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Festivals are always associated with joy, happiness, liveliness, togetherness and peacefulness or religiousness to more or less extent, whether it be with the religious people, or considered by the secular people or non-believers. To some, festivals are the time when people take off from their office work or routine life and plan trip to some tourist places to get relaxed; to some, festivals are the time to enjoy, amusement, celebration or do some fun activities and to some, it is the observance of religious days. Festivals may hold different meaning to different people. Different cultures and different people across the nations have their own set of festivals and holidays which they celebrate, families and especially the children tend to like and enjoy the festivals which are vibrant in nature involving some active participation. Different festivals have different themes associated with them and are considered to provide liveliness to the events of the same. Likewise, Christian festivals celebrated across the globe are liked for the very themes, religiousness or liveliness they have. The most favored is the Christmas, which is also supposed to describe the meaning of Christianity to the non-Christians. It's arrival only, weeks ahead, declares that the festive season is near. Everyone seems to enjoy and like the festivities associated with it. The Christmas trees, the gifts, Santa Clause, decorations, religiousness and liveliness of the day is well appreciated and liked by the people around the countries including children and elderly people alike. Christmas is the world's second most celebrated festival, the first being New Year, Christmas is a civil holiday in many of the world’s nations, celebrated by an increasing number of non-Christians and is an integral part of the Christmas and holiday season. Likewise the Easter holds special meaning and significance to the children and the religious or devout Christians alike. It is not as widely known as Christmas, has it's observance among the Christians mainly and primarily focuses on the death and resurrection of Yahushua. These major holidays are supposed to be Christian or Biblical. There have been some customs and practices associated with these festivals, which are not related to the Bible or Yahushua, and people on the whole, assume that leaving those practices and customs, these are mainly religious Christian days. Let us examine these festivals that are supposed to be centered around Yahushua and the Bible.
Christmas is thought by most to be a wonderful time, focusing the participants on giving, family togetherness, beautiful music and decorations, feasting on special foods and singing Christmas carols throughout the neighborhood, as most people do every year. All of this is supposedly centered around the worship of Yahushua. Christians celebrate the birth of Yahushua at Christmas time. They exchange gifts in honor of the 'greatest gift ever given'. They say: 'Jesus is the Reason for the Season!!' and speak of putting the 'Christ back into Christmas'. People give many reasons to celebrate it - Christmas is a wonderful time for spending with family. We are so busy throughout the year, this is really our only chance to get together. Christmas is a great time to witness! People are more open at this time of year so I use it as an opportunity to share. Christmas is the only holiday that really focuses on Jesus! The most common justification that one will hear regarding Christmas is that people have replaced old non-biblical customs and intents by asserting that they are now 'focusing on Christ'. Many say that they are 'honoring Christ' in their Christmas-keeping. Let's carefully examine the roots of Christmas. Let's look at why people follow the customs associated with it. Why is it kept on December 25th? Did the early New Testament Church keep it?
Was Yahushua Born on December 25th?Luke 2:8 gives an account of the how the shepherds were observing their sheep in the open fields at night, during the time when Yahushua was born.
And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. {Luke 2:8}
Note that they were abiding in the field. This could never have occurred in Judaea in the month of December. The shepherds always brought their flocks from the mountainsides and fields and gathered them not later than October 15, to protect them from the cold, rainy season that followed that date. The Song of Solomon 2:11 confirms that winter was the rainy season and shepherds could not stay on cold, open fields at night.
For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone. {Song of Songs 2:11}
According to commentator Adam Clarke: It was a custom among the Jews to send out their sheep to the deserts (wilderness), about the passover, and bring them home at the commencement of the first rain: during the time they were out, the shepherds watched them night and day. As the passover occurred in the spring, and the first rain began early in the month of Marchesvan, which answers to part of our October and November, we find that the sheep were kept out in the open country during the whole of the summer. And as these shepherds had not yet brought home their flocks, it is a presumptive argument that October had not yet commenced, and that, consequently, our Lord was not born on the 25th of December, when no flocks were out in the fields; nor could He have been born later than September, as the flocks were still in the fields by night. On this very ground the nativity in December should be given up. The feeding of the flocks by night in the fields is a chronological fact, which casts considerable light on this disputed point. (Clarke's Commentary, vol. V, p. 370)
There is additional proof that Yahushua was born in the fall of the year. The census of Quirinius (Cyrenius) that required Joseph to travel from Galilee to Bethlehem would most probably have taken place after the fall harvest, when people were more able to return to their ancestral homes (Luke 2:1-5).
