Many people often ask if a given holiday, traditionally Christian, are actually originally from Pagan holidays. Christmas is one of those. If you’re wondering and carry some uneasy feelings, put your mind to rest. Take heart with an answer from the book The Bible has the Answer. It’s a great book on all kinds of questions about Christianity. Here’s an excerpt of the full answer…
There is no indication in the New Testament that the early Christians observed Christmas at all. Furthermore, many authorities believe now that Jesus was born, not in the winter, but more probably in the early fall. It is not surprising, therefore, that there have been various groups of Christians, both in the past and in the present, who have reacted against Christmas and New Year celebrations so vigorously as to reject them altogether and to prohibit their members from taking any part in them.
On the other hand, there is much in our Christmas observances which, even though not explicitly found in the Bible, makes it a legitimate and wholesome application of the significance of the incarnation to the world. In a society which is becoming increasingly secularized and fragmented, it is surely good to have an annual and universal remembrance of the great historical fact that “in this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him” (1 John 4:9). Even rank unbelievers and hardened cynics somehow seem to sense, at Christmastime, that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” (1 Timothy 1:15), and this makes it a good time for evangelism. Is Christmas pagan or Christian?
I for one love the idea of co-opting what came before and replacing what it holds with what is good and true. It’s a restoration, a redemption. And that is the heart of Christianity.