When Was Jesus Really Born?-- What Does the Bible Say?

Around this time of year millions of people celebrate Christmas. In the past, I have touched briefly on the origins behind the celebrations and customs associated with Christmas, and how their true origins are a far cry from anything related to Christ.

In this article I will solely discuss Jesus and his birth, showing you facts that are backed up by scripture as well as other sources so that you can see, without a doubt, that Jesus WAS NOT born on December 25th as many have believed for so long. In fact this date, December 25 has no basis in scripture at all.

First and foremost, I am not an Athiest. I am a Christian, and I believe in Jesus wholeheartedly, but I also believe what the Bible says about him, not the false doctrines that have been spread for so long, misleading the public.  

John "The Baptist"

So what does John "The Baptist" have to do with Jesus' birth? A lot, actually.


According to the Bible, Jesus was conceived while Mary's cousin, Elizabeth was already 6 months pregnant with John. At the time that Zachariah was notified by God's angel that his wife was to become pregnant, Zachariah was serving in God's temple in Jerusalem under the course of Abijah. Historical records prove that this took place around the month of June, according to the Jewish Calendar.

The Bible account at Luke goes on to state that upon Zachariah's return home days later (towards the end of June), that his wife became pregnant with John. Count 6 months from the end of June and you find the time that God caused Mary to conceive Jesus. Add another 9 months to that and you will find that the date falls around the end of September.

(Please read the account at Luke 1: 5-33)


Shepherds In The Fields

According to the Biblical story of Jesus' birth, the Shepherds were out  in the fields. Had it been December, the Shepherds would not be out in the fields overnight with their flocks because that is very cold season in Bethlehem.

By the month of Bul (Oct-Nov) the weather would have already become rainy and harsh for the flocks, thus they would not be kept outdoors in the night.  The next month, Chislev (Nov-Dec) was even worse, having the lowest temperatures of the year, and even sometimes snow in the highlands.

So, logic firmly tells us that given the fact that the Shepherds were out in the fields with their flocks at the time of Jesus' birth, it had to be around early Fall, the month of Ethanim, (Sept-Oct.) of the year 2 B.C.E., when Christ was born.

(Please read the account at Luke 2: 8-20)


Timing is Everything!

Jesus died when he was 33 1/2 years old. He was baptized at the age of 30 in 29 C.E., around the same time of the year as his birth. He died on Nisan 14, which was approximately 6 months (or half-way through the year) before the date of his birth, and also the anniversary of his baptism. Also note that Jesus' ministry only lasted 3 1/2 years because he died on Nisan 14, halfway through what would have been his 4th year of ministry.  Count back 6 months from Nisan 14, which is during the Spring and you will always end up around September.


The Census

According to Bible accounts, Joseph and Mary had to travel to Bethlehem for the census, ordered by Roman Emperor Caesar Augustus.  Census' were not done in the winter. Why would the Emperor force a people to travel during the worst conditions of the year just to register for the census? It doesn't make sense. The people would have been very likely to revolt against him, had he decreed they trek in below-freezing temperatures during the dead of winter.

Luke 2: 1-4 states: " Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar Au·gus′tus for all the inhabited earth to be registered. 2  (This first registration took place when Qui·rin′i·us was governor of Syria.) 3  And all the people went to be registered, each one to his own city. 4  Of course, Joseph+ also went up from Gal′i·lee, from the city of Naz′a·reth, into Ju·de′a, to David’s city, which is called Beth′le·hem,+ because of his being a member of the house and family of David. "


Other Facts:

A Catholic Newspaper was quoted saying: 

"The real date of Jesus’ birth, from the historical viewpoint, lies concealed beneath a veil of uncertainty as regards Roman history, the imperial census of that time and research in the subsequent centuries. . . . The date of 25 December, as is well known, was chosen by the Church of Rome in the fourth century..This date in pagan Rome was dedicated to the Sun god . . . Although Christianity had already been affirmed in Rome by an Edict of Constantine, the myth of . . . the Sun god was still widespread, especially among soldiers. The above-mentioned festivities, centered on 25 December, were deeply rooted in popular tradition. This gave the Church of Rome the idea of impressing a Christian religious significance on the day by replacing the Sun god with the true Sun of Justice, Jesus Christ, choosing it as the day on which to celebrate his birth.”

