CHRISTMAS

Estimated reading time: 15 minutes.
I have not been too vocal on defending Christmas in the face of all the false accusations of it being pagan. But I do believe many people, some honest (but some not so honest), are attacking the season of the Savior’s advent for reasons that are dubious, at best. So, then, each year we see all kinds of attacks on the celebration, and those keeping it. As the Overseer of the Apostolic Orthodox Church International it is incumbent on me to speak out on the issue. 

I agree with the position that the date of Christ's birth was on or around the Feast of Tabernacles. And I also agree that much of the Christmas traditions in our time come from the pagan world that celebrated the winter solstice before that world became Christianized. But please permit me to give everyone some food for thought: If you go forward 9 months from the Winter Solstice you come to the time of year Christ was most likely born: end of September or beginning of October (the time of the Feast of Tabernacles). If/since all concerned accept that the birth of Christ was at or about the time of the Feast of Tabernacles then we must accept that Mary's conception took place in the latter part of December. 

So, then, should not His conception be celebrated by His people? Would this not be especially true, since the Hebrews counted a person's age from his conception instead of his actual birth date: a child was considered one year old at birth.

Would not the winter solstice (Christmas time) be the proper time to celebrate the Light of the World coming into His world? and could not that have been the message the winter solstice was presaging from the time of creation, regardless of what the pagans understood and did? 

I, too, teach and believe in the appointed times (the seven feasts of Israel, Leviticus 23) as being instructive. However, to have Jesus born on or around Tabernacles (when the Deity became tabernacled among us—thus, fulfilling what the Feast of Tabernacles presaged), He had to have been conceived at the time of the winter solstice (the season of the Christian Christmas). Since Genesis 1:14 states “And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, …" and since Christ, the Light of the World, was conceived at, or about, the winter solstice .... . One plus One still makes Two. 

Since the end of the December date is the time of the winter solstice, we have the sun representing the coming of the Messiah. This is proper since the Bible tells us that the sun, moon and stars were placed in the heavens for signs and times (Genesis 1:14). This is also why Jesus Christ is likened to the “sun” in the book of Malachi (Malachi 4:2) and why the “sun” figures prominently in the biblical symbols for Christ. Just like the “dove” is a biblical symbol of the Holy Spirit. 

So, then, on December 25th Christians all over the world celebrate the coming of the Christ child. John would write of Him and say, “In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.” —John 1:4-9

This truth, of the biblical connection between the winter solstice and the Light of the World, removes the stick from the hand of those who would beat up other Christians, calming that Christmas is “sun worship.” Of course the winter solstice, which is the time the sun begins its return from the Southern hemisphere, has everything to do with the coming of Christ: Who is “the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.” The biblical prophet Malachi referenced the “Son” as the “Sun.” (Malachi 4:2)

The ancients knew that without the sun they would die, so they watched it leaving each year and feared until they saw it returning. They welcomed the returning sun with rejoicing. Even in the darkened state of their heart, they knew the event was important as an astronomical sign with earthly implications. We know that this was a sign placed in the heavens to herald the coming Light of the World that would Light the way of all men.

This writer will ask: What is wrong with associating Christ with the sun, or the sun with Christ? Does not the Bible already do that very thing? Of course it does. The prophet Malachi references Jesus as the “Sun of Righteousness”: e.g. “But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of Righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.” —Malachi 4:2

So, then, the Christian church has biblical authority (Malachi 4:2) to employ the sun as a symbol of the Son of God. Surely, since the Lord chose the “day of the sun” for the day of His resurrection there is no harm, and everything right, in associating the two. Justin, and the rest of Christianity, saw as, at least, one reason for Sunday worship being: “light” was created on the first day of the creation week. The Apostle John made this connection when he proclaimed Jesus as “The True Light”. The dove is seen to represent the Holy Spirit, because of its presence at the baptism of Jesus; fire is a symbol of the Hoy Spirit, because of its presence in the Upper Room; the Sun is a symbol of the Son of God, because Malachi said so. The title of Jesus as “The Light of the World” is a direct reference to the Sun which is the light of the physical world. For this reason Jesus’ birth is associated with the winter solstice: either the birth or the conception — most likely the latter; and His resurrection with the “day of the sun.” So, Christian, you may participate in Easter Sunrise Service and not concern yourself with worshipping the sun god, but assured you are worshipping the God for Whom the sun is but a symbol.

Are we to abandon the heavenly sign just because the ancients were in darkness as to its meaning. NEVER! 

