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History of Christmas

I. When was Jesus born?

A. Popular myth puts his birth on December 25th

in the year 1 C.E.B. The New Testament gies no !ate or year "or #esus$ birth. The earliest gospel % &t.

'ar($s) written about *5 CE % begins with the baptism o" an a!ult #esus. Thissuggests that the earliest Christians lac(e! interest in or (nowle!ge o" #esus$birth!ate.

C. The year o" #esus birth was !etermine! by Dionysius E+iguus) a &cythian mon(),abbot o" a -oman monastery. is calculation went as "ollows/

a. 0n the -oman) preChristian era) years were counte! "rom ab urbecondita ,the "oun!ing o" the City3 4-ome6. Thus 1 A7C signi"ies the year-ome was "oun!e!) 5 A7C signi"ies the 5th year o" -ome$s reign) etc.

b. Dionysius receie! a tra!ition that the -oman emperor Augustus reigne! 89years) an! was "ollowe! by the emperor Tiberius.

c. :u(e 9/1)29 in!icates that when #esus turne! 9; years ol!) it was the15th year o" Tiberius reign.

!. 0" #esus was 9; years ol! in Tiberius$ reign) then he lie! 15 years un!er Augustus placing #esus birth in Augustus$ 2<th year o" reign6.

e. Augustus too( power in =2= A7C. There"ore) Dionysius put #esus birth in=58 A7C.

". oweer) :u(e 1/5 places #esus$ birth in the !ays o" ero!) an! ero! !ie!in =5; A7C % "our years before the year in which Dionysius places #esusbirth.

D. #oseph A. >it?myer % Pro"essor Emeritus o" Biblical &tu!ies at the Catholic 7niersity

o" America) member o" the Ponti"ical Biblical Commission) an! "ormer presi!ent o"the Catholic Biblical Association % writing in the Catholic Church$s o""icial commentary

on the New Testament[1]) writes about the !ate o" #esus$ birth) ,Though the year 4o"

#esus birth is not rec(one! with certainty) the birth !i! not occur in AD 1. TheChristian era) suppose! to hae its starting point in the year o" #esus birth) is base!on a miscalculation intro!uce! ca. 599 by Dionysius E+iguus.3

E. The DePascha Computus) an anonymous !ocument beliee! to hae been writtenin North A"rica aroun! 289 CE) place! #esus birth on 'arch 2<. Clement) a bishop o"

Ale+an!ria !. ca. 215 CE6) thought #esus was born on Noember 1<. Base! onhistorical recor!s) >it?myer guesses that #esus birth occurre! on &eptember 11) 9BCE.

II. How Did Christmas Come to Be Celebrated on December25?

A. -oman pagans "irst intro!uce! the holi!ay o" &aturnalia) a wee( long perio! o"lawlessness celebrate! between December 1=25. During this perio!) -oman courtswere close!) an! -oman law !ictate! that no one coul! be punishe! "or !amagingproperty or in@uring people !uring the wee(long celebration. The "estial began when-oman authorities chose ,an enemy o" the -oman people3 to represent the ,:or! o"'isrule.3 Each -oman community selecte! a ictim whom they "orce! to in!ulge in

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"oo! an! other physical pleasures throughout the wee(. At the "estial$s conclusion)December 25th) -oman authorities beliee! they were !estroying the "orces o"!ar(ness by brutally mur!ering this innocent man or woman.

B. The ancient ree( writer poet an! historian :ucian in his !ialogueentitle! Saturnalia6 !escribes the "estial$s obserance in his time. 0n a!!ition tohuman sacri"ice) he mentions these customs/ wi!esprea! into+ication going "rom

house to house while singing na(e! rape an! other se+ual license an! consuminghumanshape! biscuits still pro!uce! in some English an! most erman ba(eries!uring the Christmas season6.

C. 0n the 8th century CE) Christianity importe! the &aturnalia "estial hoping to ta(e thepagan masses in with it. Christian lea!ers succee!e! in conerting to Christianitylarge numbers o" pagans by promising them that they coul! continue to celebrate the

&aturnalia as Christians.[2]

D. The problem was that there was nothing intrinsically Christian about &aturnalia. Toreme!y this) these Christian lea!ers name! &aturnalia$s conclu!ing !ay) December25th) to be #esus$ birth!ay.

E. Christians ha! little success) howeer) re"ining the practices o" &aturnalia. As&tephen Nissenbaum) pro"essor history at the 7niersity o" 'assachussetts)

Amherst) writes) ,0n return "or ensuring massie obserance o" the anniersary o" the&aior$s birth by assigning it to this resonant !ate) the Church "or its part tacitlyagree! to allow the holi!ay to be celebrate! more or less the way it ha! alwaysbeen.3 The earliest Christmas holi!ays were celebrate! by !rin(ing) se+ualin!ulgence) singing na(e! in the streets a precursor o" mo!ern caroling6) etc.

