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What Did Jesus
Say About Christmas?
The Christmas Experience
The perfect Christmas tree is bought.
Adorned with ornaments and glittering with tinsel, it stands by
the window. The stores are crammed with shoppers hunting for
presents and the little ones anxiously waiting for Santa
Busy with Christmas fever, wonder did you ever, did the Bible or
Jesus made any injunction on Christmas ever?
Ponder upon the following analysis on Christmas, and the Truth
will become clearer and clearer.
Does Christmas have Biblical Evidence?
The word 'Christmas' does not exist in
the Bible. The Bible has closed lips on the entire feast of
Christmas, with one exception, the decoration of a tree. The
Bible itself criticizes the decoration of the (Christmas) trees:
"The customs of the people are
worthless, they cut a tree out of the forest, and a craftsman
shapes it with his chisel, they adore it with silver and gold,
they fasten it with hammer and nails so it will not totter" (Jeremiah
10-3,4).
European Pre-Christian pagans
superstitiously believed that the green trees had special
protective powers. In fact the use of the Christmas tree began
only in the 17th century in Strasbourg, France and from there it
spread to Germany, Britain and then to the U.S. "Tree worship
was a common feature of religion among the Teutonic and
Scandinavian peoples of northern Europe before their conversion
to Christianity�German settlers brought the Christmas tree
custom to the American colonies in the 17th century. By the 19th
century its use was quite widespread". (Compton's
Encyclopedia, 1998 Edition)
Was Jesus born on Dec. 25?
Neither the date 25th Dec. nor any
other date on Jesus' birth is mentioned in the Bible. It was not
until the year 530 C.E. that a monk, Dionysus Exigus, fixed the
date of Jesus' birth on Dec. 25th. . "He wrongly dated the birth
of Christ according to the Roman system (i.e., 754 years after
the founding of Rome) as Dec. 25, 753". (Encyclopedia
Britannica, 1998 ed.) This date was chosen in keeping with
the holidays already indoctrinated into pagans beliefs.
Roman pagans celebrated Dec. 25th as the birth of their 'god' of
light, Mithra.
"In the 2nd century A..D., it
(Mithraism) was more general in the Roman Empire than
Christianity, to which it bore many similarities" (The
Concise Columbia Encyclopedia, 1995 ed.)
Other pagan 'gods' born on Dec. 25th
are: Hercules the son of Zeus (Greeks); Bacchus, 'god' of wine
(Romans); Adonis, 'god' of Greeks, and 'god' Freyr of
Greek-Roman pagans.
What about Santa Claus?
If aliens descended on earth during the
Christmas season, they would undoubtedly believe Christmas as
being Santa's birthday. The words 'Santa Claus', appear
nowhere in the Bible.
However, Saint Nicholas (Santa Claus) was a real person, a
bishop, who was born 300 years after Jesus. According to legend,
he was extremely kind and set out at night to bring presents to
the needy. After his death on 6th of Dec., school boys in Europe
began celebrating a feast day each year.
Queen Victoria later changed the celebration date from Dec. 6th
to Dec. 24th eve.
Did Jesus or his Companions Celebrate Christmas?
If Jesus meant his followers to
celebrate Christmas, he would have practiced it himself and
enjoined it on his followers. There is no mention in the entire
Bible that any of his followers ever celebrated Jesus' birthday
like Christians do today.
"The church did not observe a
festival for the celebration of the event of Christmas until
the 4th century" (Grolier's Encyclopedia)
Thus we see that neither the Bible nor
Jesus and his companions say anything about the celebration of
Christmas which currently involves fanfare, commercialization,
and extravagent spending, devoid of any spiritual relevance.
We'll now analyze the real person of Jesus (peace be upon him),
in the light of the Bible and Islam.
What did Jesus Say about Himself?
In many places in the Bible, Jesus,
referring to himself as a Prophet said:
"A Prophet is not without honor, save
in his own country, and in his own house" (Matthew
13:57),
"Nevertheless I must walk today and
tomorrow and the day following, for it cannot be that a
Prophet persists out of Jerusalem". (Luke 13:33).
Jesus Received God's Revelation
Similarly, Jesus Christ too, as a
Prophet, received revelations from God: "But now you seek to
kill me, a man that had told you the truth, which I heard of
God" (John 8:40)
Jesus Prayed to his God
"And when he (Jesus) had sent the
multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray" (Matthew 14:23)
Obvious question: If Jesus was God, who
was he praying to?
Jesus put himself Equal to other Humans
Jesus put himself equal to other humans
in the eyes of God.
