Christmas looks different for everyone, but for many, it is the one time of the year that they attend church, pray to God, or reflect on the Christian faith. The question asked by many is whether or not Christmas is even truly a Christian holiday. Maybe you’ve heard the question before. “Is Christmas a Pagan Holiday?” Or the statement, “Christians just stole Christmas from pagans.” People make claims like this for multiple reasons, including similarities and parallels with Roman holidays, confusion about the historical dates, skepticism of Christianity, and sometimes just simple misinformation. As with any claim, it’s important to examine the facts and seek the truth.
Within this claim, two important questions are raised: “Is December 25th itself pagan?” and “Is the meaning of Christmas pagan?” It’s important to make this distinction because the two questions deal with separate issues: a historical issue and a spiritual issue. First, the question of history. December 25th was officially established as Christmas in 336 CE by the Church in Rome under Emperor Constantine.1 Some claim that the reasoning behind this date was that other Roman holidays, such as Saturnalia and Sol Invictus, which also had feasting, lights, and gift-giving, were celebrated on this day. While the celebrations might be cultural, there is nothing pagan about what was being celebrated. A thorough look at history shows pagan rituals and the celebration of Christmas as unrelated. There are two main theories for why this was the date established to honor the birth of Jesus, neither of which points to pagan roots.
First is the Calculation theory, the internal Christian dating of Christmas. According to this view, Christian leaders chose December 25th as the date based on the chronology of his birth and death.2 It was calculated by early scholars that Jesus’ Crucifixion took place on March 25th. It was a theological tradition to believe that prophets died on the same day they were conceived. For this reason, it was calculated that 9 months from his conception, Jesus was born on December 25th. Whether or not these historians were correct is irrelevant; what matters is that their reasoning did not reflect pagan tradition. According to this theory, the intention for the dating of Christmas was purely theological and chronological.
The second theory is the History of Religions Theory, which holds the view that the dating of Christmas was to replace or redeem pagan holidays. This theory is less widely accepted due primarily to the fact that we have references of the Christian use of the date before we ever have clear historical references of Roman Holidays, such as Sol Invictus. Either way, this theory once again shows that the roots of Christmas are not pagan, but potentially quite the opposite, with the intention of replacing holidays that honored other gods.
Circling back to the second issue, “Is the meaning of Christmas pagan?” We’ve seen that while there may be overlap or similarities with Roman holidays, its roots are not pagan. Pagan celebrations were focused on the honoring of nature, astronomical events, false gods, and more. The purpose of Christmas is to celebrate something wholly unique: the eternal Son of God taking on human flesh, humbling Himself to enter our world, and living a perfect life that would become the ultimate sacrifice for humanity. There is nothing in history that replicates this celebration. So while the claims may be persistent, the evidence is clear: Christmas is a profoundly Christian celebration rooted in the historic and theological hope of a perfect savior.
Written by Kayleigh Isaacs
For Further Reading:
1. Andrew McGowan – “How December 25 Became Christmas.”
2. The Oxford Handbook of Christmas (Oxford University Press, 2022
3. William J. Tighe – “Calculating Christmas” (Touchstone Magazine)
4. Joseph F. Kelly – The Origins of Christmas
5. Everett Ferguson – Backgrounds of Early Christianity
3Thomas C. Schmidt, “Calculating December 25 as the Birth of Jesus in Hippolytus’ Canon and Chronicon,” Vigiliae Christianae 69, no. 5 (October 2015): 542 – 563, https://doi.org/10.1163/15700720-12341243.
Bibliography
Britannica Editors. “Why Is Christmas in December?” Encyclopedia Britannica, June 13, 2025. https://www.britannica.com/story/why-is-christmas-in-december.
Larsen, Timothy. The Oxford Handbook of Christmas. Oxford University Press, Incorporated, 2020.
Schmidt, Thomas C. “Calculating December 25 as the Birth of Jesus in Hippolytus’ Canon and Chronicon.” Vigiliae Christianae 69, no. 5 (October 2015): 542 – 563. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700720-12341243.