The scholarly Joseph Seiss wrote in his 1882 book “The Gospel In The Stars” concerning the birth of Christ and the winter solstice: “How, then, did these Magi come to know so much about Christ as an adorable King and Saviour? How came they to such full conviction that His birth had occurred in Judea? The true answer is: By the signs and constellations of the primeval astronomy, and the legends connected with them, … It is an astronomic fact, independent of all hypotheses, that at the precise hour of midnight, at the winter solstice, or the last week of December, in the period in which Christ was born, the sign of Virgo, everywhere and always regarded as the sign of the virgin mother from whom the divine-human Redeemer-King was to be born, was just rising on the eastern horizon. …”

Christmas Tree

Up to this point we have only considered the date of Christmas and its biblical foundations. While we cannot examine all the traditions associated with the Birth of Christ, we will briefly speak of the Christmas tree.

The Christmas tree is by far and away the most popular and visible symbol of Christmas after the Christ Child, in the western world. 

The custom of the tree at Christmas time has nothing to do with Jeremiah 10:3-6. The prophet Jeremiah is speaking against the making of idols in the form of totem poles; such as North Americans see among the Northwest aboriginals. This is clearly seen in the context of the passage. Here is the text and its context:

For the customs of the people are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe. 4 They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not. 5 They are upright as the palm tree, but speak not: they must needs be borne, because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do evil, neither also is it in them to do good. 6 Forasmuch as there  is none like unto thee, O Lord; thou art great, and thy name is great in might. —Jeremiah 10:3-6

It is clear from the context that Jeremiah has in mind an idol carved from the trunk of a tree. And inlaid with silver and gold.  The prophet points out that these idols can neither speak nor move about on their own power. The idea is they are without life, unlike the God of Israel,  Who is living and “great in might.”  Jeremiah is simply reiterating the second commandment: “Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God.” —Exodus 20:4-5

Jeremiah 10:4 is a favorite text for bashing the Christmas tree. However, when considered in its context, the misunderstanding is cleared up. We must remember that: “A text without its context is a pretext.” Quoting Scripture out of context is a popular devise used by the enemies of Truth who are pushing agendas that the Bible does not support. 

The custom of the Christmas tree was brought to North America from Germany by Christian German immigrants in the 1800’s. The story of the tree has its origins in the evangelization of the German people by a Christian missionary from England named Winfrid—known in History as Boniface (AD 680-754).

Boniface spent his life evangelizing the areas of modern Germany and parts of the Netherlands. He also became a friend of the Frankish court and helped reform and reorganized the Church in that area. From his missionary travels, Boniface knew that in winter the inhabitants of the village of Geismar gathered around a huge old oak tree (known as the “Thunder Oak”) dedicated to the god Thor. This annual event of worship centered on sacrificing a human, usually a small child, to the pagan god. Boniface desired to convert the village by destroying the Thunder Oak, which the pagans had previously boasted the God of Boniface could not destroy, so he gathered a few companions and journeyed to Geismar. 

His fellow missionaries were scared and fearful that the Germans might kill them, so they balked when they reached the outskirts of the village on Christmas Eve. Boniface steadied the nerves of his friends and as they approached the pagan gathering he said, “Here is the Thunder Oak; and here the cross of Christ shall break the hammer of the false god Thor.” Boniface and his friends arrived at the time of the sacrifice, which was interrupted by their presence. In a show of great trust in God and born from a desire to enkindle the fire of Christ in the German pagans, Boniface grabbed an axe and chopped down  the Thunder Oak of mighty Thor.

The Germans were astounded. The bishop preached the Gospel to the people and used a little fir tree (as a tool of evangelization) that was standing between two sections of the oak that had split in two upon falling. Pointing to it he said, 

“This little tree, a young child of the forest, shall be your holy tree tonight. It is the wood of peace… It is the sign of an endless life, for its leaves are ever green. See how it points upward to heaven. Let this be called the tree of the Christ-child; gather about it, not in the wild wood, but in your own homes; there it will shelter no deeds of blood, but loving gifts and rites of kindness.”

The author pastored a church in Huntsville, Alabama, USA where he was blessed to have as a parishioner from the country of South Korea a woman named Chung Cha. Chung Cha was raised as a Buddhist. She often testified of watching the Christians of her country putting up Christmas trees at Christmas time and how that spoke to her of great hope and love emitting from a God that was strange to her culture but called to her from this simple symbol.

Christmas, Meaning of the Term

Those who oppose the sacred days of Christians often attack the term “Christmas” just as they do “Easter.” The charge against the name of “Christmas” normally is that the word means “Christ’s Death.” Or, “Death of Christ.” In this attack, the suffix “mass” is said to mean ‘death.” Since “mass” comes into English from Latin and hence from the Roman Catholic usages (although Eastern Orthodoxy often use the word “mass” as well) we must understand what that segment of Christians mean by the word. This may get a little technical but we will be as clear as possible.