And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed. (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) {Luke 2:1-2}
During the spring (in March or April) there's a Jewish festival called 'Passover'. This festival remembers when the Jews had escaped from slavery in Egypt about 1500 years before Yahushua was born. Jews from all over the Roman Empire traveled to Jerusalem for the Passover Festival, so it would have been a good time for the Romans to take a census. Besides, it was customary in Judea to do their tax collecting during this period, as the bulk of a farmer's income came at this time. Another point is that Joseph and Mary had to find shelter in a barn, or some other kind of animal shelter like a cave because the inns were full (verse 7). This indicates that the pilgrims from around the world had begun to arrive in Jerusalem and surrounding towns. Thus, the fall festival season had already commenced. There would have been no similar influx of pilgrims in December. Some Biblical scholars believe that Yahushua was actually born in the fall after the harvest or in spring after the birth of the new animals, both the most likely times for taxation. Shepherds don't 'tend their flocks by night' in the high pastures in the dead of winter. If one wishes to use the New Testament as historical evidence, this reference may point to sometime in the spring as the time of Yahushua's birth. This is because the lambing season occurs in the spring and that is the most likely time when shepherds 'watched their flocks by night', to make sure the lambing went well. Numerous encyclopedias plainly state that Yahushua was not born on December 25th, in all likelihood, Yahushua was born in the fall. A lengthy technical explanation would prove this point.
Since we now know that December 25th was nowhere near Yahushua's actual birth-date, where did the festival associated with this date come from?
To answer this question, let us examine a Roman festival named Saturnalia. Saturnalia was an ancient Roman festival in honor of the deity Saturn, an agricultural deity, held on the 17th of December of the Julian calendar and later expanded with festivities through to the 23rd of December, and the Saturnalia did continue to be celebrated as Brumalia (from bruma, 'the shortest day', winter solstice). It was an occasion for celebration, visits to friends, and the presentation of gifts, particularly wax candles, perhaps to signify the returning light after the solstice. The holiday was celebrated with a sacrifice at the Temple of Saturn, in the Roman Forum, and a public banquet, followed by private gift-giving, continual partying, and a carnival atmosphere that overturned Roman social norms, such as gambling was permitted. Saturnalia is a festival of light leading to the winter solstice, with the abundant presence of candles symbolizing the quest for knowledge and truth. Romans nearly had all their gods derived from the Greeks. The name of the Persian god Mithra, adapted into Greek as Mithras, was accepted as the Mithraic Mysteries, a mystery religion practiced in the Roman Empire from about the 1st to 4th centuries AD. As a god of light, Mithra was associated with the Greek sun god, Helios, and the Roman sun god Sol Invictus, meaning the 'Unconquered Sun'. Sol Invictus ('Unconquered Sun') was the official sun god of the later Roman Empire and a patron of soldiers. In the Julian calendar, December 25 also marked the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year, after which days begin to lengthen. December 25 was commonly indicated as the date of the winter solstice, with the first detectable lengthening of daylight hours. The renewal of light and the coming of the new year was celebrated in the later Roman Empire at the festival of Dies Natalis of Sol Invictus or the 'Birthday of the Unconquerable Sun' on December 25. Since Romans had adapted many religious practices and customs from their neighbors, religious tolerance was not an issue with them. In the early 4th century, Constantine I became the first emperor to favor Christianity. In 391 under Theodosius I, Nicene Christianity became the official state religion of the Roman Empire. Nicene Christianity refers to Christian doctrinal traditions that adhere to the Nicene Creed (credo being Latin for 'I believe') which was originally formulated at the First Council of Nicaea in AD 325. Rome's original religious hierarchy and many aspects of Rome's rituals influenced Christian forms, and many pre-Christian beliefs and practices got absorbed into Christianity. In Malachi 4:2, we read,
But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings. {Malachi 4:2}
The true Sun of Righteousness mentioned in the above verse is Yahushua, the only begotten Son of the living, true Almighty. The winter solstice, when the light of day first becomes ascendant, would seem the natural birthday of both the Invincible Sun and the 'Sun of righteousness'. It seems very easy and unnoticeable to use the term Son instead of the term Sun, i.e. wherein the worship of Sun was considered on December 25 in the Roman culture earlier as 'Birthday of the Unconquerable Sun' to honor Sol Invictus, the custom most probably got absorbed in to Christianity as the worship of the Son on December 25. Nearly all aspects of Christmas observance have their roots in Roman custom and religion. On the Roman New Year (January 1), houses were decorated with greenery and lights, and gifts were given to children and the poor. This custom might have been added to the Christmas day celebration, as it collided with the Christmas timelines. To these observances were added the German and Celtic Yule rites ('Yule' simply means 'wheel', which has long been a representation of the sun). Yule was celebrated as a 12-day festival focusing on sun worship in Europe by the Celtic people in the pre-Christian times, which later got recognized as the 'Christmas-tide'. The festival of Yule included a yule log, a large and very hard log, which is burned in the hearth as a part of traditional Yule. While in Yule, the people worshiped the 'Sun of God', in Christianity, it most probably got recognized as the worship of the 'Son of God'. Food and good fellowship, the Yule log and Yule cakes, greenery and fir trees, gifts and greetings all commemorated different aspects of this festive season.
