N R A E L UN ed t i r e h n I e v a eH W s e i L e h T
I s s ue1
ANSWERSTO QUESTI ONSLI KE:
Whati st heChr i s t Mas s ? WhywasChr i s t mas Out l awedi nAmer i ca? Whoi sSant aCl aus ? WasJes usr eal l ybor n i nDecember ? Wher edomanyofour T r adi t i onscomef r om?
YULEWANT TO READ I T “ MyLa s tChr i s t ma sLe t t e r ” Pa g e2
Wi nt er2 0 1 3
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TheCh r i s t ma sI s s u e
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l e x me y e r . c o m
Pr a yt ha tMe s s i a hwi l lne ve rs a yt he s ewor dst ous :
" ALLTOO W ELLYOU REJ ECT THECOMMANDMENTOFGOD,
THATYOU MAYKEEP YOUR TRADI TI ON. ” MARK 7: 9
THI SFREEPUBLI CATI ON I SNOTTO BESOLD T h i si saf r e ee d u c a t i o n a l r e s o u r c ei nt h ep u b l i ci n t e r e s t . Y o ua r ep e r mi t t e dt op r i n t a n dr e d i s t r i b u t ei t f r e e l y , b u t y o ua r ep r o h i b i t e df r o mc h a r g i n gf o ri t .
CHARLESSPURGEON QUOTESON CHRI STMAS Cha r l e sHa ddon( C. H. )Spur ge o n ( J u n e1 9 , 1 8 3 4-J a n u a r y3 1 , 1 8 9 2 )
Al t h o u g hh ewa saBa p t i s tp r e a c h e r , Sp u r g e o nr e ma i n sh i g h l y i n f l u e n t i a la mo n gCh r i s t i a n so fma n yd e n o mi n a t i o n s , a mo n g wh o mh ei sk n o wna st h e" Pr i n c eo fPr e a c h e r s " . Sp u r g e o nwa sap r o l i f i ca u t h o ro fma n yt y p e so fwo r k si n c l u d i n g s e r mo n s , a na u t o b i o g r a p h y , c o mme n t a r i e s , b o o k so np r a y e r , d e v o t i o n a l s , ma g a z i n e s , p o e t r y , h y mn sa n dmo r e .
“ We have no s upers ti ti ous reg ard for ti mes and s eas ons .Certai nl y we do not bel i eve i n the pres ent eccl es i as ti cal arrang ement cal l ed Chri s tmas :fi rs t,becaus e we do not bel i eve i n the mas s at al l ,but abhor i t,whether i t be s ai d or s ung i n Lati n or i n Eng l i s h;and,s econdl y,becaus e we fi nd no Scri ptural warrant whatever for obs ervi ng any day as the bi rthday of the Savi or; and,cons eq uentl y,i ts obs ervance i sa s upers ti ti on,becaus e not of di vi ne authori ty. ” ( Ch a r l e sSp u r g e o n , Se r mo no nDe c . 2 4 , 1 8 7 1 ) .
“ When i t can be proved that the obs ervance of Chri s tmas , Whi ts unti de,and other Popi s h fes ti val s was ever i ns ti tuted by a di vi ne s tatute,we al s o wi l l attend to them,but not ti l l then.I t i s as much our duty to rej ect the tradi ti ons of men,as to obs erve the ordi nances of the Lord.We as k concerni ng every ri te and rubri c," I s thi sa l aw of the God of Jacob?"and i fi t be not cl earl ys o,i ti s of no authori ty wi th us ,who wal k i n Chri s ti an l i berty. ” ( f r o mCh a r l e sSp u r g e o n ' sTr e a s u r yo fDa v i do nPs a l m8 1 : 4 . )
Th a n ky o uCh a r l e sf o ry o u rwo r d so fwi s d o ma n dc o n v i c t i o na b o u ts u c ht h i n g s . Th a n ky o uf o ry o u rb o l d n e s s t op r o c l a i mt h eSc r i p t u r e s , a n df o ry o u rl i f et h a twa sd e v o t e dt omi n i s t r y . Wen e e dmo r ep r e a c h e r sl i k ey o u wh oa r en o ta f r a i dt os p e a kt h et r u t ha n ds t a n da g a i n s tt h es t a t u s q u o . Yo uf o u g h tt h eg o o df i g h t , a n dy o u r wo r d so fwi s d o ma r es t i l lc h a n g i n gl i v e st o d a y .