“Christmas” is a shortened form of “Christ’s Mass”. The word is recorded as Crīstesmæsse in AD 1038 and Cristes-messe in AD 1131. Crīst  (genitive:  Crīstes) is from Greek  Khrīstos  (Χριστός), a translation of Hebrew: Māšîaḥ (מָשִׁיחַ), "Messiah", meaning “anointed"; and mæsse is from Latin missa, the celebration of the Eucharist. The form Christenmas was also historically used, but is now considered archaic and dialectal; it derives from Middle English  Cristenmasse, literally “Christian mass.”

The English word “Mass” comes from the Latin word missa, which means to be “sent.” “Mass” does not mean ‘death.” This Latin word has been used since the 6th or 7th century to describe the celebration of the Eucharist, our main liturgical service, not only for the Advent of Christ. The word is used during the conclusion of the celebration when the officiate says in Latin, Ite, missa est.

The literal translation of that phrase is, “Go. It has been sent.” Thomas Aquinas wrote a commentary on these words and explained in his Summa Theologiae,  “And from this the Mass derives its name … the deacon on festival days ‘dismisses’ the people at the end of the Mass, by saying: ‘Ite, missa est,’ that is, the victim [Jesus] has been sent to God through the angel, so that it may be accepted by God.”

Pope Benedict XVI also expanded on these words in his encyclical Sacramentum Caritatis, but focused on a different spiritual meaning behind the phrase. He wrote, “In antiquity, missa simply meant ‘dismissal.’ However in Christian usage it gradually took on a deeper meaning. The word ‘dismissal’ has come to imply a ‘mission.’ These few words succinctly express the missionary nature of the Church. The People of God might be helped to understand more clearly this essential dimension of the Church’s life, taking the dismissal” (Mass) “as a starting- point.”

Instead of seeing the words of the officiate as a conclusion to the celebration, we may see them as a beginning. The words for the dismissal at Mass are “Ite ad Evangelium Domini annuntiandum (Go and announce the Gospel of the Lord)” and “Ite in pace, glorificando vita vestra Dominum (Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life).” Both of these dismissals focus on the missionary character of the Mass and how those in the pew are meant to go out in the world, sustained by the Eucharist they just received.

Viewed in this framework, the “Mass” is not just a single celebration on a Sunday or weekday or feast day (such as Christmas), but a starting-point for a lifelong journey of Christian witness. The Eucharistic minister, in the place of Christ, sends forth his parishioners into the world so that they may be beacons of light, set on a hill for all to see.

The conclusion of the matter is: The uninformed are afraid of what they do not understand as children are of masks.

Conclusion

I really think the saying, "Don't throw the baby out with the bath water," is apropos concerning this most holy time of the year when the attention of the whole world is turned toward Christ. 

Those who do not recognize the Christmas Season are missing an important opportunity to witness for Christ in a world that would like to shut Him out of the public arena altogether. Do not be an agent of Christ eradication. 

Think on these things when you are tempted to get on the wagon with the Christmas haters.

Apostolically Speaking,

☩☩ Jerry L Hayes


Read more essays from the Bishop on Christian Sacred Days at the links provide here:

Christians and the 7th Day Sabbath
http://bishopjerrylhayes.blogspot.com/2019/11/christianitys-association-with-seventh.html

First Day of the Week (Sunday) Worship
http://bishopjerrylhayes.blogspot.com/2019/11/first-day-of-week-worship.html

Apologia is a polemical work in the defense of Christian sacred days. Our focus is Sunday worship, Easter and Christmas. Since the rise of the Anabaptist movement of the 16th century a 7th day sabbath element has existed in the Christian faith. There has been little written in the line of a strong apologia for the observance to the traditional times. Bishop Hayes offers his work "Apologia, A Defense of Christian Sacred Days" to meet that need. This book establishes why Christians have observed Sunday as their primary day of worship right out of the gate. Also, within the pages of "Apologia" the reader will discover the true meaning of the terms 'Easter" and "Christmas". Bishop Jerry L Hayes comes to the defense of historical Christianity in this work that is destined to become a classic. 

Order your personal copy of "Apologia" today at the link provided here:
https://www.amazon.com/Apologia-Defense-Christian-Sacred-Days/dp/1099666589/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Bishop+Jerry+Hayes%2C+Apologia&qid=1572982116&s=books&sr=1-1

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT BY PURCHASING MY BOOKS FOR YOUR LIBRARY -JLH

Be sure to listen and subscribe to the Bishop's Podcast: Apostolic Bishop, at:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-apostolicbishops-podcast/id1472262392?fbclid=IwAR2FlRYnNsw5Vu_Bz4PjyEdiAxFMawhtD2BFr_S7WysrpFcYjuQYSHGAlZ