May You Never Have a Merry Christmas

The title of the sermon today is, May You Never Have a Merry Christmas.

We're in the Christmas season, apparently, and occasionally you see a sign that reads, Jesus is the reason for the season. When we look at the gross materialism and commercialism during this Christmas season, it is difficult to see Jesus as the reason for the season. To see anything that resembles the life and the great works of Jesus Christ during the Christmas season, one would probably have to see or visit a nativity scene to see anything about Jesus during this season. We have a nativity scene here in the lobby of this building, or the foyer of this building, along with a Christmas tree. So we are reminded during the season as we come into the place where we meet on the Sabbath. The nativity scene, of course, pictures Jesus in the manger after his birth, along with some other things that we'll talk about. The nativity scene has been banned in most public settings in the name of the separation of church and state. In some stores, Christmas carols are played as the shoppers go about their business, but even these have been banned in most of the stores today. Christmas carols and the word Christmas are just about the only references to Christ or Jesus during this world, so-called world of postmodernism during Christmas time. Virtually every historical source you want to name including Encyclopedo-Burtatica, World Book, and many other sources will tell you that Christ was not born during this season. It was not born on December the 25th. And you can search the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, and you'll not find any indication that you should observe the birth day of Jesus Christ. Now, that's not to say that the day of His birth was not a glorious event because indeed it was. Let's turn now to Luke chapter 2. Luke chapter 2. Luke's account of the birth of Jesus. Luke chapter 2 verse 1, it came to pass in those days that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that the world should be taxed. Tax is not a new thing, of course, as we see here. And the more you read about these bailouts and so on, the more you realize that's a tax burden upon the American people. This taxing was first made when Serenthas was governor of Syria. And all went to be taxed, everyone, into his own city. And Joseph also went up from Galilee out of the city of Nazareth under Judea under the city of David, because that is the birthplace of David, his home area, the city of David, which is Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David. He went there to be taxed with Mary, his spouse, wife, being great with child. So from the events that surround the birth of Jesus, we can conclude by reading this for the most part that Jesus Christ was not born on December the 25th. First of all, it's highly unlikely that Caesar Augustus would have commanded people to travel in the wintertime because that's the rainy season, that part of the world. He would want to generate all the revenue that he possibly could, so he would probably choose a time when the weather would be most favorable. So even this command for everybody to come up to the city of their nativity would probably dictate that it was not during the late wintertime, or actually it's early wintertime, but toward the end of the month of December. He would probably have chosen a time when travel would be a lot easier. And that time would probably be the fall of the year because the crops would have been gathered and the rainy season would not have yet begun. And as we shall see later in the chapter, shepherds were tending their flock by night, and the angel of the Lord came upon them.

Now, several writers have written about shepherds would not be tending their flock in late December, so we have even secular writers who would conclude that Jesus was not born in late December. Alexander Hyslop writes, from December to February, the cold is very piercing, and it was not the custom for the shepherds of Judea to watch their flocks in the open fields later than about the end of October. So let's continue here with the narrative in Luke 2, in verse 6. And so it was that while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son, wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them, and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you, you shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of heavenly hosts, praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men. And that's probably, if you want to find a scriptural basis for many of these songs that have been composed to honor the birthday of Jesus Christ.

Let's analyze these verses just a bit. Some of them we see in verse 11, the purpose of the Incarnation, that is, that the Son of God would be made flesh.

The purpose of the Incarnation was that Jesus Christ would be the Savior. So let's read verse 11 again. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. Now, let's note in John 1 and verse 1, in John 1 and verse 1, this Incarnation, Incarnation just literally means in the flesh, that God said His Son and His Son lived in the flesh. In John 1 and verse 1, in the beginning was the Word. You can find out three things here about the pre-existence of Christ and relationships here. In the beginning was, and that's the Greek word, was, in, which means to be, in the beginning existed the Word. And the Word was with God, showing relationship. The Word was with God. And you see the identity, the Word was God.

Also in verse 14, and the Word was made flesh. He was incarnated in flesh. The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. And we beheld as glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. So Jesus Christ came to this earth to save humankind from sin and death.