The Babylonians, in their popular religion, supremely worshiped a Goddess Mother and a Son, who was represented in pictures and in images as an infant or child in his mother's arms. From this false Babylonish system, this worship of the Mother and the Child spread to the ends of the earth. In Egypt, the Mother and the Child were worshiped under the names of Isis and Osiris. In Egypt, it was always believed that the son of Isis (Isis is an Egyptian name for 'Queen of Heaven') was born on December 25th. People celebrated this famous birthday over most of the known world for centuries before the birth of Yahushua. In pre-christian Rome, as Fortuna and Jupiterpuer. When Rome accepted Christianity, this 'Mother and Child' idea also became popularized, especially at Christmas time. This same 'Mother and Child' theme was picked up and accepted as the worship of Mary and baby Yahushua on the Christmas eve. The Christian church seems to have chosen December 25 in an attempt to satisfy many converts who were used to revelry and celebration at that time of year.
The word 'Christmas' means 'Mass of Christ', or, as it came to be shortened, 'Christ-Mass'. It came to non-Christians and Protestants from the Roman Catholic Church. Mark and Paul make no reference to when Yahushua was born, and Matthew and Luke, although they include an account of Yahushua's birth, do not mention the time of year. In any event, we do not know the exact date of Yahushua's birth. While the Almighty certainly could have made it known, He chose to hide it from the world's eyes.
What About Santa Claus and the Christmas trees?
Some years ago, a priest in New Jersey told his Sunday school class that Santa was a myth. The outrage from parents and his supervisors was swift. He had 'killed Santa!' He had 'destroyed family tradition!' He had 'usurped family authority', the article continued. He was officially censored by his superiors for being 'overzealous and insensitive'. His only fault was that he told the truth.
The man we know as Santa Claus has a history all his own. Today, he is thought of mainly as the jolly man in red, which is man made imaginary character, considered to be associated with St. Nicholas. St. Nicholas was a fourth century bishop of Myra (now Turkey). It is said that he gave away all of his inherited wealth and traveled the countryside helping the poor and sick. Over the course of many years, Nicholas’s popularity spread and he became to be known as the protector of children and sailors. His feast day is celebrated on the anniversary of his death, December 6. Because of his wisdom and sensitivity, many groups claimed St. Nicholas as their patron saint. Entire countries, including Russia and Greece, also adopted him as their patron saint, as well as students and pawnbrokers. St. Nicholas' Day is still observed in many countries, and gifts are exchanged in honor of the spirit of brotherhood and charity that he embodied. After the Protestant Reformation in the sixteenth century, the feasting and veneration of Catholic saints were banned. But people had become accustomed to the annual visit from their gift-giving saint and didn't want to forget the purpose of the holiday. So in some countries, the festivities of St. Nicholas' Day were merged with Christmas celebrations.
In Germany, he appeared as Weihnachtsmann, in England as Father Christmas, and in France, as Pèrè Noël, who left small gifts in the children's shoes. A similar figure with the same name (in other languages) exists in several other countries, including Wales (Sion Corn), Canada and France (Père Noël), Spain (Papá Noel, Padre Noel), almost all Hispanic South America (Papá Noel), Brazil (Papai Noel), Portugal (Pai Natal), Italy (Babbo Natale), Ireland (Daidí na Nollag), Armenia (Dzmer Papik), India (Christmas Father), Andorra (Pare Noel), Romania (Mos Craciun) Turkey (Noel Baba), Hungary (Télapó) and Bulgaria (Dyado Koleda, Grandfather Christmas).
