Was Jesus Born on December 25th?

Summary

Summary prepared by Acts 2:38 Life from the transcript below — the preacher’s words follow in full.

The Official Answer — and the Liberty of Romans 14

• The question posed: later this week, many people, here in North America, and around the world, are going to celebrate Christmas. And every year, at Christmas time, the question comes up: was Jesus really born on December 25th? And maybe more importantly: does it matter?
• The official answer is: we don't know. It is possible, but it doesn't matter. All right. Thank you. Now, I will say: it's okay to celebrate Christmas, in a Christian fashion. And, as you said, you can go to our podcast, more directly on that subject. But being raised in a non-Christian country, where the majority of the people did not celebrate Christmas — and the government made it a holiday, to conform to the rest of the world — but Christmas was not important. But in that context, the believers really valued Christmas. And they would have a service: that was their day to have a special church service, as well as caroling, because it was very meaningful, to affirm their identity, and to be a witness for Christ, in a pagan culture. And it is significant, that even if your culture is pagan — or, as in North America, post-Christian — the whole world does stop, to take note. So, even though they may celebrate it in wrong ways, compared to what we would do, still, everybody knows it exists. That becomes a great opportunity to witness; a great opportunity to have a special service, or to invite people to come to an event. It's an opportunity for evangelism. I feel — now, is that okay to do that? I will just say this: Romans 14:5-6 says: 'This one person esteems one day above another; esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind. He who observes the day, observes it to the Lord. And he who does not observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it.' So I feel like Christians have a perfect Christian liberty. Now, some will judge me harshly, for even saying that. And I will just read them verse 10: 'But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. For it is written: as I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me; every tongue shall confess to God. So then, each of us shall give account of himself to God. Let therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather resolve this: not to put a stumbling block, or a cause to fall, in our brother's way.' So, you know, I think that should be a sufficient answer, to people who want to argue about it.

Scriptures: Romans 14:5-6; Romans 14:10-13

We Don't Know — and 'Couldn't Have Been' Goes Too Far

• But now, to your direct question: when was Jesus born? We don't know. There's no absolute record. Some people say: 'Well, the shepherds are in the field, so it couldn't have been December 25th.' But remember, this is Palestine. The weather would be cool, but not unbearable. It's very possible that shepherds could be in the field. The truth is, we really don't know. There are no records. And I don't think it matters. But to say he couldn't have been born on December 25th, I think that's going way too far. It is an ancient tradition, and sometimes traditions have roots in an original testimony.

The Pagan-Takeover Theory Doesn't Match the Date

• Some say: well, it was a pagan holiday, taken over by Christians. And so they say the Saturnalia was that time — but that was a few days earlier. Yes, it was a party time, in the Roman Empire. Likewise, the winter solstice — but that also was a few days earlier. And then December 25th was designated as the birthday of the unconquered son, but that was in AD 274, by a pagan emperor. And it seems very likely, that it was a reaction to the Christians celebrating Christmas. Because by that time, Christians were becoming very prominent in the Roman Empire — at least nominal Christians — and would soon become the majority, just a few decades later. But so it might have actually been a pagan attempt to do the opposite: to take over something that Christians were using. And by the way, there may be some connections, of — since there were pagan celebrations, in that general time frame, it would make sense for Christians to say: you know what, we want to have our own time. We don't want to have pagan celebrations, that would cause our converts to drift into immoral acts, or drunkenness, and so on. So we want to provide a Christian alternative, or Christian version. There's nothing wrong with that. But it doesn't seem that they took a pre-existing day, and then changed it, because it wouldn't match: December 25th doesn't match any day. So there's got to be something more, to why that day was chosen. Although, we can understand why they might want to have a Christian celebration, as an alternative, or an opposition, or as a witness, in that season of the year.

A Plausible Rationale from Luke 1 — and What Matters

• But that date — so I tried to find out: why was that date chosen? And so here's a plausible rationale, but it cannot be proven. So if you go back to Luke chapter 1: the father of John the Baptist was Zechariah. He was a priest, in the order of Abijah. So the priest served in a rotation, in the temple, twice a year. So we can't determine for sure, but he was a priest on duty, when the angel of the Lord spoke to him, to tell him he would have a son. And right after that, his wife Elizabeth conceived, and had John the Baptist. So, to follow this narrative, you have to make some assumptions, that are unprovable. But the first assumption would be: when was he serving in the temple? So, if you go back to secular Jewish records — we do have a record of when the temple was destroyed, in AD 70: what order was serving at that time. So, if you work your way backward, you can come up with a scheme of the orders of priests, and when they served, throughout the year; and each one served twice in the year. Well, the order that Zechariah is part of — one of its times, that was designated, was around the Day of Atonement, which would be generally in — towards the end of September — such as it could be September 24th, or 25th. It would vary, because the Jewish calendar is not necessarily the same as our modern calendar; the months don't align up exactly. But so you could say: you have to make an assumption that the second rotation would have been around the Day of Atonement, which would have been around, you know, mid to late September. Okay. So if that's when Zechariah served, then you make an assumption: within a few days, John the Baptist was conceived. If you keep reading in Luke: then, when Elizabeth was six months pregnant, then that is when Mary, the mother of Jesus, conceived. So then you — that would have meant that, that would have been the middle of March; or the end of March. So let's say John the Baptist was conceived somewhere in the third, or fourth, week of September. Then you calculate six months. Then Mary would have conceived in March. Well, then you count nine months. Well then, Jesus would have been born towards the end of December. So that would be your December 25th date. So that wouldn't prove the actual date. There are several assumptions built in there — such as, exactly when John was conceived. Also, it was the sixth month, but exactly when in the sixth month was Jesus conceived, and then exactly when he was born: it's not exactly nine months, necessarily. And so, you're still making assumptions. But if you had a separate tradition, that remembered the date, that scenario would fit. Of course, if you change some of the assumptions, then it would be a different date. So, the end is: we don't really know. And while I do care very greatly that Jesus was born — I think it's very right to celebrate his birth, because it changed human history. And even secular calendars have to admit that. And so I think it's a great opportunity for thanksgiving to God, and a great opportunity to witness, to our world. At the end of the day, it doesn't really matter. I don't really care what day Jesus was born.

Scriptures: Luke 1

Scripture index: Romans 14:5-6; Romans 14:10-13; Luke 1.