My last Christmas Letter By: Lex Meyer
Dear Family and Friends, I have decided to write you a Christmas letter this year to let you know about some changes that are taking place in my life. You know that I have always had a love for the Bible and have studied it my entire life, but recently I have been studying early Church history, which has led me to make some startling discoveries that will affect my life forever. As I began to study the roots of many of our Christian Traditions, I was shocked to find out that many of the things we do have absolutely no connection to Jesus or the Bible. In fact, many of them come straight out of Paganism. Each year at this time we celebrate the birthday of Jesus, but according to the Bible he was not born at this time of year. The bible tells us that Jesus was born in a warm month, when the Shepherds had their flocks out at night. This would put his birth sometime between March and October (not the end of December). Also, the Bible never tells us to celebrate the birth of Jesus, and for nearly 300 years none of his followers celebrated His birth. We were only told to celebrate his death and resurrection each year at Passover. Whose birthday is on December 25th? As I began to study more about this date, I found out that this birthday celebration was around for thousands of years before Jesus was
ever born. In fact, it dates all the way back to Nimrod in the book of Genesis. Every pagan sun-god has been celebrated during this time of year. Some of these pagan gods include Tammuz, Dionysus, Bacchus, Saturn, Mithra, Sol Invictus, and various others. All of these gods were said to have been born at the Winter Solstice. The celebration is based on superstition that in the winter the sun gets weaker and dies, which is why the days get shorter, but after the solstice the sun is reborn and begins to gain strength again and the days get longer. Today this winter solstice festival is still celebrated by Wiccans and other pagans as the festival of "Yule" (which is where we get the Yule log, Yule ham, and Yuletide carols). It was a Germanic celebration of the god Odin. They would eat roasted pork in honor of the god of the hunt. This is where our tradition of eating "Christmas Ham" originates. Saturnalia, was celebrated approximately 200 years before Jesus was born. This December 25th celebration was in honor of the Pagan god Saturn, and before that it was celebrated as "Brumalia" in honor of the Pagan god Bacchus, and also celebrated as "Lenaia" or "Dionysia" in honor of the Greek god Dionysus. The Persians celebrated it as the birth of their sun god, Mithra, and at the turn of the century the Romans, under Constantine, celebrated it as the birthday of their sun god, Sol Invictus.
All of these celebrations took place on or near December 25th. All of these celebrations were in honor of the "birth" of pagan gods. Why did they start celebrating the birthday of Jesus on December 25th? During the 4th century, Emperor Constantine decided that it would be beneficial for his Kingdom if he merged Christianity with the worship of Sol Invictus. As a result, all of the formerly pagan cathedrals and temples were converted to churches and renamed with "Christian" names, and all of the Pagan celebrations were adopted as "Christian" and given new names as well, while many of their practices and traditions remained unchanged. This political move of Constantine was very beneficial for expanding his Empire, but it was devastating to the Church.
the festival of Dionysia (December 25th), he sacrificed a pig in the Temple, desecrating the altar. He outlawed circumcision and the Sabbath, and he also destroyed every Bible he could find. In response, a group of Jewish priests started a revolt against Antiochus. They fought for three years, and finally gained control of the Temple again. They immediately cleansed the Temple and dedicated it back to God. That is why it is called Hanukkah, which means “dedication”. It is important to note that December 25th was the day that the Temple was defiled by the pig on the altar as part of the birthday celebration of their god. They roasted a ham and tried to force the Jews to eat it. This alone should make us think twice before eating a Christmas ham. What is wrong with celebrating Christmas?
What does this mean? Well, it means that this will be my last Christmas letter, because I will no longer be celebrating Christmas. Our family has decided to celebrate Hanukkah this year instead. Hanukkah is a Biblical celebration that honors God. The Bible indicates that Jesus made a special trip to Jerusalem for Hanukkah, "Now it was the Feast of Dedication (Hanukkah) in Jerusalem, and it was winter. And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon's porch." (John 10:22-23) What does Hanukkah celebrate? It is a celebration of God's deliverance for his people from Pagan oppression and assimilation. About 150 years before Jesus was born, a Greek ruler named Antiochus gained power over Israel. He tried to force the Jewish people to assimilate into the Pagan religion, and during
Nearly everything associated with Christmas finds its roots in Paganism. Trees, wreaths, holly, ham, caroling, Santa Claus, and many other things all come from Pagan traditions. Even stories of a god born on December 25th are rooted in Pagan folklore. Many of the leaders during the Protestant reformation wanted to end Christmas, but tradition kept it going in spite of convincing arguments from teachers and preachers who tried to explain the perversion and idolatry that was associated with this holiday. It was even outlawed in America until the mid 1800’s. Remember that we are the Temple of the Holy Spirit, and we should consider the message of Hanukkah this time of year – that we should cleanse our Temple of pagan things, and dedicate it back to God as a Holy and pure vessel that honors Him. I love you all very much, and I pray that you will seek the truth about these things as I have.
TheLi g htBe f o r eChr i s t ma s Twa st h en i g h tb e f o r eCh r i s t ma sa n ds t r a n g ea si ts e e ms Iwa s n ' ti n d u l g i n gi nc o v e t o u sd r e a ms ; Bu tr e a d i n gmyBi b l e , Is e a r c h e df o rac l u e Wh yCh r i s t i a n st a k ep a r ti nt h i sh o l i d a yt o o .
Hes a i d , " Ia mSa n t a , Ic o mef r o ma f a r . " Is t o o di nt h et r u t h-" Th eDe v i ly o ua r e . Th a ts u i ta n dt h a tb e a r dd o e s n ' tf o o lmeo n eb i t . Yo u rj o l l yd e c e p t i o ni ss t r a i g h tf r o mt h ep i t .
