Merry Christmas?!

Many Christians wonder if they should celebrate Christmas, considering it is not the actual date of Jesus’ birth, while others see it as sacrilegious. It is a celebration rooted in "pagan" festivities, and moreover, Christmas is not "biblical."

The idea is that we do not celebrate trees, elves, or a "Santa Claus"! This celebration is often associated with demons because it once served gods and goddesses of fertility, motherhood, war, celestial bodies, and so on. So, in this case, should we view Christmas as the celebration of Jesus' birth, or should we completely do away with it?

Personally, I believe that, for once, we haven’t been "plagiarized" in a negative way, but rather, we have "converted" a pagan festival into a Christian one, and we should rejoice! Does the Lord not ask us to "take back from Satan" what rightfully belongs to God, which was stolen through the sin of Adam and Eve? In fact, the whole earth and everything in it (including celebrations) should glorify God, and we should bring this earth from darkness into His light—souls, nations, cultures, customs, and even festivals!

And that’s precisely what has been done; we have "planted" a nativity scene in the setting! No one can forget the star that shines in the night of Christmas, guiding the wise men to worship the child who was born—Jesus!

Secondly, is the birth of Jesus biblical? Of course! Let’s read Matthew 1:18: "The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means: God with us." Was He not born in a manger? Did the Magi (derived from the word "magos," meaning "magic," as the Magi were known for practicing magic and astrology at the time) not come to worship Christ?

Christmas is a day of "light." Have you not noticed that "light" plays a crucial role on this day? Everything is illuminated, and even those who do not believe carry light. They decorate their homes, their streets, are more generous than usual, and forgive more easily. And who is THE light that illuminates the world, if not Jesus (John 8:12)?

Is Christmas not also a day of peace? A truce, a ceasefire lasting 24 hours? Even though no such law exists, THIS DAY has been used; during World War I, in the Philippines, and to allow humanitarian aid. Wouldn’t that be God’s miracle? If Christmas had never been celebrated, there would never have been a day of peace during war, a time when weapons were lowered…

A hundred years later, this Christmas truce [...] is described by historians as a moment of humanity and brotherhood in what was already an astonishing bloodbath. Opposing forces played soccer, exchanged bottles of beer and cigarettes, and sang songs of peace. The French film Joyeux Noël by Christian Carion depicted this historic episode in 2005. While tacit ceasefires to allow enemies to recover their dead, resupply, or simply rest are part of every war, the Christmas Truce of 1914 went further: it is likely the only occasion in modern history where soldiers defied their superiors’ orders to fraternize with the enemy (Le Devoir).

And now, let’s turn to the Scriptures; notice Paul’s exceptional skill in evangelism. In Acts, he uses the "unknown god" of the people to announce the coming of Jesus to earth! And would we not do the same? Would we not use the gods unknown to us but known to non-believers to lead the world to see the birth of our One and Only Lord and Savior of humanity?

"For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: To an unknown god. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship—and this is what I am going to proclaim to you" (Acts 17:23).

So, with such beautiful evangelism in mind, let us reflect before deciding not to celebrate the birth of our King of Kings. Regardless of the day or hour, can we not worship the Lord and celebrate His coming once a year? Can we not take the "unknown god" of the world to make Jesus known?

Can we not "take advantage" of this opportunity to speak about our Lord, sharing our table as He did with people whom the Pharisees called "sinners," but whom Jesus saw as having potential for His kingdom? Can we not be grateful for our loved ones around us and rejoice in their presence in our lives, spending time celebrating together as Jesus did with His disciples? Can we not use this celebration to sing songs about His coming and what He has done for us? Can we not use this time to testify about His great love for all sinners by demonstrating that love through our joy, peace, and kindness toward everyone, just as He did for us?

Do not deprive yourself of such an opportunity to speak of Jesus and to PROCLAIM THE GOOD NEWS IN ALL TIMES AND CIRCUMSTANCES! (Mark 16:15).

So, I wish you all a very Merry Christmas, as we continue to rejoice today, more than 2,000 years later, at the coming of our Lord Jesus!