Religion and Politics

Was Jesus Really Born on Dec. 25?

At Slate, Andrew Santella ponders why Christmas is celebrated on December 25^th despite little evidence of Jesus’ actual date of birth. Scholars have offered pre-existing pagan holidays or the winter solstice as possible explanations. Santella concludes, “The holiday is still prime time for disputation. At this time of year, more than any other, the sacred and the secular spend a lot of time jostling for space, and eventually, accommodating each other. So, believers need not be threatened by Christmas’ putative pagan roots. If the church repurposed the old solstice feasts, it only goes to show its power to bend the broader culture to its pastoral purpose.”

Read at Slate

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