Ip l a i n l yc o u l ds e et h a ti tc a r r i e dHi sn a me , Bu tt h es p i r i tb e h i n di tj u s twa s n ' tt h es a me . Th es o n g ss p o k eo fwi s eme n , o fv i r g i na n dc h i l d , Ofs h e p h e r d s , o fGo d , a n da l lme nr e c o n c i l e d ;
Be n e a t ha l ly o u rHoHoHo ' sLu c i f e rl u r k s ; Wi t hy o u ra l l s e e i n ge y e sa n dy o u rg o s p e lo fwo r k s Li k eat h i e fi nt h en i g h ty o ui mp e r s o n a t eCh r i s t , Re t u r n i n gt oj u d g et h en a u g h t ya n dn i c e . "
Bu tn o t h i n gwa ss a i do ft h eb l o o da n dt h ec r o s s ; Ofr e p e n t a n c e , a n df a i t h , a n do fc o u n t i n gt h ec o s t . Th e ys a n go ft h eb a b e , Hi smi r a c u l o u sb i r t h , Bu tn o to ft h ed a ywh e nHe ' l lj u d g et h ewh o l ee a r t h .
" Soc a l lCh r i s t ma sp a g a n , "h es a i d , " Th a t ' sO. K. ' Ca u s et h a t ' swh a tmys o n sa tt h eWa t c h t o we rs a y . Yo u ' l ll o o kl i k eap a g a no rl i k ead e c e i v e r , Bu tn o n ewi l ls u s p e c ty o ut ob eab e l i e v e r . "
MyBi b l es a i dn o t h i n go fSa n t a , o rt o y s , OfFr o s t yt h eSn o wma n , a n ds ma l ld r u mme rb o y s . Ar e f e r e n c et oRu d o l p hn o to n c ed i dIs e e . Bu ti ts e e msJ e r e mi a hd i dme n t i o nt h et r e e .
Is a i d , " Id o n ' tc a r ewh a ty o u rs e r v a n t swi l ls a y , Myl o y a l t yl i e swi t ht h eAn c i e n to fDa y s . Noma t t e rh o wma n ya b u s e sa r eh u r l e d , MyBi b l es a y sb en o tc o n f o r me dt ot h i swo r l d .
Is a ta n dIp o n d e r e dt h i sc u r i o u sma t t e r , Wh e no u to nt h er o o ft h e r ea r o s es u c hac l a t t e r Th a tIk n e wi namo me n th es o o nwo u l db eh e r e ; SoIp r a y e di nt h eSp i r i ta n ds t o o dwi t h o u tf e a r .
Yo uh a v en op o we r , a n dn op a r to fme , SoIs t a n do nGo d ' sWo r d , a n dc o mma n dy o ut of l e e . " Hes q u e a l e dl i k eap i gt h a twa ss t u c kwi t hak n i f e . Her a nt ot h ec h i mn e ya n dc l i mb e df o rh i sl i f e .
Hes l i p p e dd o wnt h ec h i mn e y , q u i c ka saf l a s h , An ds t e p p e df r o mt h ef i r e p l a c ea l lc o v e r e dwi t ha s h . Th e r es t o o dSt . Ni c kwi t hh i sb a ga n dh i sb e a r d , Hel o o k e da tt h eBi b l eIh e l d , a n dh es n e e r e d ,
An dIh e a r dh i me x c l a i m, a sh ed r o v eo u to fs i g h t , " Me r r yXma st oa l l , a n dal o n g , d a r kn i g h t . "
" An o t h e rf a n a t i c a lCh r i s t i a n , Is e e ; Nos t o c k i n g s ;n oh o l l y , n op i c t u r e so fme . " Ia s k e dh i mi fJ e s u swa sGo di nt h ef l e s h , Hes a i dt h a twa ss o me t h i n gh ec o u l d n ' tc o n f e s s .
-Au t h o rUn k n o wn
When was Jesus really born? By Isaac Stropes Christmas is the day that the birth of Christ
Gospel of Luke tells us that John’s father
is celebrated all around the world, so what
Zacharias was a priest of the division of
better time than this to find out when Jesus
Abijah (Luke 1:5). The two houses of the
could have been born. After all, if Jesus is
priesthood were divided into 24 divisions by
indeed ‘the reason for the season’ then we
King David (1 Chronicles 24:10), each
should find that He was born on Christmas
division served twice a year plus the three
day, or at least near it.
feasts of Passover, the Feast of Weeks, and
Let’s start by
examining what Scripture tells us about His
Tabernacles.
Each division served from
birth and then we will proceed in finding the
Sabbath to Sabbath, and since the Feasts and
most likely times of His birth.
the beginning of the year did not always fall on a Sabbath, the service date of a division
The most important thing to realize is that
varied slightly.
the New Testament does not give us an exact day that Jesus was born. In fact, it
Zacharias division, Abijah, was the eighth
does not give us a year or a month, but we
one. Using this information it is possible to
can track down the approximate season He
map out when Zacharias would have been
was born.
serving each year, and thus we can estimate when John would have been born.
It is
The first step in finding out when Jesus was
important to note however that it is not
born is to find when John the Baptist was
possible to say for certainty when John was
born, since we know that Jesus was about
conceived.
six months younger than John (Luke 1:36,
not able to talk until John was born, it is
Luke 1:56). Thankfully scripture gives us
likely that John was conceived soon after
some details about the birth of John. The
Zacharias arrived home from his service.
However since Zacharias was
The chart below shows the date according to
that his birth might have been on or near
the Hebrew calendar when Jesus might have
December 25 in that year.
been born and the corresponding date on the
more than one year since we do not know
Gregorian calendar, as well as the possibility
for sure which year he was born.