So the great purpose here, we see when Luke gives his account unto us, is born a Savior, Jesus Christ. Here we see John's account of the Incarnation. And John is the only one who writes in these terms about the Incarnation of Jesus Christ. The Holy Days of God, on the other hand, they reveal the plan and purpose of God. You could read and study about Christmas, and you could keep Christmas for the rest of your life. And it has been kept for many thousands, well, not thousands of years, but more than a thousand years. And yet the world doesn't understand the plan and purpose of God. Remember the greatest questions. What I consider to be, and I believe the Scriptures verify this, the greatest questions of the ages. Number one, does God exist? Number two, two, three, and four, who is God? What is God? What is His purpose? And then five, six, and seven, who is man? What is man? What is His purpose?

Let's go now to Leviticus chapter 23. Leviticus 23, we see that there is a commandment in the Bible to keep the Holy Days. Leviticus 23, beginning in verse 1. The eternal spoke unto Moses, speaking to the children of Israel, and saying to them, concerning the feast, plural, of the eternal, which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations. Remember, holy things have God's active presence within them. Holy convocations, even these are my feasts. They're not the feasts of the Jews, not the feasts of just Israel or any other national, ethnic, or religious group. They're the feasts of God and also for God's church.

Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of rest and holy convocation, as I talked about in the letter on music. It's a holy convocation, and the things that are done and said in Sabbath services should also be in keeping with a command. Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. You shall do no work therein. It is the Sabbath of the Lord in all your dwellings, and these are the feasts. So then, he begins to enumerate the feast of the Eternal. The Passover, of course, is not a holy day per se, but it is a feast, the feast of the Passover. And then you have the two holy days on either side of Unleavened Bread, Pentecost, Feast of Trumpets, Day of Atonement, Feast of Tabernacles, and the eighth day, the last day of a feast. So the Bible is all about extending to humankind who God is and what He is. Now, what are we extending to humankind? Who God is and what He is? In other words, God wants to share with humankind who He is and what He is, and so He's ordained this great plan of salvation that's revealed in the holy days. The Bible is about redemption, in other words, buying us back from sin and death. It's about God's plan of salvation that permits God's Spirit to dwell in us and for us to be changed to glorious, radiant spirit beings in the Kingdom of God.

And, as I said earlier, you could keep Christmas for the rest of your life, and you could keep Easter. Both of those are laden with pagan symbols and never come to understand the plan and purpose of God. In fact, they obscure the plan and purpose of God.

Now, let's go back to Luke's account of the birth of Jesus. Pick it up again, Luke 2, and we'll read again maybe a couple of the verses we've already read in Luke 2.

Let's pick it up in verse 12, which we've already read. Luke 2, verse 12.

And this shall be a sign unto you, you shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of heavenly hosts praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men. And he came to pass as the angels were gone away from them into heaven.

The shepherd said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which has come to pass, which the Eternal had made known unto us.

And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph and the babe lying in a manger. Now, keep that in mind. This is Luke's account, the babe lying in a manger.

Notice what it doesn't say.

And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which told them concerning the child.

The story that was, or I'm sorry, I misread it.

They made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning the child.

And all they heard it wondered at those scenes which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart.

And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen as it was told unto them.

So most of the manger's scenes and pictures depict the following. Shepherds, three wise men, Mary, Joseph, the baby Jesus in swaddling clothes, animals lowering near him, and a bright star shining above them.

How much of this is in the Bible account? Well, in the Bible account here, we don't see the three wise men. It's the shepherds that come and see him in the manger. And there's no mention of a star shining above them right then. We hear about the glory of God that came upon the shepherds round about and the angels proclaiming the birth of Jesus.

So we could assume that there were animals in the stable, in the manger, but perhaps not.

There might have been, might not have been. The star may have been in the sky, but the shepherds are not said to have noticed it.

In Luke's account, the light that shepherds see is from the glory of the Lord. The glory of the Lord refers to his presence. So God placed some of his power, his glory, his radiance in that area. So the glory of the Lord which shone round about them, but not from a star.

As for the wise men, they're not part of the scene at all in Luke 2.

It is Christian tradition that places three wise men and the star they followed at the manger scene.

Now, the presence of the star does serve to announce Christ's birth to the men from the east, which are called the three wise men.

But when they finally complete their journey and offer their gifts to Jesus, he's no longer a baby in the manger, but he is in a house. He's a child in a house. So let's go to Matthew's account of this, the biblical account of the wise men. The Bible does not say how many men.

