Back on October 29th in my Holiday Comparison, I was a touch off on a point or two so I will correct myself.

In particular, I was a touch off on saying that Israel did not have a true winter such as defined in Europe, Canada, and northern USA. That is both correct and incorrect. I forgot that even though Israel is on the same approximate latitude as Florida, Florida is heated by the currents of the Atlantic Ocean whereas Israel is next to the Mediterranean Sea and not heated to the same extent. So I was correct in the sense that Israel does not get the standard dumping of snow and bitterly cold as the locations mentioned. However, I was slightly incorrect as it gets plenty cold enough in Israel for 3-4 months out of the year to get frost and make it a bit chilly.

That brings me to an important detail that is related to the relatively consistent weather patterns in Israel and Christmas. Jesus could not have been born on December 25th. When you read about the Origins of Christmas or here, you find that Christmas was not celebrated in the first four hundred years of Christianity. Instead, Pope Constantine the Great merged many of the pagan celebrations of Roman sun gods and the Germanic tribes with setting a date for “Christ Mass” to lure more into the faith. Some of the founding settlers in what would become the USA also did not celebrate Christmas, they were the Puritans.

The most likely time Jesus Christ was born is on or around September 29, 5 BC. Why would that date be closer? First, the Bible never says or gives good enough clues as to what day Jesus Christ was born on. But from the details that are given and a lot of work, everything points to late September 5 BC. You can read this very interesting web page labeled When was Jesus Born?

The other thing I was slightly off on was that point that the Bible says the Christmas trees are forbidden. They both are and are not forbidden. I know that needs clarification.

Once again, the Christmas tree has its roots set in pagan traditions but it was absorbed into the Christian faith by the Catholic Church for their own purposes. There are many opinions on this so I’ll withhold saying who is right and who is wrong. This is for information. You can read up on it here, here and here. Here is the breakdown of it. Jeremiah 10:1-4 speak of not following the pagan ways and describe something that closely resembles the process of getting a Christmas tree. It also can be describing how you get wood to carve into idols. In either case, we are cautioned to not worship, idolize or revere things but focus on God.

Here is where I am correct and not correct. Historical context along with geographical context would mean Jeremiah was not referring to Christmas trees. So in that sense, they wouldn’t be forbidden. But when a person crosses the line and looks more towards the Christmas tree, Santa Claus, the actual Christmas Day, the traditions of the day (local cultural versions) as being more important than the Word of God, then yes they are forbidden.

In any field on any given topic, you have people of various strengths, experience levels and skills. Those who are new or not the most confident are the ones most likely to be led astray from the true meaning of Christmas.

Why isn’t the date of Jesus’ birth more detailed in the Bible? Why did the early Church, the Puritans, and many more refuse or not bother to celebrate it? Why are we warned against falling prey to the concepts and traditions of man versus following God?

The New Testament isn’t about Christmas or the date of Christ’s birth. It is about the message and the forgiveness of our sins through Jesus’ sacrifice.

Who are those who are most prone to be led astray from the real message of the New Testament by the holiday, traditions and such? The children are.

This post is not meant to dissuade you from celebrating Pasko or Christmas but to give you information to think about.  =) (Pero…walang tatalo sa Paskong Pinoy! Excited na ko muuli!)

Thank you for reading,

Anah

photo from howstuffworks.com

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