I have given
Year
Hebrew Calendar
Gregorian Calendar
Christmas
7 BC 6 BC 6 BC 5 BC 5 BC 4 BC 4 BC 3 BC 3 BC 2 BC 2 BC 1 BC
Av 17 - Elul 15 Shvat 15 - Adar 13 Elul 18 - Tishri 17 Adar 15 - Nisan 14 Elul 6 - Tishri 5 Adar I 3 - Adar II 1 Av 15 - Elul 13 Shvat 14 - Adar 12 Elul 17 - Tishri 16 Adar 15 - Nisan 14 Elul 20 - Tishri 19 Adar 17 - Adar II 15
Aug. 10 - Sep. 7 Feb. 1 - Mar. 1 Aug. 30 - Sep. 27 Feb. 21 - March 20 Aug. 7 - Sep. 4 Jan. 29 - Feb. 26 Aug. 6 - Sep. 3 Jan 28 - Feb. 25 Aug. 26 - Sep. 23 Feb. 17 - Mar. 17 Aug. 2 - Sep. 15 Feb. 9 - March 8
No No No No No No No No No No No No
As you can see from the dates laid out
And so the question remains, if Jesus is not
above, it is highly unlikely that Jesus was
‘the reason for the season’ then why do we
born in December.
celebrate Christmas?
It is almost certain
however that He was born in either the spring or fall.
What makes that so
significant is that the Feasts of Passover, Unleavened bread, and the Feast of Weeks are in the spring and the Day of Atonement, as well as the Feasts of Trumpets and the Feast of Sukkot are in the fall. Although we cannot say for certain if Jesus was born on a Feast day, we can say with confidence that He was not born on December 25th.
Di d you know thatPagansused Treesto worshi pthei rgods? Tr e ewo r s h i pr e f e r st ot h et e n d e n c yo fma n ys o c i e t i e st h r o u g h o u th i s t o r yt owo r s h i po ro t h e r wi s emy t h o l o g i z e t r e e s . Tr e e sh a v ep l a y e da ni mp o r t a n tr o l ei nma n yo ft h ewo r l d ' smy t h o l o g i e sa n dr e l i g i o n s , a n dh a v eb e e ng i v e n d e e pa n ds a c r e dme a n i n g st h r o u g h o u tt h ea g e s . Ma n ya n c i e n tPa g a nr e l i g i o n sv i e we dt h ee v e r g r e e nt r e ea sas y mb o lo ft h ee s s e n c eo fl i f ea n dwa sr e g a r d e da sa p h a l l i cs y mb o li nf e r t i l i t ywo r s h i p . Th eCe l t i cDr u i d sv e n e r a t e de v e r g r e e nt r e e sa sma n i f e s t a t i o n so fd e i t y . Tot h e Ce l t s , t h e s et r e e swe r es a c r e db e c a u s et h e yd i dn o td i ef r o my e a rt oy e a rl i k ed e c i d u o u st r e e s , a n dt h e i rg r e e n e r y wa ss y mb o l i co ft h e i rh o p ef o rt h es u n ' sr e t u r n . Du r i n gt h eWi n t e rSo l s t i c e ,Ce l t i ca n dp a g a nc i v i l i z a t i o n st h r o u g h o u tNo r t h e r nEu r o p ewo u l dc e l e b r a t ea n d s a c r i f i c et ot h eNo r s eg o d , Yu l e , a st h e yc e l e b r a t e dt h e i rYu l e t i d ef e s t i v a l . Th i si st h et r a d i t i o nf r o mwh i c hweg e t ma n yo fo u rCh r i s t ma st r a d i t i o n si n c l u d i n gt hYu l el o ga n dy u l e t i d ec a r o l s . Th eYu l ef e s t i v a li n v o l v e db r i n g i n g e n t i r ee v e r g r e e nt r e e si n t ot h e i rh o me s , a n di twa sb e l i e v e dt h a tt h es p i r i t so ft h et r e e swo u l di n h a b i tt h e i rh o me a n db l e s si t si n h a b i t a n t s . Th eDr u i d se v e nd e c o r a t e dt h e s ee v e r g r e e nt r e e sa t Yu l ewi t ha l lt h ei ma g e so ft h et h i n g s t h e ywi s h e dt h ewa x i n gy e a rt ob r i n gt h e m. “ You shallutterlydestroyalltheplaceswherethenati onswhi ch you shall di spossessserved thei rgods,on thehi gh mountai nsand on thehi llsand under Deuteronomy12: 2) everygreen tree. ”( “ Onlyacknowledgeyouri ni qui ty,Thatyou havetransgressed agai nsttheLord yourGod,And havescattered yourcharmsTo ali en dei ti esundereverygreen tree, J eremi ah 3: 13) And you havenotobeyed Myvoi ce, 'saystheLord. ”( “ thecustomsofthepeoplesarefuti le;foronecutsatreefrom theforest,Thework ofthehandsoftheworkman,wi th theax.Theydecoratei twi th si lverand gold; J eremi ah 10: 34) Theyfasten i twi th nai lsand hammersSo thati twi llnottopple. ”(
Bu tp e o p l ed o n ’ two r s h i pt r e e sa n y mo r e . . . d o et h e y ?Ye s , a c t u a l l yWi c c a nwi t c h e sa n dn e o p a g a n sp r o u d l y wo r s h i pt r e e sa sf e r t i l i t ys y mb o l si nt h e i rYu l ef e s t i v a l s . An dl e tu sn o tf o r g e tt h i sb e l o v e dCh r i s t ma sc a r o l . . .