In the 1600's, the Dutch presented Sinterklaas (Dutch shortened name meaning St. Nicholas) to the colonies in America. In their excitement, many English-speaking children uttered the name so quickly that Sinterklaas sounded like Santy Claus. After years of mispronunciation, the name evolved into Santa Claus. In 1808, American author Washington Irving created a new version of old St. Nick. This one rode over the treetops in a horse drawn wagon 'dropping gifts down the chimneys of his favorites'. In 1822, Clement Clarke Moore, an Episcopal minister, wrote a long Christmas poem for his three daughters entitled 'An Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas' or more popularly known as 'Twas the night before Christmas'. Moore’s poem is largely responsible for our modern image of Santa Claus as a 'right jolly old elf' with a portly figure, who was still old but less serious than the ecclesiastical St. Nicholas. Moore's poem helped popularize the now-familiar image of a Santa Claus who flew from house to house on Christmas Eve–in 'a miniature sleigh' led by eight flying reindeer–leaving presents for deserving children. In 1881, political cartoonist Thomas Nast drew on Moore’s poem to create the first likeness that matches our modern image of Santa Claus. His cartoon, which appeared in Harper’s Weekly, depicted Santa as a rotund, cheerful man with a full, white beard, holding a sack laden with toys for lucky children. Nast gave Santa his bright red suit trimmed with white fur, North Pole workshop, elves, and his wife, Mrs. Claus.
Note that elf is a mythical creature which by definition is - A supernatural creature of folk tales, typically represented as a small, delicate, elusive figure in human form with pointed ears, magical powers, and a capricious nature. Thus while St. Nicholas is real person, Santa Claus and it's stories are a myth, the work of man-made imaginations. As this imaginary character gained popularity across America, retail stores, shopping malls and other business making industries started to market this newly popular favorite of the kids to sell their merchandise.
In Jeremiah 10 we read,
For the customs of the people are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe. They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not. They are upright as the palm tree, but speak not: they must needs be borne, because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do evil, neither also is it in them to do good. {Jeremiah 10:3-5}
The description presented in the above verse directly matches with the modern day Christmas tree. Even before the Christian era, trees and boughs were used for ceremonials. Egyptians, in celebrating the winter solstice - the shortest day of the year - brought green date palms into their homes as a symbol of 'life triumphant over death'. When the Romans observed the feast of Saturn, part of the ceremony was the raising of an evergreen bough. The early Scandinavians were said to have paid homage to the fir tree. Centuries ago in Great Britain, woods priests called druids used evergreens during their winter solstice rituals. The druids used holly and mistletoe as symbols of eternal life, and place evergreen branches over doors to keep away evil spirits. Late in the Middle Ages, Germans and Scandinavians placed evergreen trees inside their homes or just outside their doors to show their hope in the forthcoming spring. Our modern Christmas tree evolved from these early traditions, that is, Christmas trees existed before Christmas by some other names and rituals. By the 1890's Christmas ornaments were arriving from Germany and Christmas tree popularity was on the rise around the U.S. The early 20th century saw Americans decorating their trees mainly with homemade ornaments, while the German-American sect continued to use apples, nuts, and cookies. Electricity brought about Christmas lights, making it possible for Christmas trees to glow for days on end. With this, Christmas trees began to appear in town squares across the country and having a Christmas tree in the home became an American tradition.
There is no room in Jeremiah 10 to believe, as some have tried to suggest, that because these trees are powerless of themselves, it is not really forbidden to have a Christmas tree. But the Almighty has made it very clear, that setting up the wooden trunk or wooden stock or trees cut from the forest is a vain custom and does not honors Yahushua in any way.
The stock is a doctrine of vanities. {Jeremiah 10:8}
Likewise, Europeans brought holly sprays into their homes, considering them to be an offering to the fairy people of the forests as refuge from the harsh winter weather. During the Saturnalia, branches of holly were exchanged as tokens of friendship. The European mistletoe is thought to have had special ritual significance in Celtic ceremonies and like mistletoe, holly berries were also thought to be sacred to the sun god. Fires and lights - symbols of warmth and lasting life, the hollies and the mistletoe, have always been associated with the winter festival in the European cultures. Thus, the holly wreaths, mistletoe, holly berries and the yule log have no biblical significance to be considered as sacred.
And the exchange of gifts?
