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when was jesus originally born?

when was jesus born..I heard that it is not on December 25th…so why celebrate December 25th as Christmas?

Answer #1

Here ya go. . . A little Cut and paste history lesson.

The History of Christmas

The history of Christmas dates back over 4000 years. Many of our Christmas traditions were celebrated centuries before the Christ child was born. The 12 days of Christmas, the bright fires, the yule log, the giving of gifts, carnivals(parades) with floats, carolers who sing while going from house to house, the holiday feasts, and the church processions can all be traced back to the early Mesopotamians.

Many of these traditions began with the Mesopotamian celebration of New Years. The Mesopotamians believed in many gods, and as their chief god - Marduk. Each year as winter arrived it was believed that Marduk would do battle with the monsters of chaos. To assist Marduk in his struggle the Mesopotamians held a festival for the New Year. This was Zagmuk, the New Year’s festival that lasted for 12 days.

The Mesopotamian king would return to the temple of Marduk and swear his faithfulness to the god. The traditions called for the king to die at the end of the year and to return with Marduk to battle at his side.

To spare their king, the Mesopotamians used the idea of a “mock” king. A criminal was chosen and dressed in royal clothes. He was given all the respect and privileges of a real king. At the end of the celebration the “mock” king was stripped of the royal clothes and slain, sparing the life of the real king.

The Persians and the Babylonians celebrated a similar festival called the Sacaea. Part of that celebration included the exchanging of places, the slaves would become the masters and the masters were to obey.

Early Europeans believed in evil spirits, witches, ghosts and trolls. As the Winter Solstice approached, with its long cold nights and short days, many people feared the sun would not return. Special rituals and celebrations were held to welcome back the sun.

In Scandinavia during the winter months the sun would disappear for many days. After thirty-five days scouts would be sent to the mountain tops to look for the return of the sun. When the first light was seen the scouts would return with the good news. A great festival would be held, called the Yuletide, and a special feast would be served around a fire burning with the Yule log. Great bonfires would also be lit to celebrate the return of the sun. In some areas people would tie apples to branches of trees to remind themselves that spring and summer would return.

The ancient Greeks held a festival similar to that of the Zagmuk/Sacaea festivals to assist their god Kronos who would battle the god Zeus and his Titans.

The Roman’s celebrated their god Saturn. Their festival was called Saturnalia which began the middle of December and ended January 1st. With cries of “Jo Saturnalia!” the celebration would include masquerades in the streets, big festive meals, visiting friends, and the exchange of good-luck gifts called Strenae (lucky fruits).

The Romans decked their halls with garlands of laurel and green trees lit with candles. Again the masters and slaves would exchange places

“Jo Saturnalia!” was a fun and festive time for the Romans, but the Christians though it an abomination to honor the pagan god. The early Christians wanted to keep the birthday of their Christ child a solemn and religious holiday, not one of cheer and merriment as was the pagan Saturnalia.

But as Christianity spread they were alarmed by the continuing celebration of pagan customs and Saturnalia among their converts. At first the Church forbid this kind of celebration. But it was to no avail. Eventually it was decided that the celebration would be tamed and made into a celebration fit for the Christian Son of God.

Some legends claim that the Christian “Christmas” celebration was invented to compete against the pagan celebrations of December. The 25th was not only sacred to the Romans but also the Persians whose religion Mithraism was one of Christianity’s main rivals at that time. The Church eventually was successful in taking the merriment, lights, and gifts from the Saturanilia festival and bringing them to the celebration of Christmas.

The exact day of the Christ child’s birth has never been pinpointed. Traditions say that it has been celebrated since the year 98 AD. In 137 AD the Bishop of Rome ordered the birthday of the Christ Child celebrated as a solemn feast. In 350 AD another Bishop of Rome, Julius I, choose December 25th as the observance of Christmas.

Answer #2

I worship and recieved Salvation from the Son, not the Sun - it didn’t sacrifice on the cross for my sins that I might have life (eternal) and have it more abundantly - Happy Birthday to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, Jesus Christ !

Answer #3

well they didnt use the same calender back then which is why the date isnt documented… and yes I’ve heard he was actually born on June 4th.