It is a matter of conjecture that since there were three gifts, there were three wise men, but the Bible doesn't say three. It just enumerates three gifts.

In Matthew 2, verse 1, Matthew's account, Now, when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, In the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem. Now, the Greek word for wise men here is magos, M-A-G-O-S. Magos means sorcerer. It can mean a wise man.

Magos was the name given by the Babylonians, the Chaldeans, the Medes, the Persians, and others to wise men, teachers, priests, physicians, astrologers, seers, interpreters of dreams, soothsayers, and sorcerers, etc. The Oriental wise men, astrologers, those who would gaze at the heavens, who, having discovered by the rising of a remarkable star that the Messiah just been born, came to Jerusalem to worship him.

Also, one of the meanings of magos is a false prophet and sorcerer.

So, once again, the Bible doesn't say how many magos there were, and the number three probably arises from the number of gifts. So, we continue here in verse 2, saying, Where is he that is born king of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east and came to worship him.

So, when Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled in all Jerusalem with him. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded them where Christ should be born. And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet, And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are not you the least among the princes of Judah, for out of you shall come a governor that shall rule my people. And then Herod, when he had privately called the wise men and inquired them diligently of what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, Go and search diligently for the young child. And when you have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him. And when they had heard the king, they departed, and lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. And when they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And when they were come into the house, not into the manger, when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down and worshipped him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented him with gifts, gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And being warned of God in a dream, that they should return not to Herod, they departed in their own country another way. And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, and revealed to them that they should go down into Egypt for a season to escape from Herod. So the traditional manger scene merges the visit of the Magos, the wise men, with the manger scene, with the shepherds, with the animals, and so all of that.

And now, how did Christmas become a so-called Christian holiday? The online encyclopedia, Wikipedia, provides a succinct summary of the history of Christmas.

The early Christian Church did not celebrate the birth of Jesus. Once again, the early Christian Church did not celebrate the birth of Jesus. In some places, such as Egypt, the date of the birth of Jesus had evolved from pre-Christian, pagan customs, favoring the 6th of January. So in Egypt, Christians there, some of them thought that he was born on the 6th of January. However, there was no consensus. Clement of Alexandria, one of the pre-Nicene Fathers, writing in the second century, suggested Jesus was born in November. Theologians in Egypt favored the 25th of May or the 24th, and some the 25th of April.

In 274 AD, the Roman Emperor Aurelian, anxious to replace Roman polytheism with sun worship, declared the 25th of December to be the son's official birthday. So the 25th of December, as a legal decree for observance, was made by the Roman Roman Emperor Aurelian in circa 274 AD.

Then, some 60 or 70 years later, Pope Julius finally settled a matter in the Catholic Church by declaring somewhere around 350 AD, sources various to the exact date, that December the 25th was the birthday of Jesus. So the declaration that he was born on the 25th first started with Aurelian, a Roman emperor, and then was made official in, quote, nominal Christendom in circa 350 AD. In circa 350 AD by Pope Julius, it was also determined that the festival of the Epiphany would remain on January the 6th. Now, the word Epiphany, just strictly the word itself, means an appearance, a manifestation, a manifestation of the essential nature or meaning of something, an intuitive grasp of reality through something, an unusual event, usually simple and striking, an illuminating discovery, a revealing scene. So Epiphany means appearance or a manifestation of something that is quite striking. January the 6th came to be observed as a church festival by some in commemoration of the coming of the Magos, the wise men, as the first manifestation of Christ of the Gentiles. So some say, well, the Magi got there on January the 6th. That's when he appeared to quote the Gentiles, the wise men from the east. So we're going to celebrate January the 6th, the Epiphany at that time. In the Eastern Church, that is the Greek Orthodox and also the Russian Orthodox. Just a little sidetrack here, and you should know this and keep this in your thinking, somewhere around 1000 A.D. There was a great split in Christendom, the nominal world of Christianity, the Catholic Church, over the question of the procession of the Holy Spirit.

