make my first door wreath with blue and silver ball ornaments. There is no reason why you cannot appropriately decorate your house beautifully during this time!
As I previously explained in another post, gift giving during Hanukkah is a relatively new thing. The traditional gift of Hanukkah has been to give the children gelt – small amounts of money. However, Jewish families moved to American and their children felt left out watching other children receive gifts for Christmas. In preparing for our own Hanukkah this year, I created a list of gifts for each night. Each of these could easily be adjusted to fit your own desire for your family. The only thing I didn’t do was ask my kids for a gift list like I’ve done in previous years. The focus – in addition to the miracle of the oil and God’s gift of Jesus as the Light of the World – is family. I tried to carry that through each of the gifts my family will be getting.
*Night 1 – Something practical (something they may need)
*Night 2 – Something for the family (to enjoy together, like games or a movie)
*Night 3 – Something fun or silly (everyone got a funny glass or mug)
*Night 4 – Something for a stranger (we will be handing out gifts to random people on the street)
*Night 5 – Something for charity (we filled 16 goodie bags for local nursing home residents who have no family and who would otherwise gone without anything to make them feel loved)
*Night 6 – Something small (not necessarily in size, but in concept)
*Night 7 - Something gelt (I bought chocolate covered coins to represent Hanukkah money given to children)
*Night 8 – Something they want (not expensive, and intentionally last)
We will read the story of the Maccabees and discuss the miracle of the oil in the reclaimed Temple. We will discuss how Jesus is the Light and the Servant – lighting each of us to do His will and bring His glory and the good news of His salvation to the rest of the world. We will light the candles each night and recite the blessings.
And we will eat! Foods usually consist of things fried in oil (imagine that!). So we will have Darren’s favorite – my fried chicken. We’ll also make latkes (Jeannie calls them fancy hashbrowns) and chocolate chip challah bread. I found a recipe for brisket, which seems to be popular despite not being cooked in oil. And I’ll have to get donuts sometime during the week. Darren is a picky eater and I’m not sure how Lance will like it, but the girls and I are excited to try some new things.
And that’s about it! Instead of one day, it’s eight. Instead of a tree, we have a menorah. Instead of red and green, we have blue and white. Instead of an imaginary man who is supposed to know everything about you, we have a God who truly knows everything about us – and loves us even when we haven’t been good.
I want to thank each of you who have read every post to the end. I thank you for loving me as a friend and not attacking me even if you don’t agree with me. I thank you for knowing that my heart is for my Lord – and it’s for you – and so you showed me love in return. I thank you for having an open heart and a willing spirit. And who knows? Maybe next year you’ll be lighting your own menorah!
“The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face sine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.” Numbers 6:24-26
No comments:
Post a Comment