ENDTIME ISSUES NEWSLETTER No. 161:

“The Date and Meaning of Christmas”

Samuele Bacchiocchi, Ph. D.,

Retired Professor of Church History and Theology,

Andrews University

“Another Look at the Date of Christ’s Birth”

Noel Goh, Pastor and Professor

Methodist Seminary, Singapore

This newsletter offer you a special deal, “Two for the price of one.” Actually it is even a better deal, because you receive two essays dealing with the date of Christ’s birth completely free.

I decided to rush these two essays because many pastors will be preaching on “The Birth of Jesus” during the coming two Sabbaths. The time and resources of pastors are very limited. Often they end up recycling old notes because they do not have access to the latest research. These two fresh essays should provide a valuable sermon resource to the thousand of pastors who subscribe to this newsletter. If your pastor does not receive this newsletter, do him a favor by printing and it passing it on to him.

The first essay, “Another Look at the Date of Christ’s Birth,” is by Noel Goh, Pastor and Professor at the Methodist Seminary in Singapore. The Methodist Church is the largest Christian denomination in Singapore with the largest Christian seminary in that country. I first met Prof. Goh about four years ago during my first speaking engagement in Singapore. He attended the meetings and became interested in our Adventist message, especially the Sabbath message. He invited me for lunch in order to have a private conversation.

During the course of the conversation he expressed the desire to come to Andrews University for a few days to become better acquainted with our Adventist history and beliefs. Eventually he came and spent almost a month on our campus. He eagerly attended all the seminary classes that he could fit into his schedule and spent long hours in the library reading and viewing videos related to our Adventist history.

When he returned home to Singapore, he helped organize a meeting for the local clergy where I delivered two lectures, one on the Biblical wholistic view of human nature and the other on the change from Sabbath to Sunday in early Christianity.

Prof. Goh is not an Adventist yet, though he appreciates most of our fundamental beliefs and lifestyle. At this point I could describe him as a sabbatarian Methodist. He is a bright and gracious man, who shares his beliefs with his students and members in a friendly, confessional, non-confrontational manner.

You will enjoy reading his essay “Another Look at the Date of Christ’s Birth.” By examining the few time references found in Luke’s Gospel about Mary, Elizabeth, and Zachariah’s time of service at the Temple, he reaches the compelling conclusion that most likely Christ was born in September/October at the time of the Feast of Tabernacles. You will find his essay simple but very enlightening.

Surprisingly I reached the same conclusion regarding the approximate date of Christ’s birth, by considering especially the messianic themes of the Feast of Tabernacles. As you know, the major events of Christ’s life and ministry are linked in the NT to the ancient Feast of Israel. In a way, the two essays complement each other. They are designed to help you discuss with your friends the date and meaning of Christ’s birth from a biblical perspective

The Celebration of Christmas in Some Adventist Churches

What inspired me to hastily post this newsletter is the questions I have received from several fellow believers about the celebration of Christmas in some Adventist churches. It is not uncommon for our larger Adventist churches to have a Christmas eve religious service. Somebody asked me the question: “Could you explain to me why some Adventist churches have special Christmas’ eve services while others do not?”

Frankly, I do not understand why some Adventist churches today are adopting the popular practice of a church service on Christmas eve. Incidentally, the term “Christmas” is not used in the Latin languages like Italian, French, and Spanish. The terms used in these languages are “Natale, Noel, Navidad,” all of them simply mean “Birth.” By contrast, “Christmas” is a compound of two words “Christ + Mass,” and derives from the special Mass the Catholic Church celebrates on Christmas eve.

Adventist churches that conduct a special evening service on Christmas eve may not be aware that they are imitating the Catholic “Christ—Mass” celebrated at midnight of December 24. They may also ignore the pagan origin of the date of Christ’s birth, which will discussed later. Most likely, for these churches it may be just a matter of cultural conformity, namely, the desire to imitate the impressive Christmas eve services held Catholic and Protestant churches.

