Is Christmas a Pagan Holiday?

by Christopher Hendrix

Years ago, I was in a discussion with another believer about Christians participating in yoga. My point to this sister in the Lord was that the meaning of the poses, the very participation in it, inadvertently was worship of false gods. Any Eastern Religion adherent observing would acknowledge that some worship was occurring. She replied that in her mind, she was in fact worshipping God. She would sing praise songs to the Lord as she exercised. The problem with this, though, is that it equates to worship in the high places, which God very much frowns upon (1 Kings 3:3). She replied that we celebrate Christmas, but it has pagan roots. For some reason, Christmas having pagan roots has been one of the historically inaccurate assumptions propagated within the church. My hope this season is to shed light on this thought and reassure believers that celebrating Christ is not guilt-inducing, but a meaningful act of faith and worship.

The Pagan Holidays

Most people who do a little searching discover that two pagan holidays are commonly associated with Christmas. The first is Sol Invictus. This was the official sun god of the Roman Empire, whose cult was introduced by Emperor Aurelian in 274 AD. This god was the patron of soldiers and came about through syncretism from the Persian god. This god had one major festival in the year to celebrate its birthday. The days would sometimes change, but the Julio-Claudian fasti inscriptions described the Sun festivals occurring on August 8th, 9th, 28th, and sometimes December 11th.[1] It wasn’t until more than a hundred years later that this date was moved to December 25th, but by then, the early church had already adopted December 25th as the date for Christ's birth, showing the church's intentional choice to focus on Christ rather than pagan festivals.

Another festival, sometimes believed to have been the source of Christmas, was Saturnalia. This festival honored the god Saturn, who was the god of agriculture, wealth, and time. The festival involved gift-giving, feasting, and even a role reversal in which masters served the slaves for the day. However, Saturnalia never occurred on December 25th. Usually, this festival began on December 17th and lasted for three days. There is no evidence that the early church attempted to pattern the birth of Christ after this day.[2]

How about the winter solstice? This had no significance to the ancient Romans. The celebrations associated with the winter solstice date back to ancient cultures that erected monuments (such as Stonehenge) to track the sun’s movements. In ancient Rome, no celebrations were held for this. In fact, there was even disagreement over whether this took place on December 25th, 23rd, or 26th.[3] Next week, we will look at the elements of Christmas traditions and ask whether they have pagan roots.

Clear to Celebrate

For Christians, Christmas is an opportunity to honor our Lord and reflect on the Incarnation without concern for pagan practices. The Advent season centers on the salvation Christ purchased for us. It’s not just a commercial holiday but a time to worship Christ through church services, gift-giving, feasting, family, lights, and traditions. Celebrate confidently, knowing you are worshipping Christ the King who has come.

[1] "Sol Invictus, the Winter Solstice, and the Origins of Christmas", Mouseion, Number 47/3 (2003), 377-398

[2] Macrobius, Saturnalia, 1.10–1.23

[3] Pliny the Elder nat.his: 18.59.221; Columella (De Re Rustica 9.14.12)