“ O Chri stmasTree,O Chri stmastree, How lovelyareyourbranches! ” An dp e o p l es i n gt h i ss o n gwh i l ek n e e l i n gd o wnt or e c e i v eg i f t sf r o mb e n e a t ht h et r e e .
Thi sMan i saThi efand aRobber " Mostassuredly ,Isayto you, hewho doesnotenterthesheepfold bythedoor, butcli mbsupsomeotherway , thesamei sathi efand arobber. �( J ohn 10: 1)
And Afalsemessi ah 1.Comesli keathei fi n theni ght 2.Omni present–seesyou sleepi ng and knowswhen you’ reawake 3.Omni sci ent–knowsi fyou’ vebeen bad orgood 4.Omni potent–vi si tseveryhousei n the world i n asi ngleni ght 5.Eternal-li vesforever 6.WantsChi ldren to beli evei n hi m 7.J udge-deci di ng who i s“ naughty” and “ Ni ce” 8.Gi verofgi fts 9.Called “ Kri sKri ngle”-means“ Chri stChi ld” 10.Known as“ FatherChri stmas”-an i mpostor oftheHeavenlyFather
Otherthi ngsto consi der 1.Heentershomesthrough fi reand ash 2.Called “ Old Ni ck”-anothernameofsatan 4.Lord overahostofEl ves( i n drui di c reli gi on,el vesaredemons) 5.Hei sthemosti coni cI mageofChri stmas 6.SANTAi san anagram ofSATAN
Christmas Cheer or Pagan Revere By: David Washam Every year at this time, all the stores start putting out red and green wrapping paper, Santa Claus figurines, and episodes of A Christmas Story are played back to back for days. Everyone is excited for the coming day of gifts, big dinners, and of course family fun. Whether they believe in Jesus or not, people are coming together for merriment and celebration. The “good will towards man”, the warmth of a home full of family when it’s snowing outside and the excitement of gift giving all make Christmas a beloved time of the year. Every year we also see slogans such as “He is the reason for the season” and “Put Christ back into Christmas”, why are they saying these things and why are they concerned with this? Has Christmas been hijacked by consumerism and fictional icons? Why are people who do not believe in Christ still taking part in Christmas? At the core of every believer in Christ, the true meaning of Christmas is the celebration of the greatest gift ever given, which is Jesus Himself. If you take any Christian and ask them what the most important aspect of Christmas is, they will almost always say “Christ”. The holiday of Christmas is about giving thanks to the Father for giving His only begotten son. So, December 25th is about
Him, right? But have we inquired about how He wants to be worshipped? If we examine scripture He has set some pretty exacting guidelines as to how we are to come near Him and how to love Him. Have we looked at His words to understand what it is that He wants? Right before the Israelites went into the Promised Land God had some very specific instructions on how to worship Him. “You shall utterly destroy all the places where the nations which you shall dispossess served their gods, on the high mountains and on the hills and under every green tree. And you shall destroy their altars, break their sacred pillars, and burn their wooden images with fire; you shall cut down the carved images of their gods and destroy their names from that place. You shall not worship the Lord your God with such things... take heed to yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed from before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, 'How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.” (Deuteronomy 12:24,30)
God is clear that He does not want to be worshipped in the ways that pagans worship their gods. That is why it is important for us to evaluate our worship, and make sure it does not resemble the ways of pagans. First let us look at the Christmas tree. Each year many homes have the tradition to go out as a family and search the forest or tree farm to find the perfect tree. The same is true even if the family loads up and goes to a
store to purchase a fake tree that can be used year after year and even handed down through the family. Where did this tradition come from? Did you know that pagans would bring evergreen trees and wreaths into their homes to invoke blessings from the spirits living in the forest? Evergreens were also a sign of fertility, and were used to worship their gods. This was done for thousands of years before Christ was even born.
“Rather, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice they sacrifice to demons and not to God, and I do not want you to have fellowship with demons. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the Lord's table and of the table of demons.” (1 Corinthians 10:20-21)
It can be hard to accept these truths and move away from the traditions we have grown up with, but it is what our Creator longs for us to do. Remember that the “truth shall make you free.” (John 8:32)
“Hear the word which the Lord speaks to you, O house of Israel. Thus says the Lord: ‘Do not learn the way of the Gentiles; Do not be dismayed at the signs of heaven, For the Gentiles are dismayed at them. For the customs of the peoples are futile; For one cuts a tree from the forest, The work of the hands of the workman, with the ax. They decorate it with silver and gold; They fasten it with nails and hammers So that it will not topple.’” (Jeremiah 10:1-4)
The statement, “That’s not what it means to me” is really a proclamation that I am doing what is right in my own eyes, and in my own opinion.
These works of paganism are not old and dead but rather still being done today.
Ultimately, it doesn’t matter what Christmas means to us, it matters what it means to God. So, find out what pleases Him, and do those things.