The religious celebration of Christmas in Adventist churches is a recent development. I grew up in Rome, Italy, where we never had a Christmas tree in our home or church. My father worked regularly on Christmas day. Our family regarded Christmas as a Catholic festival, similar to the weekly Sunday, Easter Sunday, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception on March 25, the Feast of Mary’s Assumption of August 15, All Saints Day on November 1, etc.

When I first came to the USA in 1960 as a seminary student at Andrews University, Christmas was primarily the Winter break. I do not recall much Christmas decorations and celebrations in the churches I visited during the four years I spent at the seminary from 1960 to 1964.

Gradually things have changed during the past 50 years. This is evident by the profusely illuminated and decorated front-end area of many Adventist churches at Christmas time. Some churches seem to compete with the rich decorations usually found in Greek Orthodox churches.

Frankly, I am not inspired by the elaborate Christmas decorations and celebration, because as a church historian I am aware of their pagan origin. Jesus was born in a humble manger. There were no fanciful decorations to celebrate His birth. It would be more in keeping with the setting of His birth, to keep the decorations simple, designed to help people catch the real spirit of Christ’s humble birth.

It was the celebration of the birth of the Sun-god in ancient Rome that was accompanied by a profusion of lights and torches and the decoration of trees. To facilitate the acceptance of the Christian faith by the pagan masses, the Church of Rome found it expedient to make not only the Day of the Sun the weekly celebration of Christ’s resurrection, but also the Birth Day of the Invincible Sun-God on December 25, the annual celebration of Christ’s birth. This point will be expanded later.

A Witnessing Opportunity

The recognition of the pagan origin of Christmas, with all its lights, decoration, partying, and celebration, does not mean that it is wrong to take time to remember the birth of Jesus at this time of the year. After all it would be well for us to remember every day how Jesus was willing to leave His glorious heavenly position in order to be born into the human family as a helpless baby to become our Savior.

No other story grips the human heart as the story of the divine love manifested in Christ’s willingness to enter into the limitation, suffering, agony and death of human flesh to become “Emmanuel,” God with us. Reflecting on the mystery of the incarnation is a worthy daily spiritual exercise, that can be done also at Christmas time, known in the Christian world as the “Advent Season,” that is, the season celebrating the First Advent of the Lord.

In a way the Advent Season offers a unique opportunity to Adventists to help Christians understand the ultimate meaning of Christmas, which is to be found in the fact that Jesus who came the first time as the helpless baby of Bethlehem, will come back the second time as the Lord of Lords and the King of Kings. What this means is that the humble birth of Jesus in the human family, is the prelude to His glorious return to dwell with His people throughout the ceaseless ages of eternity. The ultimate celebration of the Advent Season awaits us at the glorious Second Coming of the Lord.

UPDATE ON THE FALSE ALLEGATIONS

During the past few days I have been working on my official response to the false allegations made against me by officers of the Pontifical Gregorian University. Much of the material I have presented in the last two newsletters, will be repackaged in a formal document. An Adventist lawyer will read carefully the document and offer me constructive criticism.

God willing, by the end of this month the document will be mailed to both the Pontifical Gregorian University and to Bishop James Murray of Kalamazoo. I will keep you informed on any significant development. It is my fervent hope and prayer that responsible officials of the Gregorian University, will retract their false allegation against me and offer an apology. My desire is to see a speedy and amicable resolution to unpleasant controversy. Thank you for your prayers.

ALL THE ANNOUNCEMENTS OF WEEKEND SEMINARS AND THE SPECIAL HOLIDAY OFFERS ARE PLACED AT THE END OF THIS NEWSLETTER

“Another Look at the Date of Christ’s Birth”

Noel Goh, Pastor and Professor

Methodist Seminary, Singapore

Christmas is a church tradition that celebrates and commemorates on December 25 the miraculous event of birth of the Son of God from a virgin’s womb to save the world from sin. It is a festivity that continues to have a major impact on the commercial world as well as family gatherings and gifts giving. Many look forward to this year-end Christmas break even if the significance of the birth of the Christ child is not fully appreciated or embraced. The result is a much treasured and much loved holiday.

