Uploaded December 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Is Christmas pagan? Many people think it is — but is that really true? In this video, we take a closer look at the origins of Christmas and explore why celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ is not what many Christians often assume.
Sources to Verify Each Claim:
• Winter Solstice was not on Dec 25
– Fasti Antiates Maiores (Roman Republican calendar)
– Fasti Praenestini (compiled by Verrius Flaccus)
– Chronography of 354 (Philocalian Calendar)
– Astronomical reconstruction: J. Meeus, Astronomical Algorithms
• Saturnalia was 17–23 December
– Macrobius, Saturnalia (Book 1)
– Fasti Praenestini and other Roman fasti
– Seneca, Letters 18.3 (mentions Saturnalia timeframe)
• Early Christian authors connecting Jesus’ birth to Dec 25
– Hippolytus of Rome, Commentary on Daniel 4.23
– Sextus Julius Africanus, Chronographiai (fragments preserved in Syncellus & Eusebius)
– Irenaeus, Adversus Haereses (Book 3): affirms March 25 conception tradition; Dec 25 birth inferred in later patristic interpretation
– T.C. Schmidt, “Hippolytus and the December 25 Date,” Vigiliae Christianae (for scholarly analysis)
• Aurelian and the Cult of Sol Invictus (274 AD)
– Inscriptions: CIL VI. 1176; CIL I². 338
– Zosimus, Historia Nova 1.58 (Aurelian’s reforms)
– Chronography of 354 (earliest explicit “Natalis Invicti” on Dec 25)
– S.E. Hijmans, “Sol Invictus: The Sun God of Late Antiquity” (definitive study)
• Debate on whether Christmas influenced pagan Sol Invictus or vice-versa
– S.E. Hijmans, “Sol: The Sun in the Art and Religion of Rome”
– Thomas J. Talley, The Origins of the Liturgical Year
– Andrew McGowan, Ancient Christian Worship
– Steven Ernst, “The Origins of Christmas,” The Catholic Historical Review
– Susan Roll, Toward the Origins of Christmas
________________________________________________________________________
Thank you so much for watching and being part of this ministry!
I choose not to run ads on my videos - because of personal conviction that ads might not align with the message of Jesus that I preach - and therefore I depend entirely on God's provision through your prayers and generosity.
If you feel led to support, even a small gift (like the cost of a cup of coffee) helps me keep sharing the gospel both online and through recent street evangelism.
✨ Patreon (monthly support): patreon.com/c/lionoffireministries
💖 One-time gifts via PayPal: paypal.com/paypalme/lionoffireministries
💬 Super Chat / Super Thanks on YouTube also appreciated!
Thank you for standing with me in this calling — it means more than words can say!
— Matt Mason, Lion of Fire Ministries
Contact me at: mattmasonchristianchannel@gmail.com
Copyright Disclaimer under section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, news, reporting, teaching, scholarship, education and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing.
All the videos, songs, images, and graphics used in the video belong to their respective owners and I or this channel does not claim any right over them.
Is Christmas pagan? Many people think it is — but is that really true? In this video, we take a closer look at the origins of Christmas and explore why celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ is not what many Christians often assume.
Sources to Verify Each Claim:
• Winter Solstice was not on Dec 25
– Fasti Antiates Maiores (Roman Republican calendar)
– Fasti Praenestini (compiled by Verrius Flaccus)
– Chronography of 354 (Philocalian Calendar)
– Astronomical reconstruction: J. Meeus, Astronomical Algorithms
• Saturnalia was 17–23 December
– Macrobius, Saturnalia (Book 1)
– Fasti Praenestini and other Roman fasti
– Seneca, Letters 18.3 (mentions Saturnalia timeframe)
• Early Christian authors connecting Jesus’ birth to Dec 25
– Hippolytus of Rome, Commentary on Daniel 4.23
– Sextus Julius Africanus, Chronographiai (fragments preserved in Syncellus & Eusebius)
– Irenaeus, Adversus Haereses (Book 3): affirms March 25 conception tradition; Dec 25 birth inferred in later patristic interpretation
– T.C. Schmidt, “Hippolytus and the December 25 Date,” Vigiliae Christianae (for scholarly analysis)
• Aurelian and the Cult of Sol Invictus (274 AD)
– Inscriptions: CIL VI. 1176; CIL I². 338
– Zosimus, Historia Nova 1.58 (Aurelian’s reforms)
– Chronography of 354 (earliest explicit “Natalis Invicti” on Dec 25)
– S.E. Hijmans, “Sol Invictus: The Sun God of Late Antiquity” (definitive study)
• Debate on whether Christmas influenced pagan Sol Invictus or vice-versa
– S.E. Hijmans, “Sol: The Sun in the Art and Religion of Rome”
– Thomas J. Talley, The Origins of the Liturgical Year
– Andrew McGowan, Ancient Christian Worship
– Steven Ernst, “The Origins of Christmas,” The Catholic Historical Review
– Susan Roll, Toward the Origins of Christmas
________________________________________________________________________
Thank you so much for watching and being part of this ministry!
I choose not to run ads on my videos - because of personal conviction that ads might not align with the message of Jesus that I preach - and therefore I depend entirely on God's provision through your prayers and generosity.
If you feel led to support, even a small gift (like the cost of a cup of coffee) helps me keep sharing the gospel both online and through recent street evangelism.
✨ Patreon (monthly support): patreon.com/c/lionoffireministries
💖 One-time gifts via PayPal: paypal.com/paypalme/lionoffireministries
💬 Super Chat / Super Thanks on YouTube also appreciated!
Thank you for standing with me in this calling — it means more than words can say!
— Matt Mason, Lion of Fire Ministries
Contact me at: mattmasonchristianchannel@gmail.com
Copyright Disclaimer under section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, news, reporting, teaching, scholarship, education and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing.
All the videos, songs, images, and graphics used in the video belong to their respective owners and I or this channel does not claim any right over them.
