One of the most significant holidays of the entire Christian world, the Nativity of Christ, still causes controversy and disagreement within the church. So what date is Christmas? Almost all Christians celebrate it on December 25 of each year. However, Orthodox Christians honor the birth of baby Jesus on January 7, given the so-called old style.
Oddly enough, but in both cases we are talking about the same calendar day. It’s just that Europe has been living on its calendar for centuries, and the young Soviet state in 1917 switched to the same way of calculating in order to avoid possible difficulties. But our Orthodox Church has remained forever faithful to the old
Gregorian calendar and continues to count all its holidays according to it.
And another branch of the Christian church celebrates this day in its own way. Observing the traditions of the ancient Eastern dioceses, the Armenian Orthodox Church celebrates Christmas on January 6, uniting it with the Epiphany in a single Epiphany holiday.
There is no direct mention of the number of the birth of Christ in the Bible, nor in any of the Gospels. There is only a clear and understandable answer when the Redeemer received martyrdom - on this day Easter is celebrated. And Sunday is revered as a festive day to commemorate the Holy Resurrection.
From the very beginning of the last millennium, many church scholars have conducted research on the subject of Christmas dates. As a result, the theory of Dionysius the Small became generally accepted, which in 525 introduced the chronology of "from the birth of Christ". According to Hebrew tradition, the life of Christ on Earth lasted an even full number of years. So, counting nine months from the date of Easter (March 25th), we received the date of birth of the Savior.
Meanwhile, many historians see in this date the desire of the Christian church to avert its unstable flock from the celebration of pagan rites. After all, this day is the day of the winter solstice, which was revered in many pagan religions.
Christmas is a great holiday. The light of love and forgiveness unites all of Christianity on this holy day for a great number of people. Children are preparing for it, waiting for gifts. The tradition of giving and receiving
gifts for Christmas also came into the ordinary human life from the Bible. Magi from around the world, learning about the birth of the son of God, brought him gifts. So we give gifts to those people whom we love and respect. It’s so nice on this holiday not only to receive, but also to give gifts. And they do not have to be expensive, you can make them yourself. And a beautiful wrapper will give the simplest souvenir a festive look.
Each house is filled with fun, happiness at Christmas. The number of people who are waiting for a miracle themselves do good deeds, increases on these
holidays. And they are not too worried about the church background of the issue and the date of Christmas.
Many residents of the post-Soviet space who consider themselves Christians have solved this question very simply. And, without really thinking about what date Christmas is, they celebrate it twice: according to Gregorian and Julian style.