CHRISTMAS | AdventAI

International Tract and Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Oct 16, 1884

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 10, No. 39.

CHRISTMAS.

The festival of Christmas is regarded by Roman Catholics and Episcopalians, and many in other sects, as a religious festival. Millions have lived and died in the faith that Christmas was a divine festival occurring on the very day of the birth of our Saviour. Protestants wonder at the credulity and superstition of the Romanist in regard to Ash Wednesday, Holy Thursday, Good Friday, St. Patrick's day, etc., yet at the same time regard, as sacred, days that have no better reason, nor any higher authority, for their observance.

There may be no evil in the use of the Christmas holiday as a day of recreation and good cheer; but it is well to understand that there is neither reason nor Scripture authority for its observance as a sacred festival.

1. There is no proof that Dec. 25 was the day of Christ's nativity; but the probabilities are strongly against it.

2. If it could be certainly proved that the 25th of December was the day of Christ's birth, even then we should only have human authority that it ought to be observed.

We find no Scripture authority for keeping a festival day in honor of Christ's birth, crucifixion, resurrection, or ascension. Yet men, in their proud presumption, have invented festival days in honor of all these events. In support of the first proposition above, we quote the following high authority:—

"The day, however, now kept as Christmas, cannot be that of the nativity of our Lord, for the reason assigned long ago by Shaw and others; viz., that in December, which is the height of the rainy season in Judea, neither flocks nor shepherds could have been at night in the fields of Bethlehem, which we are told was the case at the nativity of Christ. As to the antiquity of this festival, the first traces we find of it are in the second century; about the time of the Emperor Commodus."—Encyclopædia Britannica.

Sir Isaac Newton remarks: "The times of the birth and passion of Christ, with such like niceties, being not material to religion, were little regarded by the Christians of the first age."

An unknown author, speaking of Christmas, says: "Its institution is attributed by the Decretal letters, to Telesphorus, who died A. D. 138. At first it was one of the most movable of the Christian festival days, often confounded with the Epiphany, and celebrated by the Eastern churches in the months of April and May. In the fourth century, the urgency of St. Cyril, of Jerusalem, obtained, from Pope Julius I., an order for an investigation to be made concerning the day of Christ's nativity. The result of the inquiry by the theologians of the East and West was an agreement upon the 25th of December. The chief grounds for the decision were the tables of the censors, in the archives of Rome; and although, in the opinion of some of the Fathers, there was not authentic proof of the identification of the day, yet the decision was uniformly accepted."