Even Christians see errors in Christmas
The following article is taken from: "Campus Journal" magazine
Published by Radio Bible Class
Okay, I admit it. October 14 is a little early to be sending a Christmas greeting. But I have a good reason. Over the past year I've accumulated a pile of evidence pointing to the likelihood that we celebrate Christ's birth at the wrong time of year. For one thing, the gospel of Luke tells us that on the night Jesus was born shepherds were out in nearby fields with their sheep (2:8). In Israel, shepherds bring their flocks in from the field no later than the third week of October.
But if not December, when? I've found reason to believe Jesus was born in late September or early October.
When God gave Moses the commandments, He also gave him a social calendar that included seven holidays. Three of them were called "pilgrimage" festivals--Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles--which everyone was to celebrate together in the place where God chose to put His Name (later identified as Jerusalem).
Stick with me here and let's think about what God may have been up to. We know that Christ was crucified during the Feast of Passover, when the Jews were in Jerusalem to sacrifice the Passover Lamb. We also know that God sent the Holy Spirit during the Feast of Pentecost, the holiday when the Jews were in Jerusalem to celebrate Moses' receiving of the Torah on Mount Sinai. If God arranged these two major events to occur at a time when all the Jews could witness them, is it too far-fetched to think that He would also send His Son to earth at a time when everyone would be there to see it?
Tishri 15 (October 14 this year) begins the Feast of Tabernacles when the Jews build "booths" out of branches and live in them for 7 days. What better way for God to identify with His people than to celebrate this Feast with them by coming to live in His own temporary dwelling--a body of flesh called Jesus. Perhaps that is why John wrote, "The Word became flesh and [pitched His tent] among us" (John 1:14).
One of the requirements for the temporary dwelling was that the roof be made of branches so the stars could be visible through it. Is it just coincidence that the main event announcing Jesus' birth was a star? Or had it been God's plan all along to make sure that every Jew would be star-gazing on the night He placed His Son's birth-announcement in the sky? --JAL
Comment - Added By Grafted-In Ministries:If, as the article admits " we celebrate Christ's birth at the wrong time of year", why does the Church continue to hold on to it's traditions in the clear face of evidence to the contrary?
It seems to me that there can be only two possible reasons:
(1.) Tradtions are held in higher esteem than truth and Biblical honesty. This was the chief compliant that Yeshua had with the religious leaders of His day. He often came into conflict with the Pharisees over the traditions which they had added to God's law over the years. "And He answered and said to them, "And why do you yourselves transgress the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition (Mat 15:6). Their traditions are simply the reason they celebrate Messiah's birth in December, contrary to all evidence otherwise.
(2.) To admit they might be wrong about "Christmas" is to admit they are wrong about the Sabbath, God's Appointed Holy days and even their view of Torah! Could it be that in holding on to the traditions of "Christmas", the church reveals not scholastic honesty but rather a case of a plain and simple anti-semitic bias on their part?
There is nothing inherently wrong with celebrating the coming of the Messiah to earth. In fact, through the prophetic cycle of Biblical festivals, the coming of Messiah to earth and his ultimate plan of sacrifice for the sins on mankind is repeatedly celebrated in the Messianic community. A "right" reason for creating a holiday would be to remember what our Heavenly Father did in the past for us. But what about a holiday created for "wrong" reasons?