People love to believe that they are following the custom of the wise men giving presents to Yahushua, when actually they are giving almost exclusively to each other. In Matthew 2 we read,
And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh. {Matthew 2:11}
It is commonly supposed that these were birthday presents for 'baby Jesus'. First, it is important to note that they did give the gifts to Yahushua, they did not stand in His presence and exchange gifts among themselves or give them to others, the gifts were 'presented unto Him'. Also, they arrived well after His 'birthday'. This is another reason these could not have been 'birthday presents'. A long-standing, ancient custom of the East was to present gifts when coming before a king. These men understood they were in the presence of the 'King of the Jews'. The Bible carries many examples of people sending gifts to kings or presenting them upon arrival into their presence. This custom is common today when ambassadors or others come into the presence of a worldly leader.
Similarly, singing of carols did not originate with Christianity, but with the non-biblical practice of celebrating the seasons around winter solstice. The word carol comes from the French word carole, meaning circle dance, or song of praise and joy. The majority of the first Christmas Carols were written in Latin, which were understood only by few members of the church. In 1223, St. Francis of Assisi started putting on musical plays in which the majority of the songs were written in the language of the common people. Most of these new Carols were not based strictly on Scripture, but were simply light stories, sung by traveling minstrels and changed from town to town to fit the desires of various communities. These Carols were rarely sung in church, instead, the music resounded from the streets, and in the homes.
Christmas has become a commercial season. It's sponsored, kept alive, by the heaviest retail advertising campaigns of the year. You see a masqueraded 'Santa Claus' in many stores. Ads keep us deluded and deceived about the 'beautiful Christmas spirit'. The newspapers, who sell the ads make it appear more than real; exalting and eulogizing the non-biblical season, and its 'spirit'. People have become so accustomed to the day and the theme it contains, many take offense when told the truth. The media and the movies keep setting up this festival as the standard of Christianity, so that if one is convinced that Santa Clause is a myth, there is always present some media or movie to deceive into believing that, those who do not believe Santa later realize that Santa exists and meet him supernaturally. Likewise, those parents who tell their children each year about Santa Clause and gifts presented by him, are making their children to believe into a lie, when these children grow and discover that he is not real might consider the same about Yahushua also, think about it.
Christmas and the Santa Clause have nothing to do with Yahushua or the Bible. Yahushua can never be placed back into where He never was. The apostles and early true Church never celebrated Yahushua's birthday at any time. There is no command or instruction in the Bible to celebrate it. In 2 Timothy we read,
And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. {2 Timothy 4:4}
This verses applies to the people of the last times, and it seems to apply accurately to the people of modern times, where people assume and consider the non-biblical stories as truth, ignoring or overlooking the biblical truth. This does not mean that it is wrong to give gifts to the poor or decorate house with lighting, just because it came from Rome or other nations, the wrong is when we tend to make them associated with the customs and traditions, which were never mentioned in the Holy Scriptures or instructed by the Almighty.
What about Easter? Since hundreds of millions keep it, supposedly in honor of Yahushua's Resurrection, then certainly the Bible must have much to say about it. Surely there must be numerous verses mentioning rabbits, eggs and egg hunts, baskets of candy, hot cross buns, Lent, Good Friday and sunrise services - not to mention Easter itself, let's examine. Spring is the best season of the year for many people. Warm sunny days; the earth, springing forth with new life. Flowers, budding trees, baby animals: all seem to joyfully announce that the long cold winter is over. Flowers and bunnies decorate the home. Father helps the children paint beautiful designs on eggs dyed in various colors. These eggs, which will later be hidden and searched for, are placed into seasonal baskets. Forty days of abstaining from special foods will finally end the next day. The whole family picks out their Sunday best to wear to the next morning’s sunrise worship service to celebrate the Savior’s resurrection and the renewal of life. It will be a thrilling day. After all, it is one of the most important religious holidays of the year. No other Springtime custom encapsulates these celebrations of new life quite like Easter. From baby animals, to Easter eggs and Easter egg hunts, to sunrise Sunday services and more, Easter is a beloved tradition to many people. But like Christmas, all the customs and traditions of Easter are non-biblical. After the flood, one of the descendants of Noah named Nimrod, whom the scripture declares 'mighty hunter' before the Almighty, was disobedient to the commands of the Almighty. Nimrod built and organized major cities of his times. Nimrod's descendants and the inhabitants of these cities established their own false worship system under the city of Babylon or Babel. In this false Babylonian system, the goddess