The Eastern Church, the Greek Orthodox Church, remember that the Byzantine manuscripts, through the years in the Church of God in the 20th century, now into the 21st century, we've always viewed the Byzantine manuscripts as the most accurate. The Byzantine manuscripts, of course, were kept in Byzantium. Byzantium was the capital of the eastern part of the Empire, the Roman Empire. A Roman emperor had moved his, well, I'm sorry, later, the Roman Emperor Constantine, who supposedly saw the great light and the miraculous manifestation of Christ and declared Christianity to be the official religion of the Roman Empire. Constantine moved his headquarters from Rome to Byzantium and renamed the city Constantinople. So, Constantinople or Byzantium. But the Byzantine manuscripts, preserved by the Eastern Church and the manuscripts from which, principally, the King James Bible was translated from these manuscripts. Of course, other manuscripts have risen in, quote, more modern times coming out of Egypt. And West Cotton Hort were the principal ones who brought this on the scene, and from this have been the, like the NIV and other more modern translations in which you heard in the sermonette, don't throw away your King James Bible. It was the Bible the apostles used. No, not really, but it was, we believe it is the most accurate translation.

But what happened in about a thousand AD? That this great dispute between the Eastern Church Fathers and the Western Church Fathers, in other words, between those between Byzantium and Syria, you know, they were first called Christians in Syria at Antioch. This great dispute arose over the procession of the Holy Spirit. Does the Holy Spirit proceed from the Father and the Son, or does the Holy Spirit proceed only from the Father?

Do you know? So, I can turn to the Scriptures and show you in just a minute.

The Eastern Church maintained that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father only. The Western Church at Rome maintained that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son, Philio. Philio-K. That's the Latin, Philio-K, Father and Son.

This dispute became so great that there was a split between the Eastern Church and the Western Church. So, the Eastern Church set up headquarters at Byzantium, or Constantinople, where the Western Church's headquarters remained in Rome. Then, along came eventually Russia and the Russian Empire, especially under Peter the Great, and the Russian Orthodox Church, which is basically a carbon copy of the Greek Orthodox Church. And, of course, one of the roles that John Paul II tried to play was to bring these churches all together, Greek Orthodox, Russian, and Roman Catholic, under the same umbrella. I'll quickly go to John. This is off my not having a Merry Christmas track, but anyhow, John 15 will answer the question of where does the Holy Spirit proceed from.

In this case, we'll see that the Eastern Church was correct in John 1526, but when the Comforter is identified in John 1426 as the Holy Spirit, when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father. We call him Father because it is from the Father. He is the one who begets us with that Holy Spirit. When the Holy Spirit is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of Truth which proceeds from the Father. He shall testify of me. So, the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father. Now, in Titus chapter 3.

Somehow, Jesus Christ plays a role, and I've never heard anyone who could explain this in exact terms, but exactly the role that He plays, that is Jesus Christ, it is shed on us through Christ, that is the Holy Spirit, proceeding from the Father. In Titus chapter 3, verse 5. Now, the works of righteousness which we have done, the works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy, He saved us by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, which He shed on us abundantly, He the Father, through Jesus Christ our Savior.

Proceeds from the Father shed on us abundantly through Christ, and the Holy Spirit dwells within each one of us. So, the Eastern Church said that January 6 is to observe that as the epiphany in commemoration of the baptism of Christ. Of course, Jesus Christ was not baptized when He was an infant. They do infant baptism on a certain day. However, the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church both recognized the anniversary of the baptism of Jesus Christ January 6. The so-called 12 days of Christmas was reckoned from December 25 to January 6. So, one of the principal reasons why the Church Fathers made the change was because it was the custom of the pagans to celebrate the birth of the Son on December 25, as I mentioned earlier. So, because this was so popular, that is, the pagan custom of observing the birth of the Son, S-U-N, on December 25, they decided to merge the birth of Christ and the celebration of the birth of the Son on the same day. Now, the name Christmas came much later. So, once again, in the 200s AD, the Roman emperor Aurelian declared December 25 as the birthday of the Son, S-U-N. Then, in 350 AD, Julius, Roman Pope, declared December 25 as the birthday of Jesus Christ. So, what about the name Christmas? How did that come to be? In Anglo-Saxon times, Christmas was referred to as jul, G-E-O-L, from which the current English word jul, Y-U-L-E, is derived. The word Christmas is a construction meaning, literally, Christ-masse. Two S's at the end. It is derived from the Middle English Christi-masse and Old English Christian Masse, a phrase first recorded in 1038 AD. The words of the holiday in Spanish, Navidad, Portuguese, Natal, French, Noël, Italian, Natale.