It was reported that even Pope Benedict of the Catholic Church, claimed his doubts that Jesus was born on December 25th.  Remember, after Jesus and his apostles died, just as the Bible foretold, there would be a time when Christianity as a whole would fall away from true worship and plummet into a dark period. It was during such times that that Christianity became corrupted and diluted by outside sources. 

During the the 4th century the idea of Christmas, which derived from various pagan customs,  and other doctrines or beliefs were adopted by the Catholic Church, including forms of idolatry. It was at this time that the celebration of Jesus' birth became intertwined with the Winter Solstice and other pagan customs, as a means to invite pagans to convert. 

The answers have always been right here in the Bible. It just takes time to research and find it. Some people won't go through the trouble to find the answers. They would rather choose to continue believing what they were taught without a second thought. However, some will take the time to research and study the scriptures, in order to learn what the Bible says. Not just following blindly on what imperfect man wants us to believe.  Like I always say, if it isn't in the Bible, I am not going to believe it, plain and simple. 

This blog was to inform you of the historical accuracy of the Bible that coincide with other various historical evidence that Jesus was not born on December 25. I hope you have found the information I have provided to be informative, and maybe it will inspire you to look up these scriptures and information for yourself. If you choose to continue to believe that December 25th was the day of Christ's birth, that is up to you. No one can force you to believe or not believe, as we all have free will. 

(2014- Copyright- Origins What Does History Say?)

The Truth About Christmas

 

How would you feel if you were to find out that some of the most important people in your life had lied to you? I am sure you would be very upset possibly even angry. You may even find that you could no longer trust them. Am I right?

The pain and disappointment are felt even worse when we learn it from our own parents or adults we have looked up to our entire lives. We as parents have a right to teach and instill in our children the basic need to search for “TRUTH” in all aspects of life.

We cannot allow ourselves nor our children, whom we are responsible for sending out into the world later, to be brain-washed or just be lazy and believe whatever is thrown our way.

Sadly the majority of the world is lazy and does not want to seek out the truth of anything, especially in regards celebrations and entertainment. Because once the truth is made known to them, they will either find that it put a ‘damper’ on the whole subject or they dismiss the truth altogether for selfish reasons.

The bottom line is that the truth is the truth and as President Franklin D. Roosevelt stated “Repetition does not transform a lie into a truth.” With that being said, you can celebrate Christmas all you want, it does not make it right. You can say its for Jesus all you want, but the origins have absolutely nothing to do with Jesus. This blog is to reveal the truth about Christmas and then you can make your own educated decision based on the facts.

When many look to origins of certain words, language and even rituals or holidays they often look to the Romans, Greeks, Egyptians and even the Druids and Celts. But what strikes me as odd is that they were not the original civilizations, ancient Babylon was. They were the original world empire that actually taught the Romans, Egyptians, Sumerians, Greeks and all the other small tribes of people their culture and religion. It was ancient Mesopotamian beliefs and cultures that transformed the very civilizations we know today in Roman, Greek and Egyptian history.

Perhaps in another article I will explain further on that subject, but back to the Christmas link we find that according to Babylonian belief, December was a time of the year that the queen goddess was worshiped in honor of the birth of her son. The Romans adopted this ritual and used the name “Christ” as the son of the queen to appease the Christians to draw them into conforming to the newly established Catholic Church and it kept the pagan ritual of “Mother-son worship” in line. You see, “Mother-son worship” has been going on way before Jesus was even born, so if you think Christmas is about Jesus you are mistaken.

Gifts-

During the pagan Saturnalia and Matronalia ceremonial celebrations gifts were given to one another. Even in Egypt this was the same time that they worshiped Isis’ birth in the winter time. (Isis and Osiris also originate from Babylon and the “Mother-son worship” as Isis was known as the mother, while Osiris was her son and also her husband).