of spring was called Ishtar. Egyptian Isis, the Grecian Aphrodite and the Roman Venus were more or less the same personality. The Assyrian Semiramis, called as the queen of heaven, is another name of Ishtar, and is considered to be the wife of Nimord, and in false Babylonish tales, it is assumed that Tammuz was their son, who was actually Nimord born again. Ishtar became Astarte in Phoenecia; Eostre in Greece; Ostara in Germany; Astarte to the Greeks and Ashtoreth to the Jews. The name Easter comes to us from Ostera or Eostre, the goddess of spring to the the Germanic inhabitants of England, for whom a spring festival was held annually. Thus, it is from the word Ishtar (Eostre), that the festival Easter derived it's name. Exchanging Easter eggs with one another is a custom that goes back thousands of years. Long before its association with Easter, the egg was a symbol of rebirth. Many ancient cultures used the egg to symbolize rebirth. Ancient peoples such as the Persians, the Egyptians, the Chinese, the Gauls, and the Romans all used the egg in their springtime celebrations. Thus the origin of the Easter egg predates the origin of Christianity. However, when Christianity spread to the lands of these ancient cultures, the exchanging of colored eggs became incorporated in the memorial celebration of Yahushua's resurrection, the holy day that came to be known as Easter. These Easter eggs were colored and given as tokens to remind Christians of the tomb and Yahushua's triumphant victory over death. Eggs were hung up in the Egyptian temples, dyed eggs were sacred Easter offerings in Egypt, as they are still in China and Europe. Easter, or spring, was the season of birth, terrestrial and celestial. It naturally progressed that the egg, representing spring and reproduction, would be merged into an already non-biblical springtime festival.
Easter egg activities have become a part of Western culture. On the day commemorating Yahushua's resurrection, Americans roll decorated eggs on the White House lawn and pretend that the Easter rabbit hid them. The same ritual is practiced at some Christian churches. In Lancashire (England) on Easter eve, boys and men have been in the habit of touring the towns and villages as ‘Pace-eggers’ begging for eggs before performing the ‘Pace-Egging’ or Pasch (i.e, Easter) play. In Germany and Austria little nests containing eggs, pastry and candy are placed in hidden spots, and the children believe that the Easter bunny, so popular in this country, too, had laid the eggs and brought the candy.
Rabbits do not lay eggs, and hence there is no logical way to connect them. Although adopted in a number of Christian cultures, the Easter bunny has never received any specific Christian interpretation. There is nothing Christian about any of these symbols. Connecting this symbol to Yahushua's Resurrection in the spring required much creativity and human reasoning. However, even highly creative human reasoning has never been able to successfully connect this Easter symbol to anything Christian, because there is not a single word about it anywhere in the entire New Testament.
In Jeremiah 7, we read,
Seest thou not what they do in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead their dough, to make cakes to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto other gods, that they may provoke me to anger. {Jeremiah 7:17-18}
Unknowingly, the people are repeating the same custom, which the Almighty has forbidden, in the name of hot cross buns. Similarly, Lent has no scriptural basis. From Ash Wednesday to Easter, many solemnly mark their foreheads with ash, 'fasting' (or abstaining from certain foods etc.) for 40 days. This is done to supposedly imitate Yahushua’s 40-day fast in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-2). Some give up smoking, others give up chewing gum, still others give up over-eating to prepare themselves for Easter. In most of the West, it begins on Ash Wednesday. People who observe Lent may be religious, dedicated and sincere, but they are sincerely wrong. There is neither biblical nor historical record of Yahushua, the apostles or the early Church participating in the Lenten season. However, in Ezekiel 8 we read,
He said also unto me, Turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations that they do. Then he brought me to the door of the gate of the LORD’S house which was toward the north; and, behold, there sat women weeping for Tammuz. {Ezekiel 8:13-14}
Thus, unknowingly, people participating in lent are actually observing the 40 days of weeping for false god Tammuz. Lent may seem like a sincere, heartfelt religious observance, but it's actual roots are from the false religious systems of Babylon. Regarding Easter sunrise services, Ezekiel 8 continues and we read,
Then said he unto me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man? turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations than these. And he brought me into the inner court of the LORD’S house, and, behold, at the door of the temple of the LORD, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of the LORD, and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east. {Ezekiel 8:15-16}
The prophet Ezekiel was being shown, in vision, an important prophecy concerning the sins of the people of Almighty in our time. It is no 'light thing' to the Almighty that many millions do every Easter, it may seem 'beautiful', 'religious' and 'deeply moving' to those participating in it, but the Almighty has forbidden His true people to devise their own religious customs and ideas.
Modern Easter has no basis in the pure religion of Heaven. All of its traditions are non-scriptural.
