Surprising as it may seem occasionally a Christian objects to celebrating Christmas. One objection is the fact that Christmas took the place of solstices-oriented pagan festival like the Norse celebration of Yule and the Roman celebration of the god Mithras. When the church decided to celebrate Christmas on Dec 25 it absorbed the traditional pagan holidays. While this is true there is precedent for its celebration going back to the apostles and the early church. So much more must be said to understand its importance.
The church has from its inception observed special days of worship. Dating back to the Old Testament worship, Israel had a number of special festivals and holy days that were celebrated like Passover, Unleavened Bread, Firstfruits and Weeks. Early Christians began worshipping on Sunday as the Christian Sabbath in order to emphasize the resurrection of Jesus (Acts 20:7, 1 Cor 16:1-2). While the resurrection of Christ is celebrated every Sunday, the day of 14 Nisan (the same day as Passover in Judaism) was observed as the historical day of the resurrection. This was based on apostolic tradition.
The earliest record of Christmas actually goes back to the Feast of Epiphany, sometimes called the Feast of Theophany which is today celebrated on January 6th. This is documented in the Apostolic Constitutions, early treatises on Christian worship and by St Clement of Alexandria (150-215) who also mentions the feast and vigil that accompanied it. Christmas was more actively promoted during the fourth century and by the Council of Tours in 567 Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany were established and celebrated as a cycle.
The significance of this is more than just celebrating the "birthday of Jesus", it is rather, a recognition of the redemptive acts of God in Jesus seen through his birth, baptism, ministry, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension. The Christian liturgical cycle functions to emphasize those important events that define our faith, it is a time not just to celebrate and commemorate it is a time to reflect, understand and ultimately to believe in what we as Christians are being called to, a life and vocation of discipleship in the footstep of Jesus.
Understanding the historical roots of Christianity is important because it helps us to understand and pass down important traditions, traditions that remind us of what those that came before us valued. When we lose our history, we lose our grounding. So, yes, we can certainly enjoy celebrating Christmas with many of our holiday traditions that make this time of the year joyful, but we must always remember that the root of Christmas is in the worship that takes place when Christians gather to praise, read, and hear the word proclaimed and celebrated Holy Communion together on the day the church sets aside to focus on the birth of Jesus, the inauguration of a new and wonderful act of salvation into the history of humanity.
So, should Christians celebrate Christmas? Of course, but the celebration is truly a life changing one, it is one that calls us to grapple during Advent with the most serious of questions, because only when we can fully understand the nature of the darkness in the world, can we then celebrate the coming of the light that shines brightly directing our paths back to God.
The significance of this is more than just celebrating the "birthday of Jesus", it is rather, a recognition of the redemptive acts of God in Jesus seen through his birth, baptism, ministry, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension. The Christian liturgical cycle functions to emphasize those important events that define our faith, it is a time not just to celebrate and commemorate it is a time to reflect, understand and ultimately to believe in what we as Christians are being called to, a life and vocation of discipleship in the footstep of Jesus.
Understanding the historical roots of Christianity is important because it helps us to understand and pass down important traditions, traditions that remind us of what those that came before us valued. When we lose our history, we lose our grounding. So, yes, we can certainly enjoy celebrating Christmas with many of our holiday traditions that make this time of the year joyful, but we must always remember that the root of Christmas is in the worship that takes place when Christians gather to praise, read, and hear the word proclaimed and celebrated Holy Communion together on the day the church sets aside to focus on the birth of Jesus, the inauguration of a new and wonderful act of salvation into the history of humanity.
So, should Christians celebrate Christmas? Of course, but the celebration is truly a life changing one, it is one that calls us to grapple during Advent with the most serious of questions, because only when we can fully understand the nature of the darkness in the world, can we then celebrate the coming of the light that shines brightly directing our paths back to God.
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