Christmas Trees- 

In Rome and Egypt, Christmas trees or celebratory trees were common. However, in Egypt the tree was a palm tree and Rome used fir trees. Palm tree worship was a ritualistic worship to the pagan Babylonian god Baal-Tamar. While the fir tree was for the pagan god Baal-Berith.

Mistletoe- 

The Druids derived their pagan superstitions from ancient Babylon as well. Mistletoe was considered the “man branch” that was considered a divine branch that grew from nothing onto a tree. We all know now that mistletoe is a form of fungus that grows on certain trees, however the Druids believed in their superstitions that it was a branch from Heaven and thus they later referred to the mistletoe to being from their messiah. 

Christmas Goose or Boar’s Head- 

In England that is a standard dish during the Christmas season, however during the time of the year the Egyptians, Romans and even the Saxons used these animals as a sacrifice to their pagan gods.

Yule Day-

In ancient Babylon the Chaldean word for “yule” means “infant” and the date of December 25^th was considered “Yule Day”. The night after “Yule Day” was considered “Mother Night.” Remember, this was long before Jesus or Mary was ever born, this is not referring to Jesus in any way. 

Many other groups of peoples such as the Sabeans of Arabia and the Saxons believe December to be the “birth month” of the Sun Goddess, or “Goddess Mother” while others believe that it was the birth month of the Moon, who was considered a male. Always the male deity would be referred to as a “son” and the woman as the “mother”.

In “The Trouble With Christmas”, author Tom Flynn explains that the conclusions he reached after years spent researching Christmas was far from Christian.

"One of the great ironies of Christmas is how little of its content is truly Christian. Once we dispose of the pre-Christian elements, most of what remains is post-Christian, rather than authentically Christian, in origin."—Page 155.

The Encyclopedia Americana says: "Most of the customs now associated with Christmas were not originally Christmas customs but rather were pre-Christian and non-Christian customs taken up by the Christian church.”

Jesus, the Nativity and Mary- 

According to a Catholic Newspaper,"The real date of Jesus’ birth, from the historical viewpoint, lies concealed beneath a veil of uncertainty as regards Roman history, the imperial census of that time and research in the subsequent centuries. . . . The date of 25 December, as is well known, was chosen by the Church of Rome in the fourth century. This date in pagan Rome was dedicated to the Sun god . . . Although Christianity had already been affirmed in Rome by an Edict of Constantine, the myth of . . . the Sun god was still widespread, especially among soldiers. The above-mentioned festivities, centered on 25 December, were deeply rooted in popular tradition. This gave the Church of Rome the idea of impressing a Christian religious significance on the day by replacing the Sun god with the true Sun of Justice, Jesus Christ, choosing it as the day on which to celebrate his birth.”

Christmas or the Nativity, was not celebrated by early Christians. One encyclopedia says about this: "The celebration was not observed in the first centuries of the Christian church, since the Christian usage in general was to celebrate the death of remarkable persons rather than their birth.” 

It is a fact that Jesus could not have been born in December as the region of Bethlehem was very cold and shepherds would not be out in the fields with their flocks. As many know that the reason that Joseph and Mary came to Bethlehem was for the Census. This fact and the fact that the shepherds** were out doors with their flocks at night left even the most revered Bible Scholars to conclude that Jesus could not have been born in December. Even Caesar himself would not have forced the Jews to trek to their home cities during cold and rainy seasons which would have resulted in further enraging this group of people.

So in my conclusion, I believe I have outlined many of the pagan origins of what many believe to be a Christian holiday. You may choose to ignore what I have placed before your eyes, and you may actually listen to what I have to say. The best part of being a human being is that you may believe what you wish. After all, we do have free will. The truth isn’t always easy to swallow, but it is there and most of the time its hidden in plain sight. You just have to be willing and open minded enough to see it.-

(footnote: **Luke 2:8 “There were also in that same country shepherds living out of doors and keeping watches in the night over their flocks.”)

J'aime Rubio (2011 Copyright)

Sources:

Encyclopedia Americana

Catholic Newspaper

Two Babylons- Alexander Hislop

Christmas Customs- Are they Christian?- Magazine Article

The Trouble With Christmas- Tom Flynn

Wikipedia