• Rabbits and dyed Easter eggs symbolize re-productivity.
• Hot cross buns were the 'cakes' offered to the queen of heaven.
• The forty days of weeping for Tammuz are now the 40 days of Lent leading up to Easter.
• Sunrise services were performed by false priests to honor the sun god.
A person might say, the word 'Easter' comes in the Bible in the book of Acts. In actual, the name 'Easter' is never mentioned in the original Scriptures. However, one English translation of the Bible does use the word. The King James Version chose to translate Acts 12:4 like this:
And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people. {KJV, Acts 12:4}
The book of Acts was originally written in the Greek language by the Christian Gentile Luke. The Greek word that the King James Version translates as 'Easter' is most certainly not the word 'Easter', it is actually the word 'Pascha' (Hebrew: Pesach) which means 'Passover' - and this is how all accurate translations show it. For example, the New King James Version says,
So when he had arrested him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four squads of soldiers to keep him, intending to bring him before the people after Passover. {NKJV, Acts 12:4}
Passover is an annual Jewish religious celebration instituted by the Almighty (Leviticus 23:5). It dates from the time of Moses when the Almighty delivered the Israelites from the bondage and spared their first-borns (Exodus 12:11; Numbers 9:2; Deuteronomy 16:1; 2 Kings 23:21). It was during an annual Passover celebration that the death and resurrection of Yahushua took place at Jerusalem.
There are absolutely no verses, anywhere in the Bible, that authorize or endorse the keeping of Easter celebration. The Bible says nothing about Lent, eggs and egg hunts, baskets of candy etc. Easter eggs and bunnies have no connection whatsoever with the death and resurrection of Yahushua. Celebration of Easter does not honor the death and resurrection of the Saviour. The original apostles and early New Testament Church did not observe Easter.
Attention has been shifted away from spiritual truth and toward materialism (clothing, products and candies with the incorrect symbolism). Stores merchandise the name of 'Easter' (not 'Resurrection Day') and sell goods that have nothing to do with Yahushua's death and resurrection. Many church bodies recognize the problem and make every effort to keep the focus of Resurrection Day totally on Yahushua and the Good News that He brought.
Another day celebrated as festival, which is not only non-biblical, but is actually anti-biblical is Halloween. Halloween is condensed from All Hallows' Even (even stands for evening) which came from the Old English term meaning 'all saints' evening', being the eve of All Hallows' Day or All Saints' Day. Halloween is October 31 and All Saints' Day is November 1. Each year, as the last day of October nears, members of church begin making plans to avoid Halloween. Some plan a trip to the local mall to do some shopping, even though the malls teem with kids and their parents trick-or-treating. Others hope to escape to the movie theater, a few seek out various other amusements like miniature golf etc. Halloween has just become too big for kids, party-goers, and retailers alike, to pass over so easily. Each year, roughly 65-70% of adults participate in Halloween, which includes wearing a costume. About 80% of households distribute treats to an average of 37 trick-or-treaters. In terms of retail sales, Halloween is second only to Christmas. Americans spend over $3 billion on Halloween items and activities, with nearly $2 billion spent on candy and the rest on costumes, decorations, and party favors. The average household shells out an average of $81 to celebrate this evening, mostly on candy and decorations. Many cultures have a form of Halloween in their tradition. Mexico has its 'Day of the Dead' in which participants give out candies and visit graveyards to commune with the dead by leaving them food. In Japan, they honor their ancestors with various celebrations. Certain African tribes set aside days to honor the unseen spirits, warding off the evil ones and placating the good. German, Scandinavian, Spanish, Italian, and many other cultures have a Halloween-type holiday. The common custom is that they all honor or remember the dead or unseen spirits. In English-speaking countries, Halloween derives primarily from the Celtic festival of Samhain. Samhain, held on the three days around November 1, it was a kind of New Year's celebration and harvest festival all added up into one. The Celts believed that these three days were special because of the transition from the old year to the new. They believed that during this time the spirits would visit the land and could damage crops, bring diseases etc. For this reason, they believed they had to appease the spirits to make them go into the spirit world and stay there. The Celts did this by putting out food and treats, so that these spirits would pass on. They thought that, if they did not appease the spirits, they would play tricks or put curses on them. Whole villages would unite to drive away the evil spirits, ensuring that the upcoming year would be good. Others among them would hold séances or conduct other kinds of divination by incantation, potion, or trance to contact dead ancestors in hope of receiving guidance and inspiration. All laws went unenforced. The social order was turned upside-down; men dressed as women and vice-versa. People took on different personas, dressing in disguise and acting the part. No work was done during this period of total abandon, for