"HOW WAS THE DAY CHOSEN?"
By J. L. Barlow
WHAT day? Why, the 25th day of December for Christmas! This is answered, in a way, in "Dunn's Quarterly and Concert Exercises," on pages two and three. The editor, Rev. John O. Foster, starts off as follows:— "It would take too long to trace the many reasons which probably led to the choice of the 25th of December. It was doubtless connected by a process of deduction with the day which had already been generally accepted as the common date of the annunciation, and of the creation of the world." Now, whether owing to some inherent quality of mind, or to long observation, or to a little of both, this deponent cannot say; but in reading for facts, when a writer begins to say a thing is "probably" on this wise, or it was "doubtless" after this fashion, then he sniffs ignorance in the air, and looks elsewhere for his facts. But let us, for the nonce, follow up this champion for Christmas a little farther. His next sentence commences with— "Assuming that the world was made in the spring [leaving out his reasons], it was natural, though somewhat naive, to fix upon the vernal equinox (according to the Julian calendar March 25) as the exact date of the creation. He who would question the value of such straightforward and scriptural argument as this must have had more logic and less piety than belonged to the early Christians; and once having discovered by this easy method the very day on which the world came into being, and the glorious light sprang out of darkness, what more simple than to assume that it was the same day on which the power of the Almighty overshadowed Mary, and the Day-spring from on high began his entrance into the world? Nothing could be plainer. Even the least imaginative of chronographers could reckon forward from this fixed point, and arrive at December 25 as the day of the nativity." Of course he could. When Mr. Foster asks the question, "What more simple than to assume," etc., we give it up. Haven't seen anything "more simple" for a long time. Again he says:— "And here another wonderful coincidence meets him. This [December 25] is the day of the winter solstice, the day when the world's darkness begins to lessen, and the world's light to grow; the day which the ancient [heathen] world had long celebrated as the birthday of the sun, what more appropriate day could be found for the birth of the Sun of Righteousness? . . . St. John the Baptist is born on June 25 [Who says so?], the summer solstice, when the sun begins to decline. The Lord Jesus is born on December 25, the winter solstice, when the sun begins to ascend; and in this is fulfilled the saying, 'He must increase, but I must decrease.'" I never knew before that John, when he gave that saying, meant to tell us that he was born on June 25, and that Jesus was born on December 25! Well, well! "Live and learn." To be sure! If the above arguments, founded on the "probably," the "assuming and assume" and "doubtless" of Mr. Foster, are not believed, does it follow that we unbelievers are blessed, or cursed, with more logic and less piety than has Mr. Foster and the early Christians? So he seems to teach. He goes on to tell us that the earliest mention of this 25th of December as Christmas "is found in an ancient catalogue of church festivals about 354 A. D.," and from thence on it spread. In another article he tells us: "Long before the Christian era, the 25th of December was religiously observed by the sun-worshipers." Farther on he says that when Christ came, many of the sun-worshipers became his followers; but when the old sun-feast came around, they were liable to be drawn away to the dances and excesses so common to it; so the Christian leaders adopted this old heathen feast and called it Christmas. Here Mr. Foster comes out of the fog of conjecture into the realm of fact. But such a fact! The Christian churches celebrating a pagan day! Two things are noteworthy. The author of the last article quoted from (not Mr. Foster, but T. N. Madden), says of keeping Christmas, "It mattered not whether the 25th of December was the birthday of Christ or not, the effect was the same." And so say they all. And then, secondly, they make brave endeavors to prove that Christ was born on that day, as though it was all-important. And the above is the best proof they can bring—which is no proof at all.—J. L. Barlow, in Christian Cynosure.