>. The -eeren! 0ncrease 'ather o" Boston obsere! in 1*<= that ,the early Christianswho "irst obsere! the Natiity on December 25 !i! not !o so thin(ing that Christwas born in that 'onth) but because the eathens$ &aturnalia was at that time (ept in-ome) an! they were willing to hae those Pagan oli!ays metamorphose! into

Christian ones.3[3] Because o" its (nown pagan origin) Christmas was banne! by

the Puritans an! its obserance was illegal in 'assachusetts between 1*5 an!

1*<1.[4] oweer) Christmas was an! still is celebrate! by most Christians.

. &ome o" the most !eprae! customs o" the &aturnalia carnial were intentionallyreie! by the Catholic Church in 18** when Pope Paul 00) "or the amusement o" his-oman citi?ens) "orce! #ews to race na(e! through the streets o" the city. Aneyewitness account reports) ,Be"ore they were to run) the #ews were richly "e!) so asto ma(e the race more !i""icult "or them an! at the same time more amusing "orspectators. They ran ami! -ome$s taunting shrie(s an! peals o" laughter) while

the oly >ather stoo! upon a richly ornamente! balcony an! laughe! heartily.3[5]

. As part o" the &aturnalia carnial throughout the 1<th an! 1th centuries CE) rabbis o"the ghetto in-ome were "orce! to wear clownish out"its an! march through the citystreets to the @eers o" the crow!) pelte! by a ariety o" missiles. hen the #ewishcommunity o" -ome sent a petition in1<9* to Pope regory FG0 begging him to stopthe annual &aturnalia abuse o" the #ewish community) he respon!e!) ,0t is not

opportune to ma(e any innoation.3[6] Hn December 25) 1<<1) Christian lea!erswhippe! the Polish masses into Antisemitic "ren?ies that le! to riots across thecountry. 0n arsaw 12 #ews were brutally mur!ere!) huge numbers maime!) an!many #ewish women were rape!. Two million rubles worth o" property was!estroye!.

III. The ri!ins of Christmas Customs













A. The ri!in of Christmas Tree#ust as early Christians recruite! -oman pagans by associating Christmas with the&aturnalia) so too worshippers o" the Asheira cult an! its o""shoots were recruite! by

the Church sanctioning ,Christmas Trees3.[7] Pagans ha! long worshippe! trees in

the "orest) or brought them into their homes an! !ecorate! them) an! thisobserance was a!opte! an! painte! with a Christian eneer by the Church.

B. The ri!in of "istletoeNorse mythology recounts how the go! Bal!er was (ille! using a mistletoe arrow byhis rial go! o!er while "ighting "or the "emale Nanna. Drui! rituals use mistletoe to

poison their human sacri"icial ictim.[8] The Christian custom o" ,(issing un!er the

mistletoe3 is a later synthesis o" the se+ual license o" &aturnalia with the Drui!ic

sacri"icial cult.[9]

C. The ri!in of Christmas #resents0n preChristian -ome) the emperors compelle! their most !espise! citi?ens to bringo""erings an! gi"ts !uring the &aturnalia in December6 an! Ialen!s in #anuary6.:ater) this ritual e+pan!e! to inclu!e gi"tgiing among the general populace. TheCatholic Church gae this custom a Christian "laor by rerooting it in the suppose!

gi"tgiing o" &aint Nicholas see below6.[10]

D. The ri!in of $anta Claus

a. Nicholas was born in Parara) Tur(ey in 2=; CE an! later became Bishop o"'yra. e !ie! in 985 CE on December *th. e was only name! a saint inthe 1th century.

b. Nicholas was among the most senior bishops who conene! the Council o"Nicaea in 925 CE an! create! the New Testament. The te+t they pro!uce!

portraye! #ews as ,the chil!ren o" the !eil3[11] who sentence! #esus to

!eath.

c. 0n 1;<=) a group o" sailors who i!oli?e! Nicholas moe! his bones"rom Tur(ey to a sanctuary in Bari) 0taly. There Nicholas supplante! a "emaleboongiing !eity calle! The ran!mother) or PasJua Epiphania) who use!

to "ill the chil!renKs stoc(ings with her gi"ts. The ran!mother was ouste!"rom her shrine at Bari) which became the center o" the Nicholas cult.'embers o" this group gae each other gi"ts !uring a pageant theycon!ucte! annually on the anniersary o" Nicholas$ !eath) December *.

!. The Nicholas cult sprea! north until it was a!opte! by erman an! Celticpagans. These groups worshippe! a pantheon le! by o!en %their chie"go! an! the "ather o" Thor) Bal!er) an! Tiw. o!en ha! a long) white bear!an! ro!e a horse through the heaens one eening each Autumn. henNicholas merge! with o!en) he she! his 'e!iterranean appearance) grewa bear!) mounte! a "lying horse) resche!ule! his "light "or December) an!!onne! heay winter clothing.

e. 0n a bi! "or pagan a!herents in Northern Europe) the Catholic Church

a!opte! the Nicholas cult an! taught that he !i! an! they shoul!6 !istributegi"ts on December 25th instea! o" December *th.