Objective of this Study

Recognizing the huge popular sentiment associated both in ecclesiastical as well as secular circles, this review of whether December 25 is truly the date of Christ’s birth, seeks fresh insights from the written account available in the Bible for a possible re-dating of Christ’s actual birth.

Given the weight of tradition and sentiment resting on December 25, it would not be unreasonable to encounter the axiom – “don’t confuse me with the facts; my mind is already made up.” Not withstanding that, allow me to respectfully invite you to an open review of the question: Was Jesus born on December 25 or at another time?

Many people acknowledge that Christ was not born on December 25. Even Sunday school children participating in nativity plays, especially as shepherds, realize that it would be much too cold for shepherds to be outdoors watching their flocks by night in the bleak mid-winter, even if it is only a milder winter in Israel. Furthermore, many more are aware of how the origin of Christmas on 25 December derives from the celebration of the return of the Sun god on the day of the winter solstice–a day which is now corrected to December 21. History records how the Catholic church stepped in and redeemed an otherwise festival of great wanton orgy in Roman times and transforming it into a festival commemorating the birth of the Son of God.

The Focus of Our Study

As we take a fresh look at the Gospels’ account of the nativity, our concern is to determine, not the year of Christ’s birth, but the approximate time of the year when it occurred. Simply stated: “Do the scriptural records offer clues to ascertain a more likely season in the calendar year when the birth of Jesus would have taken place instead of December 25?”

In reviewing the infancy narratives in the four gospels, one quickly realizes the limited information on dates that are available. However, the account by Luke has more details than the other three which should not surprise us since Luke was a doctor concerned with accuracy. In fact, the Gospel opens expressing the intent to provide an orderly account of carefully investigated facts: “Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught” (Luke 1:3-4).

A likely year could be established from Luke 1:5 “in the time of ....” but as mentioned earlier, this is not our primary concern. Suffice to say that Luke sets the narrative in time and history and introduces the key player for our consideration.

The Key Person

His name is Zechariah. We remember him as the father of John the Baptist, an uncle of Jesus. He became dumb from the time the birth of his son was announced by the angel in Luke 1:20, until his son was named on his 8th day nine months later. On returning home after duty, most likely he did not take time to get his “act” together given the gravity of this revelation. The cooperation of his wife Elizabeth was obviously needed, but there was the added difficulty of convincing her without the use of speech, given that they were also both well along in years and had no children before. But soon enough, pregnancy occurred and Luke 1:24 gives the first of four time indications.

Four Time Indications

“After this his wife Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion” (Luke 1:24). This seclusion may be because of age or perhaps out of embarrassment at her conception finally happening and only as it seems when her husband has lost his power of speech.

A month later, Doctor Luke records another major theophany (appearance of the angel of God into time, space and history). “In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary” (Luke 1:26-27).

This is the second time indication occurring in the sixth month of her cousin Elizabeth’s pregnancy and it happened in a home instead of the Temple, to a young woman betrothed and awaiting marriage instead of an elderly priest.

The indication of the sixth month of Elizabeth’s conception should not be confused with the sixth month of the calendar year, especially as referring to the month of June in the Gregorian calendar that we are so familiar with. Unlike the Gregorian calendar, the Lunar Calendar used by the Jews as well as the Moslems and the Chinese is based on the sighting of a new moon.

In this theophany, the angel announced to Mary her pregnancy commencing in the sixth month of her cousin Elizabeth’s. “Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month” (Luke 1:36)

This is the third time indication supporting the reference to a time duration rather than a specified calendar month. The final time indication is after a further three months. “Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home” (Luke 1:56).

Mary’s visit to Elizabeth was to see for herself and in all probability stayed on the remaining three months till the full term of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, before returning to prepare for her own delivery. She may have assisted her cousin in the birth of John the Baptist and may even be present for the eighth day circumcision when the happy father miraculously recovered his speech on confirming the child’s name in writing.

These four biblical references (Luke 1:24, 26, 36 and 56) are the only explicit references available in the gospel accounts associated with the timing of Jesus’ birth and they leave the dating rather inconclusive to say the least.

