Christmas is a Christian holiday that celebrates the birth of Jesus the Christ. The word “Christmas” has its origin in late Old English Cristes Maesse, the Mass of Christ. Western Christians observe the holiday on December 25 of each year according to the Gregorian Calendar, whereas Eastern Orthodox Christians, who still follow the Julian Calendar for determining feast days, celebrate the holiday twelve days later (December 25 according to the Julian Calendar, which equates to January 6 on the Gregorian Calendar).

The first observance of the feast took place in Egypt around A.D. 200 when Clement of Alexandria (3rd century philosopher, scholar, and theologian) set the date as May 20. By the 4th century, when Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire, the observance of Christmas on December 25 became common practice, supposedly in opposition to the festival surrounding the winter solstice (Natalis Invicti) and the pagan feast celebrating the birth of the sun god (Sol Invictus). Analogies were drawn between Christ and the sun – the rising sun as a symbol of Christ’s resurrection, and Christ as the “Sun of righteousness” (Malachi 4:2, King James Version). Composer Charles Wesley’s (1707-1788) words from the third stanza of the beloved Christmas carol, “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing,” are based on the Malachi passage:

Hail the heav’n born Prince of Peace!
Hail the sun of righteousness!
Light and life to all he brings,
Ris’n with healing in his wings.

Another reason for the selection of December 25 as the day to celebrate Jesus’ birth is that it follows nine months after the Festival of the Annunciation (March 25), the date for commemorating the angel Gabriel’s announcement to Mary that she was chosen by God to be the mother of God’s Son.