"My father and your
father, my God and your God" (John 20:17)
God does not have a God, But Jesus had
a God! Moreover, the gospel writers referred to Jesus Christ
(peace be upon him) as the 'son of man' about 85 times
in the Gospels, and never once did he explicitly called himself
'God', or 'God the Son', or 'The Begotton Son of God'.
Jesus Preached God's Oneness
Jesus Christ, as a true Prophet of God,
taught monotheism. When asked, 'What is the first of
all commandments', Jesus replied:
"...The first of all the Commandments
is, Hear O Israel; the Lord our God is One Lord" (Mark 12:29)
"And this is life eternal, that they
might know thee the only true God and Jesus Christ whom thou
has sent" (John 17:3)
Prophets of God
God, by his mercy, sent numerous
Prophets throughout history to all nations as guides and role
models. Some of the prophets were Noah, Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac,
Jacob, Moses, Jesus and the Last Prophet Muhammad (peace be on
all of them). They all came with the same basic message, which
is the Oneness of God, without any partners, sons or daughters.
This Oneness of God in its complete essence, preached by all
prophets, was later distorted by some segments of humanity and
naming these 'distortions' as 'religions', they left the worship
of one true God and replaced it with worshiping humans, cows and
fire. To purify humanity, God sent His last Prophet, Muhammad
(peace be upon him) as a guide for all mankind and through him
revealed in His last Messge, The Quran:
"They have adopted their
scholars and monks as lords besides God and (also) Christ, the
son of Mary, although they have been ordered to serve only God
alone. There is no god but Him. Glory be to Him ! He is beyond
what they associate (with Him)...." (Quran 9:31)
This utmost obedience and worship to
one God, in its truest sense forms the basis of Islam. The
entire Quran has been committed to memory by millions of Muslims
around the world and preserved by God Himself from any
interpolations, unlike previous scriptures, to provide guidance
for all ages.
What Does Islam Teach?
Islam calls humanity to the service of
the One, Omnipotent Creator ('Allah' in Arabic). Islam teaches
the oneness of mankind in the eyes of God regardless of
superficial differences such as race & nationality. In Islam
there is no superiority of whites over blacks or vice versa.
Anything that disrupts society's harmony and deviates humans
from worshiping one true God is disliked in Islam. Thus Islam
recognizes the evils of alcohol, drugs, premarital sex, gambling
etc. and advises humans to stay sway from these Satan's
handiwork. Islam further provides detailed instruction about a
person's relationship with God, with his family and the society.
Thus no aspect of a person's life is outside of the guidance
provided by God.
Born Sinless!
Islam teaches that every child is born
sinless with a pure heart and an inner instinct to realize the
oneness of God. It is the parents or the environment that
deviates this child to associate partners with God (in the form
of multiple gods) or to reject God altogether.
No Mediator
There is no mediator between God and
man. There is no need of one, for God, the All knowing, can
listen and answer our sincere prayers regardless of our state
and place.
Salvation comes through submitting to the pure belief in One God
and following His guidance as revealed in the Quran, and not
through the vicarious sacrifice (murder) of an innocent human
being. Thus Islam is a rational religion based on justice and
self accountability, and not on unjust and mysterious doctrines
formulated by humans. Islam provides solutions to all the ills
plaguing humanity. An example of Islam's stand on racial justice
is provided below.
Islam Dispels Racism
One person's superiority over another
is not based on his race, economic status or nationality but on
his God-Consciousness and purity of character. God proclaims in
the Quran:
" O mankind ! We have created
you from a single (pair) of a male and female, and made you
into nations and tribes, that you may know each other and not
that you may despise each other. Verily the most honored of
you in the sight of God is the most righteous..."
(49:13).
Likewise Prophet Muhammad (peace be
upon him) proclaimed:
"No Arab has any superiority
over a non-Arab, nor does a non-Arab have any superiority over
a black man, or the black man any superiority over the white
man. You are all the children of Adam, and Adam was created
from clay".
After studying Islam, Malcolm X, became
a true Muslim. He remarks:
"...America needs to understand
Islam, because this is the one religion that erases from its
society the race problem..."
The Quran was revealed in the Arabic
language, but translations of its meaning are available in
English and other languages for non-Arabs. Likewise Islam is not
restricted to people of the east or Arabs, it is a universal
religion revealed for all of mankind.
We invite all sincere humans to study Islam with an unbiased
mind. Don't blindly follow the whims and paganistic influences
of the environment around us. God bestowed upon us this superb
mind to seek and live the truth; for we all will be accountable
on the Day of Judgment for our beliefs and deeds. Don't delay
your salvation.
Welcome to Islam!
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