Most of the world’s Christians celebrate Christmas, the holiday commemorating the birth of Jesus, on December 25. But a fair number of believers hold the holiday two weeks later, on January 6 or 7. Why the difference?
As with so many variations in Christian practice, this one comes down to history. Most of the world follows the Gregorian calendar, established by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582, which sets Christmas on December 25. However, parts of the Eastern Orthodox world, as well Berbers and anabaptists like the Amish, still adhere to the Julian calendar, implemented by Julius Caesar in 46 BC. The Julian calendar lands Christmas on January 6 or 7.
Which calendar is right?
Well, there’s a good argument to be made that Jesus wasn’t born in the winter at all. A variety of theories based on what we know about when shepherds were in their fields, when censuses were carried out, and when John the Baptist was born (Jesus was born about six months later, according to Luke 1:24-31) suggest Jesus was actually born in the fall, possibly near the end of September or early October. So it seems likely that neither Gregorian nor Julian Christmas actually has the most accurate date for the nativity.
Even so, there were fair reasons for deferring to each new calendar. Originally, the Julian calendar was an improvement on the old Roman calendar. It better aligned to the sun and seasons and didn’t require regular corrections. 1600 years later, the Gregorian calendar introduced further improvements, accounting more practically for leap years and leap centuries. Though the Julian calendar had provided improvements to the Roman system, it still produced slow, long-term drift in dates as they relate to the seasonal equinoxes. The Gregorian calendar corrected this drift.
While much of the world has adopted the Gregorian system, Russia and surrounding countries like Ukraine, Serbia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Montenegro, as well as Middle Eastern and North African countries like Israel, Egypt, Ethiopia, and Eritrea, still hold to Caesar’s system as it relates to holy days.
With the huge popularity among modern Protestant Christians of “returning to the early church,” going back to our roots, and doing things “like they did in the Book of Acts,” there is some natural appeal to the Orthodox system. They use the calendar the early church used, and that is good enough for them. It has the weight of history and tradition behind it.
The Gregorian system, on the other hand, has the weight of practicality and science on its side, at least as it relates to the calendar as a whole. For, again, neither calendar is thought to be reliable as far as how it dates the birth of Jesus. But the exact date of Jesus’ birth was hardly the point for either Caesar or Gregory, and it should not be the point for today’s Christians either. The point is to celebrate Christ, his incarnation, his life, his death, and his resurrection, on all days. Exact or not, picking one day in particular to add public and social oomph is fine, centering wayward attentions and acting as a very public (if pop-culture-ish) pointer to our most essential truths. Whether we celebrate all at once, or on the right day, or with trees or parades or prayers, let us celebrate, together, now and always.
Interesting! Thanks!
It is really fascinating stuff, isn’t it? Thanks for reading!