Wiccans and other variants of witchcraft or paganism still place their decorated evergreen Yule trees in the living room of their house and place gifts for one another underneath. They hang mistletoe in doorways, place boughs of holly near their door and hang a wreath on their front doors. According to the Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Wicca is the fifth largest religion in the world and estimates some 750,000 members in the United States alone. This begs the question: why are we practicing the same traditions that pagan witches do? Some people will say, “That’s not what it means to me”, and while it is true that Christians are not coming together to worship other gods, we are still using pagan traditions to try to honor God. Will God be pleased with our worship when it is polluted with pagan tradition?
“You shall not do according to all that we are doing here today, everyone doing whatever is right in his own eyes,” (Deuteronomy 12:8)
“For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light, finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them.” (Ephesians 5:8-11)
I want to encourage you to make a commitment that you and your house will serve the Lord by making His will more of a priority than your own. "Now therefore, fear the Lord, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the Lord! And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." (Joshua 24:14-15)
& y z z I s Chri r e y :L.Me by
Je s u si st h er e a s o nf o rt h es e a s o n !
Ar ey o us u r ea b o u tt h a t ? Ho wd ot r e e s , wr e a t h s , mi s t l e t o e , s n o wme n , r e i n d e e r , e l v e s , a n d Sa n t ac o n n e c tt oMe s s i a h ?
I f i n i s h e dmyg i f ts h o p p i n g , a n dI a mr e a d yf o rCh r i s t ma s !
Pe r h a p swes h o u l dj u s t c a l l i t“ Gi f t ma s ”i n s t e a d
Di dy o uk n o wt h a tWi c c a n s , At h e i s t s , a n dPa g a n s Ce l e b r a t eCh r i s t ma s ? I nf a c t , n e a r l ya l l o fo u r Ch r i s t ma st r a d i t i o n sc o me f r o mPa g a n i s m. No , I d i d n ’ tr e a l i z et h a t .
Di dy o uk n o wt h a ti no l d e rmy t h Sa n t a ’ sh e l p e rwa st h eKr a mp u s ? Hei sad e mo n i cc r e a t u r e t h a te a t sb a dc h i l d r e n .
Th a ti sh o r r i f y i n g ! Wh ywo u l dp a r e n t st e l l t h e i r k i d ss u c ht h i n g s ?
I d o n ’ tu n d e r s t a n dwh yp e o p l e wo u l dwa n tt ol i et ot h e i rk i d s . Sa n t aCl a u si sn o tr e a l , Je s u swa s n ’ tb o r ni nDe c e mb e r , a n dt h eWi s eMe nwe r en o t p r e s e n ta th i sb i r t h . I n e v e rt h o u g h ta b o u t i tl i k et h a tb e f o r e .
Santa’ sLi ttl eHe l p er Be f o r eh eh a de l v e s , Sa n t ah a dah e l p e rn a me dKr a mp u s , ab e a s t l i k ec r e a t u r ef r o mAl p i n ef o l k l o r et h o u g h tt o p u n i s hc h i l d r e nd u r i n gt h eYu l es e a s o nwh oh a dmi s b e h a v e d , i nc o n t r a s twi t hSa i n tNi c h o l a s , wh or e wa r d swe l l b e h a v e do n e swi t hg i f t s . Kr a mp u si ss a i dt oc a p t u r ep a r t i c u l a r l yn a u g h t yc h i l d r e ni nh i ss a c ka n dc a r r yt h e m a wa yt oh i sl a i r . Re p r e s e n t e da sab e a s t l i k ed e mo n i cc r e a t u r e , Kr a mp u sa l s os h a r e sc h a r a c t e r i s t i c swi t ht h es a t y r so fGr e e k my t h o l o g y , a sami x t u r eo fma na n dg o a t . Hei sd e p i c t e da sh a i r y , u s u a l l yb r o wno rb l a c k , a n dh a st h ec l o v e n h o o v e sa n dh o r n so fag o a t . Hi sl o n gp o i n t e dt o n g u el o l l so u t . Hi st e r r i f y i n gf i g u r ea p p e a r st ob ea nu n h o l y mi x t u r eo fma na n db e a s t . Th ewa yh ei sd e p i c t e di sv e r ys i mi l a rt ot h a to fSa t a no rad e mo n . Hei sa l s os a i dt o c a r r yawh i p , c h a i n s , b e l l s , a n dr u t e n( b u n d l e so fb i r c hb r a n c h e s )u s e dt os wa tc h i l d r e nwi t h . St r a p p e dt oh i s b a c ki sal a r g es a c kt oc a r to f fe v i lc h i l d r e nf o rd r o wn i n g , e a t i n g , o rt r a n s p o r t i n gt oHe l l . Th eKr a mp u sf i g u r ep r e d a t e sCh r i s t i a n i t y , a n dh a sr o o t si nGe r ma n i cc u l tmy t h o l o g y , a n da l t h o u g ht h ee a r l y Ca t h o l i cCh u r c hd i s c o u r a g e dc e l e b r a t i o n sb a s e da r o u n dwi l dg o a t l i k ec r e a t u r e s , t h eKr a mp u sf i g u r ep e r s i s t e d , a n db yt h e1 7 t hc e n t u r yKr a mp u sh a db e e ni n c o r p o r a t e di n t oCh r i s t ma sb yp a i r i n gh i mwi t hSt . Ni c h o l a s . I nma n yc o u n t r i e sy o