Information Related to "Why Jesus Christ Wasn't Born on Dec. 25"
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Why Jesus Christ Wasn't Born on Dec 25.
Why Jesus Christ Wasn't Born on December 25
History convincingly shows that
Dec. 25 was popularized as the date for Christmas, not because Christ was born on
that day, but because it was already popular in pagan religious celebrations as the
birthday of the sun.
But is it possible that Dec. 25 could be the day of Christ's birth?
"Lacking any scriptural pointers to Jesus's birthday, early Christian teachers
suggested dates all over the calendar. Clement . . . picked November 18.
Hippolytus . . . figured Christ must have been born on a Wednesday . . .
An anonymous document(,) believed to have been written in North Africa around A.D.
243, placed Jesus's birth on March 28" (Joseph L. Sheler, U.S. News & World
Report, "In Search of Christmas," Dec. 23, 1996, p. 58).
A careful analysis of Scripture, however, clearly indicates that Dec. 25 is an unlikely
date for Christ's birth. Here are two primary reasons:
First, we know that shepherds were in the fields watching their flocks at the time
of Jesus' birth (Luke 2:7-8). Shepherds were not in the fields during December. According
to Celebrations: The Complete Book of American Holidays, Luke's account "suggests
that Jesus may have been born in summer or early fall. Since December is cold and
rainy in Judea, it is likely the shepherds would have sought shelter for their flocks
at night" (p. 309).
Similarly, The Interpreter's One-Volume Commentary says this passage argues "against
the birth (of Christ) occurring on Dec. 25 since the weather would not have permitted"
shepherds watching over their flocks in the fields at night.
Second, Jesus' parents came to Bethlehem to register in a Roman census (Luke 2:1-4).
Such censuses were not taken in winter, when temperatures often dropped below freezing
and roads were in poor condition. Taking a census under such conditions would have
been self-defeating.
Given the difficulties and the desire to bring pagans into Christianity, "the
important fact then which I have asked you to get clearly into your head is that
the fixing of the date as December 25th was a compromise with paganism" (William
Walsh, The Story of Santa Klaus, 1970, p. 62).
If Jesus Christ weren't born on Dec. 25, does the Bible indicate when He was born?
The biblical accounts point to the fall of the year as the most likely time of Jesus'
birth, based on the conception and birth of John the Baptist.
Since Elizabeth (John's mother) was in her sixth month of pregnancy when Jesus was
conceived (Luke 1:24-36), we can determine the approximate time of year Jesus was
born if we know when John was born. John's father, Zacharias, was a priest serving
in the Jerusalem temple during the course of Abijah (Luke 1:5). Historical calculations
indicate this course of service corresponded to June 13-19 in that year (The Companion
Bible, 1974, Appendix 179, p. 200).
It was during this time of temple service that Zacharias learned that he and his
wife, Elizabeth, would have a child (Luke 1:8-13). After he completed his service
and traveled home, Elizabeth conceived (verses 23-24). Assuming John's conception
took place near the end of June, adding nine months brings us to the end of March
as the most likely time for John's birth. Adding another six months (the difference
in ages between John and Jesus) brings us to the end of September as the likely time
of Jesus' birth.
©1999 United Church of God, an International Associtaion
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