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Xmas celebration: There is no Christian command from Jesus nor God. Who, when, why?

Surely the argument is that there was no call for a celebration attached to the birth of Jesus.

As I pointed out in the O.P., Jesus only authorised the COMMEMORATION of his death.

The reason is that if is by his death that mankind is given SALVATION (a washing clean - a SALVE) from the sin of Adam … a sin that had condemned all mankind, EVEN THOSE who had not sinned according to the law!!!

Maybe Jesus is happy that more people get to hear his story this way.

More people get to be saved, and people have fun too.
 

IndigoChild5559

Loving God and my neighbor as myself.
So why are CHRISTIAN churches embracing Xmas when they know it is not a Jesus-sanctioned celebration? In fact, it is evident that no church calling itself ‘Christ-led’ should indulge in it.

Muslims who don’t believe in Jesus Christ celebrate it - Catholics and Protestants celebrate it….

Yet JW’s are criticised for not indulging in it!!!
I seriously don't understand the question. Why WOULDN"T Christian churches embrace the Feast of the Nativity? You seem to assume that Christian holy days should be limited to those that Jesus celebrated (Yom Kippur, Passover, Chanukah, etc.) or which he instituted (none). I don't know why you assume that. If the church wants to set aside one day a year to remember his birth, that seems perfectly sensible to me.

It makes sense for Muslims to celebrate Christmas too. Why wouldn't they?
 

Subduction Zone

Veteran Member
Don't we normally start with the assumption that there should actually be evidence provided that it was based on that? Simply being at a roughly similar time of the year isn't exactly a strong case. Any day of the year would be at a roughly similar time to some other festival or holy day.

What evidence have you seen that, in your opinion, makes it a likely origin?

Other than there being no real evidence in favour of the argument, there are several reasons that make it highly implausible:

1. There are calendars with both celebrations marked on different days, so they continued to be celebrated along side each other for centuries after the dating of Xmas.
2. The dating of Xmas to the 25th significantly precedes Xmas being celebrated (maybe a century or so). The 'marketing ploy' assumption makes no sense in this context.
3. At the time it was dated to 25 Dec, Christians were still trying to distance themselves from pagans, even to the point of being killed for it. It thus is highly unlikely they were trying to appropriate pagan customs as a marketing ploy.


So, in a nutshell, its dating probably has nothing to do with wanting to hold a festival, happened at a time where Xtians were unlikely to want to steal from pagans, and when it was celebrated later, Saturnalia would still continue to be celebrated on a different day for a significant time.
No links? Are your sources even valid?
 

Sand Dancer

Crazy Cat Lady
So why are CHRISTIAN churches embracing Xmas when they know it is not a Jesus-sanctioned celebration? In fact, it is evident that no church calling itself ‘Christ-led’ should indulge in it.

Muslims who don’t believe in Jesus Christ celebrate it - Catholics and Protestants celebrate it….

Yet JW’s are criticised for not indulging in it!!!
For quite a while Protestants would not celebrate that pagan holiday.
 
For quite a while Protestants would not celebrate that pagan holiday.

It was "pagan" for them because Catholics did it and it wasn't in the Bible. Once they "knew" it was pagan, like they "knew" all the rest of the 'Popery' they despised was pagan, they fabricated the rest.

Ironically, the modern "Christmas is pagan" myths are basically the regurgitated sectarian polemics of Protestant fundamentalists from the early modern period.
 

Soapy

Son of his Father: The Heir and Prince
I seriously don't understand the question. Why WOULDN"T Christian churches embrace the Feast of the Nativity? You seem to assume that Christian holy days should be limited to those that Jesus celebrated (Yom Kippur, Passover, Chanukah, etc.) or which he instituted (none). I don't know why you assume that. If the church wants to set aside one day a year to remember his birth, that seems perfectly sensible to me.

It makes sense for Muslims to celebrate Christmas too. Why wouldn't they?
Well, you can see what it has come to.

If it really were an institution that God, via Jesus, sanctions, then it would not have fallen to selfish debauchery like it has now (or… at least more people would realise it’s current in-sanctity!)
 

IndigoChild5559

Loving God and my neighbor as myself.
Well, you can see what it has come to.

If it really were an institution that God, via Jesus, sanctions, then it would not have fallen to selfish debauchery like it has now (or… at least more people would realise it’s current in-sanctity!)
I may not personally celebrate Christmas, but I think it seems like a wonderful holiday. It focuses on family and the happiness of children. I think people tend to be kinder during that season. Despite the obvious commercialization, I would never say it has fallen into debauchery.
 

Soapy

Son of his Father: The Heir and Prince
I may not personally celebrate Christmas, but I think it seems like a wonderful holiday. It focuses on family and the happiness of children. I think people tend to be kinder during that season. Despite the obvious commercialization, I would never say it has fallen into debauchery.
If you were a “true” Christian then you should.
 

Aštra’el

Aštara, Blade of Aštoreth
Since Jesus Christ, at no time in his life, advocated the celebration of his birth, and only commanded remembrance of his death and resurrection, who, when, and why do we do so today?


You say… “Why?” I say… why not?
 

IndigoChild5559

Loving God and my neighbor as myself.
I was unaware… but now am aware!!

Still: IF you WERE a Christian (and a TRUE CHRISTIAN at that) then you would be concerned.
I have a pretty good mind, and I see no reason for concern. That's probably why the overwhelming majority of Christians celebrate Christmas.
 

Soapy

Son of his Father: The Heir and Prince
I have a pretty good mind, and I see no reason for concern. That's probably why the overwhelming majority of Christians celebrate Christmas.
And also why the overwhelming number of ‘Christians’ are Trinitarian, two.!!
 

Muffled

Jesus in me
For quite a while Protestants would not celebrate that pagan holiday.

I attended a Friends meeting for a while and we had a pagan attendee who celebrated the winter solstice but not Christmas. I never went to one of his solstice parties because the solstice is meaningless to me.
 

Muffled

Jesus in me
Well, you can see what it has come to.

If it really were an institution that God, via Jesus, sanctions, then it would not have fallen to selfish debauchery like it has now (or… at least more people would realise it’s current in-sanctity!)

I believe you don't give the devil enough credit. The thing is that God isn't worried about a defeated foe.
 
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