All of these refer to the Nativity. In contrast, the German name by Nachten means simply, Hallowed Night. Christmas is sometimes shortened to X-M-A-S.

You know, and some would say, well, we don't want X-M-A-S, we want Christ-masse.

So, how did the X come to be associated with Masse?

In the early Greek versions of the New Testament, the letter X, which is chi, C-H-I in Greek, chi, and chi, was used as the first letter in the name of Christ. So, you would have X, and then the letters succeeding yet for the name of Christ.

Christos, Christimases. It's an early English phrase that means the mass of Christ. The word mass means the mass of Christ. It's interesting to note that the word mass is used by the Roman Catholics. It has traditionally been rejected by the Protestant world. Traditionally, the Protestantism rejects the mass. However, the Protestants embrace Christ's mass in the name of Christmas. The word mass means death sacrifice.

The word mass means death sacrifice. Now here's from page 537 of the Catholic Encyclopedia. Here's what it states. In the Christian law, the supreme sacrifice is that of the mass. It goes on to say, this is a quote, The supreme act of worship consists essentially in an offering of a worthy victim to God, the offering made by a proper person as a priest, the destruction of the victim. Note carefully the words victim of the mass.

The Latin word for victim is hostia, from which the word host is derived. Thus, by definition, the mass is a sacrifice of a living being, a victim. The definition of mass is a sacrifice involving the death of a living victim. In essence, the mass is a ceremonial slaying of Jesus Christ over and over again as used in Christ's mass. Once again, in essence, the mass is a ceremonial slaying of Jesus Christ over and over again, followed by the eating of His flesh and the drinking of His blood.

So when you go to mass in the Catholic Church on Christmas Day, they will have mass, and they will give you the wafer in the wine. So as you can see, Christ's mass is an invention of the Catholic Church. The mass is a basis for the Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation.

Now, in simple terms, transubstantiation means that the blood and body, or the blood and the flesh of Jesus Christ as observed, celebrated, taken in the mass, is literally translated into the literal blood and flesh of Jesus Christ. Transubstantiation, a transformation of the substance. Now, this is reading once again from the Catholic source.

The Church's Magna Carta says this, and they say this is the reason why they teach transubstantiation. This is my body. This is my blood. Remember, Christ said that when He instituted the symbols of the New Covenant Passover. This is my body. This is my blood, whose literal meaning she has un-she being the Church, has uninterruptedly adhered to from the earliest times. The real presence is events positively by showing the necessity of the literal sense of these words and negatively by refuting the figurative interpretations.

Then it quotes four places in the Bible where it says, you know, eat and drink of my blood and my flesh. So the Catholics contend that this taking of the wine and of the bread becomes literal, and you are literally eating and drinking of the blood and eating of the flesh of Jesus Christ.

So according to Catholic dogma, the symbols are literally changed into the actual flesh and blood of Jesus. So the word Mary means to rejoice, be jubilant, be filled with joy. Thus, by extension, Merry Christmas literally means to rejoice over the death sacrifice. The Scripture says that Jesus Christ died once for the sins of the world, that He is not sacrificed over and over and over again. So I wish that you never have a Merry Christmas.

I'm sure Satan and the demons rejoice and made merry over the death of Jesus. Notice what the world does when the two witnesses are killed. Let's go to Revelation 11. You know, we're coming to that time in which you talk to people even who go to church. They have basically rejected the Word of God, and their arguments are not based on the Word of God. I heard a talk show host, Dennis Prager. I was coming back from a visit this week. This woman called in and said, you know, with what the Bible has to say in Jeremiah and other places about learn not the way of the heathen.

How do we justify this keeping of Christmas? And boy, Prager, he got on his high horse. Virtually everything that is done in religion was first done by the pagans. You know, the pagans were the ones who first did sacrifices. They were the first ones who observed various days, and they're the first ones who did this, that, and the other.

So the fact that we're doing them, that's no big deal. The thing is, we just should rejoice in that we can have this meaning, and each person can worship God in the way that he chooses or she chooses. I mean, who is the authority on this? And so you just, and Prager talks about, he teaches a Bible class. He's a Jew. And of course, he doesn't believe that Jesus Christ, the Messiah, has come.

And so in Reformed Judaism, they are quite liberal in their interpretation, even of what the Bible is about. But in Revelation 11, we see that when the two witnesses are killed, what the world does.

