There is no date given in Sacred Scripture as to the exact day when Jesus was born. The first recorded date of Christmas being celebrated on December 25th was in the year 336 AD under the reign of the Roman Emperor Constantine. A few years later, Pope Julius I officially declared that the birth of Jesus would be celebrated on the 25th of December. Certain historians speculate that Christians picked December 25th in order to overshadow and take the place of pagan winter solstice festivals, a Roman Mithras cult or the celebration of a Roman cult of the unconquered sun. The truth is that a very early Christian tradition from the writings of Hippolytus (204 AD) says that the day when the Angel Gabriel announces to Mary that she would conceive Jesus (now called the Annunciation) was on March 25th—and it’s still celebrated today on the 25th of March. Nine months after the 25th of March is the 25th of December, the Feast of Christmas! The fact of the matter is that the evidence that December 25th held special significance to Christians predates the proof of any link to Roman cults or worship of sun gods. Emmanuel, our God is with us!
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January 2025
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