Each Should Be Fully Convinced… 12-21-08
There is a lot of contention within the Church about whether or not it is permissible for a Christian to celebrate holidays such as Christmas and Easter as religious or sacred. From outside of the Church you can find critics that take every view from “Christians in the Church of Christ are hypocrites because they give presents and put up decorations” to “Christians in the Church of Christ are cultists because they condemn others for celebrating the birth of Christ”; and everything in between and around these positions. From inside the Church, I have encountered every belief about this matter from believing that Jesus was born on December 25th to believing that putting up wreaths and decorating trees amounts to pagan worship. And yes, all of those mentioned, both outside of and inside the Church cite scripture to prove their position.
I wish to focus here on the positions within the Church, mainly because those from the outside are largely purposed to attack rather than to profess a sincere ideology. Those within the Church have diverse enough views for discussion.
Those who believe that Jesus was born on December 25th are certainly welcome to believe that; but what they are doing is expressing faith in a view that comes not from the Bible but from human contrivance. The date seems to have been chosen to replace a pagan holiday with a Christian one; all indications that are given to us in the Bible lead to the conclusion that wintertime is a very poor fit for the descriptions of the events surrounding his birth. Does this invalidate the celebrating of Christmas? No, it simply puts into perspective the beliefs about the holiday; the nativity scene incorporating both shepherds and magi appears to be in error in terms of historical accuracy, while it correctly portrays the whole of the story symbolically. And to be honest, isn’t Christmas a symbolic holiday at its heart?
Those who believe that participating in any manner in the Christmas holiday is direct pagan worship need to relax and read the scriptures a bit more. While few with this view take things quite to the degree that I’ve indicated with that sentence, they do tend to push their view that since Christmas is not mentioned in the Bible it must be an unauthorized addition that God forbids. But if that is the case, why do we accept so many other things that we have made up: communion trays, songs not recorded in the Bible (which is almost all of them, by the way), Wednesday night services, and a Bible that is divided up by chapters and verses (invented by Stephen Langton in the mid 13th century A.D.). No, it is not the lack of mention in the Bible that should be the focus of their reasoning on Christmas but rather the conformity to the basic tenets of the Christian faith as expressed in the Bible.
Now, there are relatively few in the Church that actually fall into one of these two extremes; the majority are (predictably) in the middle. Many believe that the symbolism of Christmas as expressed in the traditional Christmas songs such as “A Child this Day is Born,” “Angels We Have Heard On High,” “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing,” and “O Come, All Ye Faithful,” present a proper expression of the importance of the birth of Christ. Many others believe that to set aside a religious day in a similar manner as was set forth for the Jews exceeds what the Apostles instituted, and is thus improper for the Church. Paul addresses these points quite well in Romans 14 and Colossians 2.
One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord. He who eats meat, eats to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains, does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. (Romans 14:5-7 NIV)
Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ. (Colossians 2:16-17 NIV)
Now, I have focused here mainly on Christmas, but the same principles can be applied to any holiday – not just Christmas and Easter. Independence Day should be about thanking God for our freedoms and blessings as Americans. Thanksgiving Day should be about thanking God for the bounteous goodness of his provision for our needs. Labor Day should be about thanking God for our jobs and productivity, and the earnings he provides through them. Paul tells us that we are free to set aside special days, and we are free not to. But we are not free to do so only for ourselves!
So if you are not celebrating Christmas, rejoice and give thanks to God for the freedom of Christianity. And if you are celebrating Christmas, rejoice and give thanks to God for the birth of Jesus, without which we would never have been saved through his death and resurrection. Either way, rejoice and give thanks to God!
-Charles Peterson