Revelation 11, verse 8, In their dead bodies the two witnesses shall be in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom in Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified. And they of the people in kindreds and tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies three days and a half, and shall not permit their bodies to be put in the graves. And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, make merry, shall send gifts one to another, because these two prophets tormented them that dwell on the earth. That's how deceived they will be, thinking, probably thinking that the two witnesses are the beasts and the false prophet, instead of the one who sits in the temple of God saying that he is God and the beast.

You know, I'm sure that the devil and the demons quaked in their boots when Christ was resurrected. I'm equally sure that the world will be filled with anxious amazement when they see the two witnesses ascend into the heavens.

From ancient times, the birthday of the sun had been celebrated at the time of the winter sultist when the sun reached its lowest point in the southern skies. That's going to take place about midnight tonight. Tomorrow will be, quote, the first day of winter. It will also be the first day in which the sun starts coming back toward the north, in the northern hemisphere. The great festival of the Saturnalia lasted from December 17th to the 25th. It included a special feast for children called the Juvanelea. So that's how going way back into that time, where children, too, became very prominent in the celebration of these festivals, because they were included and gifts were given. Saturnalia was named after the early Roman god Saturnus, whose name means plenty or bounty. The holiday concluded on December 25th with the Brumalia, which included a great feast called Dias Natalis Solis Invicta. Dias Natalis Solis Invicta, Latin for birthday of the unconquered sun, S-U-N. The pagans believed that the sun, S-U-N, was the source of life and the great sustainer of life. So they made much to do when the sun reached its lowest point and then began to come back to the north on December 21st or thereabouts. The Roman author Virgil mentions the ancient pagan practice of hanging toys upon a tree. It was a time of great revelry when all manner of licentiousness was permitted. Residues of the practice are still with us today. Elements of cross-dressing are found in various Christmas pantomime scripts. During Saturnalia and Collins, K-A-L-E-N-D-S, Kalins, is the word from which we get calendar, and Kalins was the first day of the month, the first of January. So during Saturnalia and the first day of January, both of which inaugurated the new year, buildings were brightly lit and decorated with evergreens and processions crowded the streets. So I go out on the front porch of my house where we're living now, and I look off to the left. We don't need any street lights. We got the snowmen, Santa Claus, and everybody else. In 2000 years, what have we learned? The custom of giving gifts at Christmas goes back to two Roman festivals, Saturnalia and Collins, which were sacred to Saturn and Janus, respectively. The very first gifts were simple items, such as twigs from a sacred grove, as good-luck emblems, things like figs, honey and pastry. Soon that escalated into small items of jewelry, to candles, and statues of various gods. The early Christian Church saw gift-giving at the Winter Solstice as a residue of paganism, therefore severely frowned upon it. Even in the Catholic Church, in the Eastern Orthodox Church, in the beginning, back in that time, say four or five hundreds, they too tried to resist this, to some degree. Some of them did.

People, however, would not part with a tradition, that is, of the observance of the Winter Solstice. So the Catholic Church exercised its old strategy of absorbing the practice. Well, what's wrong with it? I mean, it's the birthday of Jesus Christ, one of the greatest events of all time. So what's the problem with it?

The Roman custom of giving presents at the Solstice season was spread soon across Europe. Throughout the English medieval and early modern period, the traditional day for the exchanging of gifts was January the 1st, known as New Year's Day, even though March 25th was at that time the formal beginning of the year. Most people don't know how much the calendars of the various nations and civilizations have been toyed with and changed around through the centuries and the millennia.