". 0n 1<;) the noelist ashington 0ring most "amous his The Legend ofSleepy Hollow an!Rip Van Winle6 wrote a satire o" Dutch cultureentitle! !nicerbocer History . The satire re"ers seeral times to the whitebear!e!) "lyinghorse ri!ing &aint Nicholas using his Dutch name) &antaClaus.

g. Dr. Clement 'oore) a pro"essor at 7nion &eminary) rea! !nicerbocerHistory ) an! in 1<22 he publishe! a poem base! on the character &anta














Claus/ ,Twas the night be"ore Christmas) when all through the house) not acreature was stirring) not een a mouse. The stoc(ings were hung by thechimney with care) in the hope that &aint Nicholas soon woul! bethere3 'oore innoate! by portraying a &anta with eight rein!eer who!escen!e! through chimneys.

h. The Baarian illustrator Thomas Nast almost complete! the mo!ern picture

o" &anta Claus. >rom 1<*2 through 1<<*) base! on 'oore$s poem) Nast!rew more than 2)2;; cartoon images o" &anta "or Harper"s Weely . Be"oreNast) &aint Nicholas ha! been picture! as eerything "rom a stern loo(ingbishop to a gnomeli(e "igure in a "roc(. Nast also gae &anta a home at theNorth Pole) his wor(shop "ille! with eles) an! his list o" the goo! an! ba!chil!ren o" the worl!. All &anta was missing was his re! out"it.

i. 0n 191) the Coca Cola Corporation contracte! the &we!ish commercialartist a!!on &un!blom to create a co(e!rin(ing &anta. &un!blommo!ele! his &anta on his "rien! :ou Prentice) chosen "or his cheer"ul)chubby "ace. The corporation insiste! that &anta$s "urtrimme! suit be bright)Coca Cola re!. An! &anta was born % a blen! o" Christian crusa!er) pagango!) an! commercial i!ol.

I%. The Christmas Challen!e

• Christmas has always been a holi!ay celebrate! carelessly. >or millennia)

pagans) Christians) an! een #ews hae been swept away in the season$s"estiities) an! ery "ew people eer pause to consi!er the celebration$s intrinsicmeaning) history) or origins.

• Christmas celebrates the birth o" the Christian go! who came to rescue man(in!

"rom the ,curse o" the Torah.3 0t is a 28hour !eclaration that #u!aism is nolonger ali!.

• Christmas is a lie. There is no Christian church with a tra!ition that #esus was

really born on December 25th.

• December 25 is a !ay on which #ews hae been shame!) torture!) an!

mur!ere!.

• 'any o" the most popular Christmas customs % inclu!ing Christmas trees)

mistletoe) Christmas presents) an! &anta Claus % are mo!ern incarnations o" themost !eprae! pagan rituals eer practice! on earth.

'any who are e+cite!ly preparing "or their Christmas celebrations woul! pre"er not (nowingabout the holi!ay$s real signi"icance. 0" they !o (now the history) they o"ten ob@ect that theircelebration has nothing to !o with the holi!ay$s monstrous history an! meaning. ,e are @usthaing "un.3

0magine that between 19985) the Na?i regime celebrate! A!ol" itler$s birth!ay % April2; % as a holi!ay. 0magine that they name! the !ay) ,itler!ay)3 an! obsere! the !aywith "easting) !run(enness) gi"tgiing) an! arious pagan practices. 0magine that on that!ay) #ews were historically sub@ect to pererse tortures an! abuse) an! that thiscontinue! "or centuries.

Now) imagine that your greatgreatgreatgran!chil!ren were about to celebrateitler!ay. April 2;tharrie!. They ha! long "orgotten about Auschwit? an! Bergen Belsen.They ha! neer hear! o" gas chambers or !eath marches. They ha! purchase!champagne an! caiar) an! were about to begin the party) when someone remin!e!

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them o" the !ay$s real history an! their ancestors$ agony. 0magine that they initiallyob@ecte!) ,e aren$t celebrating the olocaust we$re @ust haing a little itler!ay party.30" you coul! trael "orwar! in time an! meet them i" you coul! say a "ew wor!s to them)what woul! you a!ise them to !o on itler!ayL

Hn December 25) 181) #ulius &treicher) one o" the most icious o" itler$s assistants) celebrate!Christmas by penning the "ollowing e!itorial in his rabi!ly Antisemitic newspaper) Der Stuermer /

0" one really wants to put an en! to the continue! prospering o" this curse "romheaen that is the #ewish bloo!) there is only one way to !o it/ to era!icate thispeople) this &atan$s son) root an! branch.

0t was an appropriate thought "or the !ay. This Christmas) how will we celebrateL

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