Answer #4

A few arguements why Jesus could have been born on the 24th or near that date:

“Early Christians had great respect for symbolism and absolutely would have used it to counteract things like pagan worship festivals. You can understand why they’d want people to turn their attention from the light of false “sun gods” and to, instead, worship the Son, Who is God, “the Light of the World” (John 8:12). “

“There were even great efforts over the centuries (by some in the church) to prove that Jesus was, indeed, born on December 25th. It usually stems from the assumption that Zechariah was in the Holy of Holies (Luke 1:5-13) on the Day of Atonement, which usually falls on September 25th…the fall equinox. That would mean that his son, John the Baptist, would have been born around June 24th (summer solstice), based on the truths gleaned from that same passage. And since we know that Elizabeth was six months pregnant (Luke 1:36) when Mary was visited by the angel Gabriel and told the great news of her role in the coming of Salvation (JESUS)…then that would mean that Jesus was conceived around March 25 (spring equinox) and born 9 months later on winter solstice…right around December 25th.”

Read the whole article: http://www.lifeteen.com/default.aspx?PageID=BGQADETAIL&__DocumentId=108039

Answer #5

Nobody knows… and he wasn’t born in ‘0 A.D.’ either…

Answer #6

How about 4 or 5 B.C.

Answer #7

You forgot this part. . . Sounds cool, huh? Sounds like it could work? While it’s highly unlikely based on historical evidence, we should always remember the next line out of the angel’s mouth after the news of Elizabeth’s pregnancy:

Answer #8

Apparently a recent documentary which tried to trace the actual birth date of Jesus (using known history events mentioned, and also celestial events in the sky) came up with a most likely date of April 12th. They would have figured out what year too, but I’m not sure what year they reckoned it was.

Answer #9

“I’m not Religious. So obviously I don’t actively read the Bible.” Uh. So why answer this question at all?

Anyway–it’s because many holidays were celebrated on days which were previously pagan holidays, to help the pagans’ transition to Christianity go more smoothly.

Answer #10

I don’t think anybody but Jesus’s family knows that…well, anyone in his time, at least. I think I saw that on History Channel that he was born in spring, but we all might be wrong. Maybe he was born in August… The world may never know…

Answer #11

I don’t think anyone actually knows when Jesus was born. I read the bible a lot and have yet to see it. December 25th is the Pagan Birthday of the sun. When you drop the u in sun and add the o you are worshippping the son, and Christians essentially worship the sun.. The cross itself was taken from the Cross of the Zodiac, w/the sun in the middle. The Church merely put Jesus in the middle in place of the sun. Little do most Christians know that what they worship is nothing but a star in the sky! Like in Egyptian mythology, the sun ‘rose’ everday to ‘kill’ the night, and vice-versa .

Answer #12

* why wasn’t it documented in the bible? The Day of Jesus Birth is Greatly out weighted by His Resurrection And we know Exactly when that day was. . If we follow some clues in the Bible (Shephards in the field at night- This was to protect the sheep at night from preditors and fatten them up for winter.)More than likely the Birth was probably in Early Fall. The date of the Birth is not important but the style of the birth is what we are to remember.

Answer #13

…only if he came out of the womb already 1-year old.

Answer #14

RESPONSE TO CAPTAINASSASIN’ S FIRST COMMENT: I thought that there was no such thing as 0 AD.

Answer #15

EASTER!?!?!?!?!!!??? ( Advisor faints.)

Answer #16

Whoa, they really screwed that up, didn’t they?

Answer #17

I’m not Religious. So obviously I don’t actively read the Bible.

Answer #18

why wasn’t it documented in the bible? does the bible say its on december 25th?

Answer #19

he was born on easter!!! look it up it’s in the bible.

Answer #20

Believe it or not I think it was round June 4th(…wow that’s my sister b-day too) Christains adapoted the winter solstic from the witches when trying to get them to convert & gave it a more “holy name” Same with easter, ever wonder about the coloring of eggs? it was orinally a fertility holiday Ostria(sp?)

Answer #21

sigh *

…such ignorance.

Answer #22

Well those Monks did like their wine. . . .

Answer #23

Here’s what I found:

Was Jesus really born on December 25th?

Unfortunately, Jesus’ birthday was not recorded, so we cannot know the exact day of His birth. There were pagan festivals in honor of the Roman God, Saturn, during the month of December. So, December 25 became the recognized day to celebrate Christ’s birth as a Christian alternative to the rituals of the day.

I do not hesitate to say that Jesus does not care which day we choose to celebrate His birth as long as we remember Him throughout the whole year. Having one day set aside in special tribute to Him is good. It must pain Him, though, when people claim to be celebrating His birth but hardly think of Him on Christmas Day as they hurriedly prepare gifts and fancy meals and rush through their traditions. Next Christmas–and every day–pause in the middle of your hustle and bustle to reflect on that little baby, born in a stable, who came to save the world–and you.

when was jesus originally born?

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