Does the Bible Mention December 25?

I found the following Question and Answer in the December issue of St. Anthony Messenger, a Catholic magazine:

Q: Why does the Catholic Church celebrate Christmas with all its pagan beginnings when the Bible does not say that Jesus was born then? Christian Churches are supposed to use the Bible as their foundation and source of information. Isn’t the Catholic Church following man’s will here instead of God’s will?

A: You are correct that the Bible does not say that Jesus was born on December 25. Christians chose that day to counteract the pagan Saturnalia, the celebration of the day when the northern hemisphere has the least amount of sunlight.

Linking Jesus’ birth with sunlight reaffirms that all creation is good and reveals God, that Christians have a right to use whatever will reinforce God’s universal love and desire to share divine life with each person. In choosing December 25, Christians gave a completely new meaning to the pagan expression sol invictus (unconquered sun celebrated during the Saturnalia).

The Bible says that Jesus was born during the reign of Caesar Augustus (See Luke 2: 1). On December 25 we celebrate the birth of Jesus, the light of the world—sent by God’s gracious will.

The fact that something does not appear in the Bible is not proof that it is false. No book of the Bible, for example, contains a list of all the other books of the Bible. That list (canon) was developed through Tradition, the Church’s prayerful reflection on the word of God. Tradition stands under the word of God but is distinct from it. Scripture is most profitably read within the faith community to which it was given.

First of all Christians did not choose the day, the Catholic Church did. New Testament Christians never celebrated Christ’s birthday and still don’t today. There is no salvation in a baby. An infant cannot forgive you of your sins.

To tell people “Christians have a right to use whatever will reinforce God’s universal love…” is simply opening the floodgates for all kinds of activities. Pancake breakfasts, organs, choirs, Bingo night, etc. Most of these activities are endorsed by the Catholic Church and encouraged by other denominations. They’d rather fill the belly than the spirit (Phil. 3:19; Rom. 14:17)

Their next statement, “The fact that something does not appear in the Bible is not proof that it is false.” For the moment let’s assume this is correct. And let’s reverse the statement. The Catholic Church believes in the perpetual virginity of Mary; never having been with a man after Jesus’ birth. In Matt. 13: 55-56, the scriptures say that Jesus had four brothers and at least two sisters. This would confirm that Mary had children with Joseph after Jesus’ birth. But based on the Catholic Doctrine, the fact that something appears in the Bible is not proof that is it true!

If there is no scriptural authority for any practice, then we cannot step in and invent one to “further the cause of Christ”. No matter what others are doing; be it pagan, Catholic, or denomination, Christians must stand alone on the word of God and treat Christmas as a non-religious holiday or just another day on the calendar.