Perform even the most cursory of Google searches and you’ll be confronted by a wealth of conspiracy theories about the origins of Christmas.
) explains that Sol Invictus only became popular during the later third century. It was only in 274, after the Emperor Aurelian credited Sol Invictus with assisting him in battle, that resources were dedicated to the god’s cult. Aurelian dedicated a new temple to Sol Invictus and founded what Henry calls the “Sol Olympics.” But before this point Sol Invictus was a bit-player in the Roman pantheon.
Finally, there’s Saturnalia, the agricultural festival honoring the god Saturn. Just like Christmas today, it was part religious festival and part opportunity to skip work and drink too much. According to the agricultural writer Columella, it was officially celebrated on Dec. 17, but by the time of Cicero it lasted three or even seven days. It was a raucous affair with people greeting one another with the traditional “Io, Saturnalia.
This brings us to Christians themselves, what do they say about the date of Jesus’ birth? The Bible isn’t a huge amount of help here. Yes, the fact that in the Gospel of Luke shepherds were watching their flocks at night when the angel appeared suggests a date in the spring, but there’s not a lot of information.
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