u n gme ns t i l ld r e s su pa st h eKr a mp u sa n dr o a mt h es t r e e t sf r i g h t e n i n gc h i l d r e nwi t hr u s t y c h a i n sa n db e l l s . Eu r o p e a n sh a v eb e e ne x c h a n g i n gg r e e t i n gc a r d sf e a t u r i n gKr a mp u ss i n c et h e1 8 0 0 s . So me t i me s i n t r o d u c e dwi t h“ Gr u ßv o mKr a mp u s ”( Gr e e t i n g sf r o mt h eKr a mp u s ) , t h ec a r d su s u a l l yh a v eh u mo r o u sr h y me s a n dp o e ms . Kr a mp u si so f t e nf e a t u r e dl o o mi n gme n a c i n g l yo v e rc h i l d r e n . Hei sa l s os h o wns o me t i me sa sh a v i n g o n eh u ma nf o o ta n do n ec l o v e nh o o f . I ns o med e p i c t i o n s , Kr a mp u sh a ss e x u a lo v e r t o n e s , a n di sp i c t u r e dp u r s u i n g b u x o mwo me n . Ol d e rc a r d sa p p e a rt oh a v eamo r ef r i g h t e n i n gKr a mp u s , wh i l emo d e r nv e r s i o n sh a v eac u t e r , mo r eCu p i d l i k ec r e a t u r e . Kr a mp u sh a sa l s oa d o r n e dp o s t c a r d sa n dc a n d yc o n t a i n e r s . Pi c t u r e db e l o wa r eh o l i d a ywi n el a b e l sf e a t u r i n gS a i n tNi c h o l a sa n dKr a mp u s .
Yo uKn o wMyHe a r t APa r a b l eb yI s a a cSt r o p e s
Ia t t e n d e dawe d d i n go nJ u n e1 s to n ey e a rf o rap a s t o rf r i e n d . Hewa sg e t t i n gma r r i e dt ot h el o v eo fh i sl i f e .Hewa ss o e x c i t e da n dc o u l d n ’ twa i tt os p e n dt h er e s to fh i sl i f ewi t hh e r . Te ny e a r sl a t e rIs a twi t hh i ma sh er e l a t e das t o r yt ome . I ta l ls t a r t e di nNo v e mb e r , wh e nh ewa sp l a n n i n gt h e i r a n n i v e r s a r yh es a i d .Hewa n t e dt oma k ei ts p e c i a lt oh e r , s o h ewe n tt oh e ra n da s k e dh e rwh a ts h ewa n t e dt od on e x tJ u n e t oc e l e b r a t et h e i rl o v e .He ra n s we rs u r p r i s e dh i m.Sh es a i d t h a ts h ewa n t e dt oc e l e b r a t et h e i ra n n i v e r s a r yal i t t l ee a r l y , o n Ma y5 t h .Th i sp u z z l e dh i mb u th er e a l l yl o v e dHi swi f e , a n d s oh ed e c i d e dt h a tamo n t he a r l ywa so k .Th e nh ea s k e dh e r wh a ts h ewo u l dl i k et od o , t owh i c hs h er e p l i e dt h a ts h ewo u l d l i k et os t a ya tac e r t a i nh o t e l , e a ta tac e r t a i nr e s t a u r a n t , a n d e v e ns i ta tac e r t a i nt a b l ea tt h a tr e s t a u r a n t .Th a ts e e me dv e r y s p e c i f i c , b u th ef i g u r e dt h a ts h emu s th a v eb e e nt h i n k i n ga b o u t t h i smo r et h a nh i m, a n dd o n ea l lt h er e s e a r c he a r l yt of i n dt h e b e s ts p o t .Soh ea g r e e d . Fo r1 0y e a r st h e yc e l e b r a t e dt h e i ra n n i v e r s a r yal i t t l ee a r l y , n o tt o oe a r l yh es a i d , a f t e ra l l , i twa sl e s st h a namo n t h .Th e y we n tt ot h a th o t e l , a t ea tt h a tr e s t a u r a n ta n da tt h a tt a b l e .Fo r t e ny e a r se v e r yd a ywa sb e t t e rt h a nt h el a s t .Th e no n ed a yh e wa st a l k i n gwi t haf r i e n do ft h e i r s , wh oh a db e e nh e rf r i e n d b e f o r eh eme th i m.“ Yo uk n o w”s a i dt h ema n , “ y o u ’ r eab e t t e r ma nt h a nIa m” .Pu z z l e db yt h a ts t a t e me n t , t h ep a s t o ra s k e d f o rh i mt oc l a r i f y .“ We l l , Ime a n , y o u ’ r ea n n i v e r s a r y ”t h ema n s e e me dt os t u mb l eo v e ri t , a si fc o n f u s e d .“ Do n ’ ty o uk n o w? ” h ea s k e d .Ev e nmo r ec o n f u s e dt h ep a s t o ra s k e dwh a th es h o u l d k n o w, t h i n k i n gt h a tt h i swa ss o me t h i n gt h a th ed i dk n o wb u t c o u l dn o tt h i n ko f .Fe e l i n ga wk wa r dt h ema nc o n t i n u e d“ I me a nt h a ty o u rwi f ema r r i e dh e re x h u s b a n do nMa y5 t h , t h e y s t a y e da tt h a th o t e l , a n da t ea tt h a tr e s t a u r a n ta tt h a tt a b l e . Do e s n ’ tt h a tb o t h e ry o u ? ”Th el o o ko nt h ema n ’ sf a c es h o u l d h a v eg i v e ni ta l la wa y ;h ewa ss os t u n n e da n dh u r t .Ho w c o u l dt h i sb et r u e . Th i n k i n gi tmu s tb eal i eh ewe n tt oh i swi f et h a tn i g h ta n d a s k e dh e r .Ho ws h er e s p o n d e ds h o c k e dh i me v e nmo r e , b e c a u s es h ed i d n ’ ts e e me mb a r r a s s e d , n o rd i ds h ed e n yi t , i n s t e a ds h es i mp l ys a i d , “ Do n ’ ty o uk n o wmyh e a r t ? ”
The War on Christmas By Lex Meyer Have you ever wondered how the first
businesses were required to remain open all day
American settlers celebrated Christmas? It
on Christmas. They made it illegal to mention
might surprise you to find out that they didn’t.
