Wednesday, January 03, 2007 Speak out: No proof of Dec. 25 as Christ's birth date By Florante Mendoza
FRANCIS Weisser’s “Handbook of Christian Feast and Custom” states that the Roman Emperor Aurelian in 275 chose Dec. 25 as the feast of the Sun-God (Sol-Invictus) and to celebrate Christ’s birthday as a Christianized pagan festival.
Collier Encyclopedia Vol. VI says that Roman Emperor Constantine influenced the Church of Rome to assign Dec. 25 about AD 320 to 353 as celebration of the feast.
The New International Dictionary of the Christian Church says records of Dec. 25 have no authoritative historical evidence.
It added that before 336, the Church of Rome, having failed to defeat pagan influence, spiritualized the Feast of Nativity of the Sun of Righteousness.
The Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge states that a heretic, Artemon, in Rome invented Christian festival that was first celebrated in Constantinople in 373.
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. III says that, as to the origin of the date of Christ’s birth, the gospel has no record of it.
Collier Encyclopedia, Vol. VI shows nothing of the date of the birth of Christ either from the gospel or from any sound tradition.
Frederick Catherine M., OFS, in “The Handbook of Catholic Practices,” states that Pope Julius I changed the date of Christ’s birthday celebration from Jan. 6 to Dec. 25 for the actual date of Christ’s birth is unknown.
Aloysius Craft, editor of “The History of Christmas,” states that Christ’s birthday is unknown.
The Book of Apostle Luke, chapter 2, verse 8 states the presumed Christ’s birth date when shepherd watched their flocks at night.
In verses 1 to 3, the Roman Emperor decreed the impossible census taking in winter that demobilized the population in motion.
The aforesaid records are not very convincing as to Christ’s birthday or the celebration of Christmas.