But since Mary’s conception is related to Elizabeth’s, is there some indication when Elizabeth’s conception took place six months before giving a total of (6+9) 15 months later as the date of Jesus’ birth? The answer is yes albeit not explicitly stated. There appears to be a time indication in Elizabeth’s conception locked in a key word that requires the help of an Old Testament passage to unlock.

The Key Word

For this we need to return again to Zechariah, to whom the angel announced his impending fatherhood in the Temple. The key that unlocks a plausible time indication is in a single word innocuously located in Luke 1:5 – “Abijah”: “In the days of Herod. king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah.”

This is a particular division of the priestly orders which rosters duties in the Temple and has a time sequence within a calendar year. What is apparent to Doctor Luke and his readers during his time may not be apparent to us two millennia away and in a setting where our appreciation of the culture in the Bible needs to also return to our roots in the Old Testament.

For an understanding of a specific time indication of Zechariah’s time of duty in the annual priestly roster in the Temple, we need to turn 1 Chronicles 24. This chapter lists the divisions of the priests on duty in the Temple. The earlier chapter of 1 Chronicles 23 recounts how it was reserved only for the sons and descendents of the high priest, Aaron. Aaron had four sons but two died in the incident of offering strange fires before the Lord and did not have any descendents (v. 2). The remaining two had, sixteen sons from Eleazar and eight sons from Ithamar, making a total of twenty-four (v. 4).

The Annual Roster of the Priestly Families Serving at the Temple

In preparing his son, Solomon, to build the Temple, King David not only arranged for the building materials but also organized these twenty-four heads of households, the remaining descendents of Aaron into an annual roster for their priestly duties in the Temple. Assisted by Zadok and Abimelech (both direct descendents from the two remaining sons of Aaron), David rostered these twenty-four into divisions according to “... their appointed duties in their service” (1 Chron 24:3, 18). This order was made by drawing lots impartially as to who would go first and who follows in a chronological sequence (1 Chron 24:5). In the drawing of their appointed order, Abijah fell on the eighth slot (1 Chron 24:10).

When twenty-four divisions were rostered annually in this way, each month would have two divisions on duty and Abijah as the eighth would fall in the second half of the fourth month. I believe we now have a time indication herein. One question still remains. Do we know when these priestly duties commence in the calendar year? Was it in January when we traditionally begin the new year of the Gregorian calendar?

To refer to January would be altogether strange and unknown to King David and all the priests so rostered at that time and later on until the time of Jesus in the New Testament. The Jews as we intimated earlier, follow the lunar calendar consisting of twelve lunar months, in which there are two new years: the religious New Year that began in their month of Nissan and the civil New Year that began in their month of Tishre, seven months from Nissan. As you may recall, it was on the 14th day of Nissan that the Feast of Passover was and is celebrated. Since this is a priestly order, it is likely the priests began their roster with this month of Nissan. Thus, Abijah would be scheduled to serve in the second half of the fourth month.

Tabulating the chronology and correlating the Jewish calendar with our Gregorian calendar, we can summarize as follows:

		Jewish Calendar		Gregorian Calendar
1.	Zechariah on duty (v.5) Angel appears (v.8-11)	4^th month	Tammaz	June – July
2.	After duty, Zechariah returns home (v.23) Elizabeth conceives (v.24)	5^th month	Abraham	July – August
3.	6 months later, Mary conceives (v.26)	10^th month	Tebeth	December – January
4.	3 months later, birth of John the Baptizer	13^th i.e. 1^st month of following year	Nissan	March – April
5.	6 months later, birth of Jesus	19^th i.e.7^th month of following year	Tishre	September – October

The Month of Tishre

It appears the birth of Jesus is more likely to be in the fall season of the year, some time in the months of September and October in our Gregorian calendar. That it falls in the month of Tishre for the Jewish calendar is even more significant.

The month of Tishre as the seventh month in the Jewish/Hebrew calendar is a very special month in autumn. This is the only month that begins with one of the seven feasts of the Lord (Lev 23:24) called the Feast of Trumpets. Ten days after this new moon sighting (considered as ten days of holy awe) the most holy day in the whole calendar year is observed, called Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement). Five days later, begins the final of the seven Feasts of the Lord, called the Feast