the name of St. Nicolas, exchange gifts, or sing carols, and anyone caught ditching their work
The original war on Christmas was waged
duties or feasting was fined five shillings.
during the sixteenth and seventeenth century by Protestant Christians who opposed the pagan
"Men dishonor Christ more in the 12
traditions of the Catholic church. The Pilgrims
days of Christmas, than in all the 12
who came to America in 1620 were strict Puritans, with firm views against holidays such as Christmas and Easter, rejecting them
months besides.” - Hugh Latimer, 16th century clergyman
because of their pagan origins. They were
Around the time of the American Revolution
particularly
anti-Christmas sentiment flared up again
contemptuous
of
Christmas,
nicknaming it "Foolstide”.
because Christmas had become associated with England for so many years. In fact, after the
"Shocking as it sounds, followers of
U.S. Constitution came into effect, the Senate
Jesus Christ in both America and
assembled on Christmas Day in 1797, as did
England helped pass laws making it illegal to observe Christmas, believing it
the House in 1802. It might surprise you to learn that one of the
was an insult to God to honor a day
issues during the Civil War was the celebration
associated with ancient paganism"
of Christmas. The North and South were
- Shocked by the Bible (Thomas Nelson Inc, 2008)
divided over the issue of slavery, as well as
Christmas decorations were considered to be unholy pagan rituals, traditional foods such as mince pies and pudding were banned, and
Christmas. As an early act of psychological warfare, President Lincoln asked Thomas Nast to create a drawing of Santa Claus with some
Union soldiers. This image of Santa supporting
These
same
people
have
caused
many
the North had a demoralizing influence on the
businesses and government offices to feel
Confederate army. Many people in the North
pressure to remove the word “Christmas” and
considered it a sin to celebrate Christmas, while
replace it with “Holiday” or “Season”, so that
Christmas was an important celebration in the
they might avoid offending people. This is
South. This is why it is no surprise that the first
what people today refer to as the “war on
states to legalize Christmas were the southern
Christmas”.
states of Alabama, Louisiana and Arkansas. Sadly, this brings to light a shift among The ban on Christmas remained in New
Christians,
who
were
once
boycotting
England until 1856 when Christmas became a
Christmas celebrations, and are now boycotting
legal holiday. Even then, some schools
retail stores who refuse to greet their customers
continued to hold classes on December 25 until
with the phrase “Merry Christmas”.
1870 when President Ulysses S. Grant declared it a federal holiday. Although the change was gradual, people eventually began to embrace the holiday in all of its fullness, complete with trees, wreaths, mistletoe, and Santa Claus. In more recent years, another interesting war on Christmas has come to the surface, involving Wiccans and Atheists who celebrate the holiday in all of its festivities and traditions, but reject Christ. These people are trying to bring back awareness that Christmas traditions come from ancient pagan celebrations, and actually have nothing to do with Christ or the Bible. I have met several practicing pagans who actually laugh at Christians for celebrating
Many claim they are trying to put “Christ back into Christmas”, however this stands in stark contrast to the early Protestants who claimed that Christmas has nothing to do with Christ. If Christmas is really a religious holiday about Christ, then why are people upset when secular retail
stores
greet
people
with
“Happy
Holidays” or “Season’s Greetings”? It sounds like Christmas might have more to do with consumerism than Christians care to admit. I find it very disturbing that many Christians today are fighting to reclaim those deeply pagan traditions that early American Christians once fought so hard to remove.
Christmas, because of its deeply pagan roots. I hope this puts things into perspective.
Graven I mages
" You shallnotmakeforyourselfacarved i mage, oranyli kenessofanythi ng thati si n heaven above, orthati si n theearth beneath, orthati si n thewaterundertheearth�( Exodus20: 4)
N R A E L N U
Pl ace Post age Her e
ed t Inheri esWe Have The Li
©Lex Mey er . c om
Mai l t o: ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________
I fyou reallyLOVEsomeone gi vethem somethi ng speci althi syear
Tellthem theTRUTH
aboutthepagan tradi ti on called “ Chri stmas”