Theology & Worldview

Christmas: A Church Holy Day

Christmas, one of the most well-beloved holidays in the world, immediately makes one think of beautifully bedecked Christmas trees, wonderfully wrapped presents, the smells of cinnamon and goodies baking, and, most importantly for many, the wonder of the nativity, the birth of Jesus Christ. Christmas, of course, started out as a purely Christian holiday (a word that literally means “holy day”), celebrating the coming of God’s Son into the world, born as a man, to begin his journey toward the ultimate sacrifice of the cross. This understandably makes Christmas one of the most important holy days in the church calendar. Yet Christmas has also been embraced by the secular world, and the sudden light and bated breath of the wonder of a Savior coming to our broken world have almost been buried in the hurried rush, breathless excitement, and brilliant color of the commercialized season. The unique story of a virgin’s child, shepherds serenaded by angels, and wise men leaving their homes to trek for years after a star, has been almost completely replaced by jolly, overweight Santas and urges to buy bigger, better, more expensive gifts. Though Christmas has changed a lot over the years, it is still at heart a Christian holiday, a celebration of light coming into the world. 

Christmas has likely been celebrated since the fourth century. For the first two centuries of the church, many Church leaders actually opposed the celebration of Christ’s birthday, as well as those of martyrs. The saw the practice of birthday celebration as pagan, as it was practiced strongly by Romans and others around them, so they preferred to celebrate his death and resurrection (Hillerbrand). Eventually, though, the holiday became widespread, and many came to celebrate it in the midst of winter, in either December or January. Pope Julius set December 25 as the official date in the Western church, in 350 A.D. (Staff). The Bible gives no exact date for when the birth took place, but the fact that shepherds were watching their sheep on the hills hints that it happened in spring. So, why do people celebrate it in winter when it almost certainly did not happen then? Part of the reason, 19th century anthropologist James George Frazer conjectures in The Golden Bough, might coincide with the Feast of Saturnalia, a pagan festival celebrating the waxing of light, the “Birth of the Unconquered Sun.” This may have been in order to discourage Christians from participating in the pagan celebrations (Strauss).  

Surprisingly, not all churches have always embraced the tradition of Christmas. Some Protestants, such as the reformers Zwingli and Calvin, opposed Christmas as a man-made holiday with no basis in scripture. The Puritan-controlled English parliament actually banned the holiday in 1647—to the great outrage of the people. However, many Protestants, including Martin Luther, saw no harm and in fact great good in the holiday, and Christmas became a much-beloved holiday in Lutheran Germany. In the end, even Calvinist churches accepted Christmas (Hamblin and Peterson). Though it almost died out in the wake of the Protestant Reformations, Christmas remained a beloved traditional holiday despite its celebrations never being mentioned in the Bible. 

Church Christmas traditions are diverse over denominations and very separate from secular traditions. Different countries have many different traditions, whether secular or faith-based, but church is the central event for many people of all denominations. Orthodox churches still use the Julian calendar, meaning that their December 25 lies on January 7 for those who use the standard Gregorian calendar. In these churches, celebration often starts with a long service on the morning of January 6. During this day, many choose to fast until evening, when they have a vegetarian meal of twelve courses, to symbolize the twelve apostles. Christmas Eve tends to be more somber and reflective than Christmas day, when Orthodox attend church and then hold a huge feast where they eat lots of meat and pastries and exchange gifts (Sunde-Brown). Catholics celebrate three masses on Christmas—the Angel’s Mass at midnight, the Shepherd’s Mass at dawn, and the King’s Mass during the day (Catholic). Though they differ somewhat in their specific traditions, most Christians celebrate Christmas similarly: with church services, meals, nativity scenes, carols, and a special time to thank God for coming into the world and to give to each other as He gave himself fully to us. 

Christmas, with its long history of joy and celebration, remains one of the most important and widely celebrated holy days in the Church Calendar, and probably the only one widely celebrated by non-Christians. Though much of its history remains unknown, perhaps its placement in midwinter, the darkest and coldest month of the year, bears some meaning beyond an ancient pagan festival. For as many Christians all over the world light their candles, sing their songs, set up their nativities, and show each other love, this could be a blow in the face of darkness. Winter has always been the most depressing, dangerous, and even deadly time of year for humans, as everyone remembers their mortality and the darkness that covers the world as the year dies. Perhaps we need Christ to come in winter. Maybe Christians need that awe-inspiring miracle to be born within us again and again, to remind us that it is not over, that darkness has not won, that “The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light” (Isaiah 9:2), and that “that light is the life of all mankind” (John 1:4). When the rush and scramble of Christmas takes over cities and communities, Christians have more to hope for than just a big feast and good presents. They can remember the birth of their Savior, their rich traditions of celebration, and the promise that Christ will come again

 

Works Cited 

Blakemore, Erin. “How Christmas has Evolved over Centuries.” National Geographic, December 10, 2021, www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/how-christmas-has-evolved-over-centuries. 

“Catholic Christmas Traditions.” Scripture Catholic, www.scripturecatholic.com/catholic-christmas-traditions/. 

Hamblin, William and Daniel Peterson. “Christmas After the Protestant Reformation.” Deseret News, December 22, 2017, www.deseret.com/2017/12/22/20624542/christmas-after-the-protestant-reformation. 

Hillerbrand, Hans. “Christmas” Britannica, October 25, 2022, www.britannica.com/topic/Christmas. 

Staff. “Celebrate Christmas, But When and How?” Christianity.com, May 3, 2010, www.christianity.com/church/church-history/timeline. 

Strauss, Valerie. “Why is Christmas on December 25? A brief history lesson that may surprise you.” The Washington Post, December 25, 2015, www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/. 

Sunde-Brown, Daniela. “Here’s how to celebrate Orthodox Christmas.” The Real Word, Trafalger, January 2, 2022, www.trafalgar.com/real-word/orthodox-christmas/. 

 

Image Credit: “Burning Candles in the Dark.” Getty Images, www.gettyimages.com/photos/church-candles

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