Why do People Think Christmas is Jesus’ Birthday?
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Why do some people think that Jesus was born on Christmas and died on Easter? Why do they think that Christmas is Jesus’ Birthday?
Christianity was an illegal religion for the first four centuries of its existence. It wasn’t until Constantine made it legal in 313 A.D. that public celebrations of Jesus birth began. No record exists of anyone celebrating Christmas as Jesus birth before this time. After 313 A.D. however, the celebration of Jesus birth at Christmas was conducted by a Bishop named Liberius from 352-366 A.D. It was celebrated on December 25th which was the traditional day to celebrate the Roman pagan holiday the “Birth of the Unconquered Sun.” Some other historical sources claim that December 25th was set to celebrate the birth of Jesus by a Bishop named Julius in 352 A.D. specifically. Many suggest that this date was chosen to create an alternative to pagan worship practices during that time which included worshipping the Roman gods Saturn and the Sun. After the establishment of the date by the Roman Catholic Church, the tradition persisted into modern times with little question.
The Bible does not tell us the exact date that Jesus was born. There is no way to prove that Christmas is Jesus’ birthday. What it does tell us is that shepherds were in the fields watching their flocks by night (Luke 2:8). The cool winter weather would not have been particularly good conditions for doing this. So, December 25th was probably not the time of year that Jesus was born at all. They would have taken their flocks out in the spring and summer when the grass was growing well for grazing. The fact that they were out at night may indicate early spring when the sheep needed additional nutrition due to winter shortages. The bottom line is that we do not know when Jesus was born.
The date of Jesus death can be determined more precisely. Jesus was crucified during Passover which is a Jewish holiday that occurs every year on the fifteenth day of the first month of the year in the Hebrew religious calendar. This month begins shortly after the Spring equinox after the first full moon. The Bible says that Jesus was crucified and died the Friday before the high Sabbath day of Passover (John 19:4, John 19:31). Paul said he rose again on the third (1 Corinthians 15:4). This is the day that many refer to as Easter Sunday today. It is not necessarily, however, the same week that contemporary Jews celebrate Passover due to the differences between the solar calendar (used by the Catholic Church) and the lunar calendar (used by the Jews).
The term “Easter,” is not a Christian word. It is a reference to a pagan god associated with the first day of spring. Like Christmas, the day was appropriated by the Catholic Church to give an alternative to those who were continuing to celebrate pagan holidays. These same sources decided that the resurrection would be celebrated instead. It is in this way that Easter began to be celebrated as the day of Jesus’ resurrection (not his death). The Bible never tells us to celebrate one specific day out of the year as the day that Jesus was raised from the dead. Jesus, however, intended for his death, burial, and resurrection to be celebrated every first day of the week through the observance of the Lord’s Supper. The apostle Paul teaches this very clearly in 1 Corinthians 11:23-26. The Lord’s Supper was celebrated on the first day of the week according to Acts 20:7. This is where our focus should be as Christians seeking to honor Jesus Christ.