This time of year, when religious people set up nativity scenes and reflect on the birth of Jesus, raises a significant question. In the Bible itself, there is no mention of his exact birth date. Early Christians celebrated Jesus’s birth on different dates, and in many countries, especially in Orthodox churches, Christmas is still celebrated on January 7th due to the Julian calendar.
On December 25th, many pagan cultures celebrated the winter solstice, marking the change of the seasons. As agrarian societies, each such event was marked with celebrations. The idea was to encourage the return of the sun as soon as possible.
Even the tradition of the Christmas tree has its roots in ancient practices. Germanic and Scandinavian peoples decorated trees during winter celebrations to symbolize life and fertility during the coldest months. The Druids, priests of ancient Celtic cultures, revered trees, especially the oak, considering them sacred symbols of life and spirituality. Although the direct link between the Druids and the modern Christmas tree is indirect, the veneration of trees as symbols of life was incorporated into various traditions that influenced Christmas celebrations.
Another interesting point is the Star of Bethlehem, which supposedly pointed to the place of Jesus’s birth. Some theories suggest that the Star of Bethlehem could have been the planet Venus, known as the Morning Star or Evening Star due to its brightness in the sky. Ishtar, a goddess worshipped in ancient Mesopotamia, was associated with Venus. Ishtar was known by the Babylonians, while her equivalents—Aphrodite in Greek mythology and Venus in Roman—were deities associated with love and beauty. The association of Venus with the Star of Bethlehem creates an interesting link between pagan traditions and the Christian narrative.
Many aspects of Christmas have pagan origins. Initially, in the evolution of Christmas history, the three kings who went to visit the newborn baby were just three magi. It seemed more impressive and would have more importance, so the story was later modified for them to become kings. With that, the child would gain more prominence.
In ancient Rome, around this time of year, the festival of Saturnalia was held in honor of the god Saturn. During Saturnalia, peasants reversed roles with their masters, there were banquets, and gambling was allowed. There was also the exchange of gifts.
The main historical documents that reference Jesus’s life come from two sources: Christian and non-Christian. It should be noted that the Christian sources, written by the apostles, appeared approximately 60 to 70 years after Jesus’s death. At that time, the most common way to transmit teachings was through oral tradition, not writing. All these gospels were influenced by the development of an ecclesiastical hierarchy, where bishops may have taken advantage of religion to modify Jesus’s sayings. For example, where Luke might say “blessed are the poor,” Matthew records “blessed are the poor in spirit”; it’s a significant difference for those who can read between the lines. Now, one could be rich and still deserve Jesus’s love, just by being poor in a non-material sense.
Regarding the non-Christian sources, it is noteworthy that despite this historical period coinciding with the peak of the Roman Empire, the historians of the time did not make numerous references to such an important person. There are only passing mentions that could refer to him, and there is a significant debate about the possibility that Christian monk scribes added references to Jesus while transcribing texts.
It is most likely that Christianity emerged as a mass movement and revolt of the Judean population against their living conditions, and Jesus was one of its exponents. The Christian Church appropriated pagan dates and traditions to facilitate the conversion of pagans. This helps explain why we celebrate Christmas on December 25th.
Anyway, here it is a nice song:
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