it was a time for revelry, drinking, eating, making and taking dares, and breaking the law. In short, it was chaos. Then Roman Catholicism arrived on the scene and 'converted' the non-believers. It also decreed a day to honor departed saints: May 13, All Saints' Day. The priests instructed the 'converted' non-believers to keep All Saints' Day, but they continued to celebrate Samhain because it was so much more fun than attending church to pray for the hallowed saints of yesteryear. To keep them in the fold, in AD 835 Pope Gregory IV officially authorized moving All Saints' Day to November 1 to coincide with Samhain. He allowed the converted 'Christians' to keep their old customs as long as they put a gloss of Christianity on them. Thus, they kept Samhain in the name of Yahushua to honor the departed saints. For obvious reason, some kids are only allowed to wear nice, pretty costumes, but scary costumes are typically, and originally were the theme. The whole point behind Halloween costumes is not to play dress-up, but to copy something in particular (evil spirits or spirits of the dead). The response towards someone refusing to give a treat is to have a trick played on them. Today, 'trick-or-treating' is the most recognized of Halloween activities, and it is simply a form of extortion. Children, whether they know it or not, are acting as the spirits who will play a trick or put a curse on the one who does not pay up in food or treats. In essence, celebrating Halloween and trick or treating is like play-acting the actual traditional practices built around demonism, superstition and fear of evil spirits. Though most families see it as fun and far removed from the origin of Halloween, they are still supporting the idea that it is acceptable and good to pretend and fantasize about being evil, dark, frightening - whatever a person may call it, just to get amazed, feel scared or have fun. Halloween honors the forces of darkness and demonic spirits, and has no connection with the Bible, on the contrary, the Bible tells us to stay away from it.
Abstain from all appearance of evil. {1 Thessalonians 5:22}
Some Christians have chosen to educate their children about its evil aspects, and substitute 'harvest parties' or 'Fall Festivals' so that their children have an alternative event to attend.
Likewise, New Year celebration has no biblical or scriptural observance. Valentine's Day, Anniversaries, Father's Day, Mother's Day, Thanksgiving or even celebrating one's birthday has no scriptural records or evidence. All these are centered around the traditions and the customs of the world, twisted and manipulated to be accepted globally.
But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. {Matthew 15:9}
And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition. {Mark 7:9}
The Roman Catholic Church had a practice of incorporating non-biblical festivals, of pasting 'Christian' names over them and calling them Christian. This was done to make 'Christianity' more palatable and familiar to the non-christian worshipers, whom the Church was trying to convince. They might have done their honest efforts to preach the gospel of Yahushua, regarding Christmas, despite what may have begun with good intentions, is now limited to outward display or materialism only. The Holy Days of the Almighty are not merely holidays. The Almighty has clearly instructed us through His Holy Word that we should not follow the customs of the world to worship Him and that these customs or traditions do not honor Him in any way.
And that thou enquire not after their gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise. Thou shalt not do so unto the LORD thy God. {Deuteronomy 12:30-31}
We live in a world filled with customs, but few ever seek to understand their origin. We generally accept them without question. Most people basically do what everyone else does - because it is easy and natural. Christian-sounding names are superimposed over worldly customs. This is done to make people feel better about why they are following a custom that is not in the Bible, and also in a way to deceive. Most Christian holy days have degraded over time and today we see that most are dominated by massive amounts of commercialization. The end result is that the historical significance and any original Christian meaning is often lost among all the mass marketing and merchandising.
In His Word, the Almighty says that we can consider any day as 'special', but if we do, we must do it for the right reason, which is to honor the Almighty.
One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind. He that regardeth the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it. {Romans 14:5-6}
If a person wants to set aside a time of the year to remember the birth of Yahushua and to give thanks to the Almighty for his coming, then they have the liberty in Yahushua to do that, and further, if they choose to do it in December when the world celebrates Christmas, then they have the freedom and right to do that. This does not implies that, it is fine to incorporate non-biblical traditions or customs to honor the Almighty which He has denied, or to participate in rituals and practices that dishonours Him. If the Almighty has provided us the freedom to set aside a particular day as holy in remembrance of the birth and resurrection of Yahushua, then we should be diligent enough to consider it with proper regard to His instructions. Whatever way, a person considers is the best and does it to Yahushua, as per the biblical guidelines, to honor Yahushua is acceptable to Him.
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