The churches of Syria and Armenia did not approve of the date as they objected to pagan connections. So the Eastern churches were in the end forced to acquiesce, and December 25th became established as Christmas Day throughout all Christendom. At the time the English were converted to Christianity, you remember that even before the time of Christ, the Romans had pressed all the way into Gaul, which is now France, and all the way into the British Isles, and it set up outposts as far as Britain during the days of Julius Caesar. You visit England now, you go up to the North Park, and you can see some of the Roman remains to this very day. And in England, the Saturnalia and other pagan festivals was mixed with what they were already doing there, the Yule festivities. The Evergreens, particularly the mistletoe. Mistletoe literally means all heal. It was supposed to have mystical, magical healing powers, and it was used all over the heathen world, but Christians tried to resist mistletoe. The pagans, on the other hand, they held mistletoe in high regard because of its so-called mystical, magical powers, but the churches at that time tried to keep it outside of the church. However, there was an exception made at York, England, where they allowed it in. There, mistletoe was ceremoniously carried into the cathedral on Christmas Eve, late on the high altar, after which a universal pardon was proclaimed throughout the city. Everybody is forgiven. We've got mistletoe in the church. The use of holly and other evergreens in Christmas decorations came from their use in houses and temples at the pagan midwinter festival. Evergreens were and still are symbolic of immortality. Hence, we find many yule trees in old burial grounds. You'll find many graveyards even in this area. We'll have evergreen trees planted around the cemeteries and sometimes even in the cemeteries. The Christmas wreath is another pagan symbol adopted by Christianity. The wheel of the year is often symbolized by the wreath. The sun makes its circle around. It dies and comes back to life, as it were. Its circle has no beginning, no end illustrating that everything in its time comes back to the point of origin and repeats the cycle over and over. The Scandinavians began the tradition of hanging the wreath at Yule, the beginning of their new year, to commemorate new beginnings in the life cycle. Egypt, Babylon, and Rome all made use of the tree in their winter solstice festivals. In Egypt, it was the palm. In Rome, it was the fir. Under an act of Parliament, the Puritans succeeded in killing off the Festival of Christmas in Scotland. Of course, this was the days of Oliver Cromwell. In England, however, Charles II repealed the act. In 1115, during the reign of Henry II, the English new year was moved from January 1st to March 25th. Once again, this part about the calendar and how it has been changed from time to time. The new year reverted permanently. Now, this is how recent this is. The new year reverted from March 25th to January 1st during the calendar reform of September 1752. So, this current calendar that is observed in Britain and the United States, as far as January being the first day of the year, is as recent as 1752. Some of the great highlights here, they make these notations.

In the early 17th century, a wave of religious reform changed the way Christmas was celebrated in Europe. When Oliver Cromwell and his Puritan forces took over England in 1645, they vowed to rid England of decadence and as a part of their effort, cancel Christmas. And as I've already mentioned, Charles II restored it.

In the 1600s, the pilgrims made it illegal to mention St. Nicholas' name. People were not allowed to exchange gifts, light a candle, or sing a Christmas carol. In the 17th century, the Dutch immigrants brought within the legend of the Santa Clause, or what became Santa Claus. In 1773, Santa was first appeared in the media as Saint-A-Claus.

The New York Historical Society was founded with St. Nicholas as its patron saint, its members engaged in the Dutch practice of gift-giving at Christmas. That's 1804. In 1809, Washington Ervin, writing under the pseudonym, Dydric Nickabacher, never have. In the NBA team to this day, they named the New York Nickabacher's, or I think they're shortening to nicks now.

Pseudonym Dydric Nickabacher included St. Nicholas in his book, A History of New York. Nicholas is described as riding into town on a horse. In 1812, Ervin revised his book to include Nicholas riding over the trees in a wagon. In 1821, William Gilly printed a poem about Santa Claus, who was dressed in fur and drove a sleigh drone by single reindeer. So you can see how recent some of these modern kind of inventions and notions about Christmas are. In 1822, dentist Clement Clark Moore is believed by many to have written a poem, an account of a visit from St. Nicholas, which became known as the night before Christmas. And then it goes on with the take hold in America until after the Civil War, and it really made inroads in the South, first of all, and then it spread to the rest of the nation. So, one final note here in Jeremiah, Jeremiah chapter 10. What should we say to all of these things? What does God say about all of this? What are His instructions? We see a very succinct summary in Jeremiah chapter 10 beginning in verse 1.

Whether the sun is in this phase or that phase, the moon or any other heavenly body, for the heathen are dismayed at them, for the customs of the people are vain, for one cuts a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workmen with the axe. They ever have, for with gold they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not. They are upright as a palm tree, but speak not. They must needs be born, because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them, for they cannot do evil. Neither also it is in them to do good. For as much as there is none like unto you all eternal, you are great, and your name is great and might. Who would not fear you, O King of Nations? For to you does it appertain, for as much as among all the wise men of the nations and all the kingdoms, there is none like unto you. May you never have. A Merry Christmas.