“For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you
the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ,
but were eyewitnesses of His majesty.”
(2 Pet 1:16 NKJV)
Let us consider the historical origins and development of the concept of Christmas.
Christmas is 4000 years old and of Mithranic origin. Mithra was the god of light in ancient Iran, his symbol the sun (still to be seen in Iran’s national flag), and his festival around 21 December, during the winter solstice.
The various pagan kingdoms that ruled the earth had a host of different gods they worshiped. With the passing of time a certain intersubjective synergy developed between the primitive faith systems of Egypt, Persia, Babylon and later Rome, where their pantheon of gods was slowly, across the ages, recast as a unifying, ruling sun god.
Mithraism was first brought to Europe by Greek soldiers after the Persian loss against Alexander. The worship of Mithra spread through Europe and Asia where it was known as Deus Sol Invictus Mithras (the god of the always victorious sun). The Romans used this opportunity to celebrate their god Saturn and the rebirth of the sun during the solstice.
The Persian philosopher-priest Zarathustra, decades before the birth of Christ, preached a dualism based on a god of heaven dialectically opposing a god of evil. He taught that by either doing good or evil man is sent to either heaven or hell. The Persian god Mithra (later named Mithras in Roman mythology) is identified as the savior who would appear to save makind. In approximately 5 B.C. – exactly the same time our historical sources pinpoint as the birth of Christ – Mithra was born. According to tradition carried over from generation to generation he was born to a virgin, during the winter solstice of 25 December (according to the Roman calendar of Julius Caesar). His birth would be witnessed by shepherds and acknowledged by wise men. As adult Mithra would heal the sick, allow the lame to walk, the blind to see, even raising people from the dead. Before returning to heaven during the spring solstice he would have a last meal with his twelve disciples (each symbolizing a zodiac sign). Mithra’s following were characterized by strong moral statutes (right/wrong) and different forms of initiation, which included a baptism with water, as well as ritual meals consisting of bread and wine, symbols of Mithra’s flesh and blood. In this mythology and similar fables of the time Christ was then considered an incarnation of Mithra.
It is amazing how this “diabolic parody by pagan myth creators” (Lynn Picknett – The secret history of Lucifer) attempted to contaminate the coming of the true Christ.
- Sela: What implications does the last sentence have for your walk of faith today? How many Roman fables do you still follow merely because you’ve never considered them critically?
- Read: 2 Chr 28; Job 27; Isa 8
- Memorise: Is 8:18
- For a deeper understanding: Read chapter 12 of Max L. Dimont’s Jews, God and history.
