There are many things that do not involve our worship that are left to our own judgment. The key element here is "worship".
The two main celebrations held in Christendom are both firmly rooted in pagan worship. We have strong Biblical admonition NOT to try to fuse true worship with false worship.
2 Corinthians 6:14-18.....ESV
"Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said, “I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Therefore go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you, and I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.”
Does this leave room for grafting Christianity over paganism? What is the admonition? "Get out" "separate from them"....only then will God accept us as his "sons and daughters".
When Israel tried blending their worship with that of Baal, God punished them. Elijah's famous confrontation with the Baal prophets demonstrated this. God did not let it continue and put to death those who promoted it.
There is no "Christian" way to celebrate what is in every way, a pagan festival, simply rebranded. Jews did not celebrate birthdays back in ancient times because of its pagan association with astrology. (something God considered detestable) Birth dates were used to cast horoscopes. Can you find me any birthdates or birthday celebrations in the Bible where the person was not pagan, and it did not involve the loss of someone's life?
If Jesus did not celebrate his own birthday for that reason, then why would he approve of such a celebration today? All the customs of Christmas are borrowed from the saturnalia....the gift giving....the gluttonous feasting....and alcohol fuelled merry-making....they changed nothing but the name and grafted in other elements associated with Northern Hemisphere pagan Winter traditions.
Regardless of what you call it, it was never a "Christian" celebration until an apostate church system embraced it and changed the name. Northern Hemisphere winter customs are ridiculous in a Southern Hemisphere climate. Sleighbells and snow in the middle of an Aussie summer just don't mesh.
This is pure justification surely? Christ was not born in December because it is the cold, rainy, sometimes snowy winter time in the Middle East. The shepherds were outdoors tending their flocks when Jesus was born, but in winter, they kept their flocks under cover. The date comes from the saturnalia too. Mithra was the god....very little changed.
Regardless of the customs, the whole world (mostly unchristian) celebrates Christmas as primarily a greed-fest with expensive gifts often given grudgingly for the wrong reason.....the debt is often burdensome. It's an excuse to overindulge in food and alcohol, just as the original was. It is very much a secular holiday in many nations....seen as just a commercial holiday....a very lucrative one. Does that make you cringe? I used to celebrate it.....grew up with it, but as soon as I realised what it really was, I was disgusted and avoided having anything to do with it. But it's amazing what people will justify in order to keep doing what they love.
All very noble pursuits, but can't you do that at any time of year? Should Christians need a date to give them a reason to honour Christ or to help the less fortunate? At Christmastime, those who have no family or who are poor or disadvantaged by mental or physical illness are forced to endure what is to them, often the loneliest and most miserable time of the year. Police will tell you that alcohol fuelled domestic violence is rampant at Christmastime. Poor kids look at how generous santa is to the rich kids and wonder why he was so mean to them? You gloss over what is experienced by the masses at that time of year.
Now I am a bit bemused by this. This implies that our kids are somehow disadvantaged by not receiving Christmas presents...?
When my own kids were at school, they were the envy of other kids because they never had to wait for birthdays or Christmas to get presents. If our children saw something that sparked their interest, if it was affordable and appropriate, they received it as a gift of love, without having to wait for a date to receive it.
When asked "what did you get that for?" by other children, they would be puzzled because we need no excuses to give our children presents....we give them gifts when we want to, all year round. Often when kids see a toy or gadget that is popular, they see Christmas or their birthday as forever away, and often by then the toy has lost its attraction.
We had one young boy tell us that if it wasn't for Christmas or birthdays, he wouldn't get anything. How sad is that?
We often have children's parties for no particular reason, and the host child is the one who gives gifts to all the other kids. There is no spoilt brat throwing tantrums because it's
their special day. So please don't give me the deprived children nonsense.......OK?
If our kids get presents from well meaning relatives at Christmas, they know what it's all about.
One day to honour God? Where will I find that? Where will I find Paul advocating a Sabbath observance for Christians, many of whom were former pagans? Sabbath was for Jews only, as was circumcision, not included in the "necessary" or "essential" "requirements" for Christians. (Acts 15:28-29)
There were no festivals or holidays to be observed by Christians, unlike those precisely prescribed for Israel.......there was just ONE observance that Jesus said to hold each year....the observance of the memorial of his death. It replaced the Passover for Jewish Christians and was held annually on the same date. There is no question about this date because it is clearly stated in scripture.
Christendom adopted Easter to graft over this annual observance and completely corrupted it. All the customs of Easter (even its name) are pagan to its bootstraps. From the dawn service, to the hot cross buns, to the rabbits and eggs all tied into a fertility festival honouring a pagan goddess of Spring. Her name was pronounced "Easter".
Do some homework Shmogie....please! I know you mean well, but you are dead wrong about these things. You cannot Churistianise paganism....you only paganise the Christianity...
I think you demonstrate who needs to do their homework.
