Are we Romans?

HOW THE ROMANS CELEBRATED SATURNALIA

During Saturnalia, work and business came to a halt. Schools and courts of law closed, and the normal social patterns were suspended.

People decorated their homes with wreaths and other greenery, and shed their traditional togas in favor of colorful clothes known as synthesis. Even slaves did not have to work during Saturnalia, but were allowed to participate in the festivities; in some cases, they sat at the head of the table while their masters served them.

Instead of working, Romans spent Saturnalia gambling, singing, playing music, feasting, socializing and giving each other gifts. Wax taper candles called cerei were common gifts during Saturnalia, to signify light returning after the solstice.

On the last day of Saturnalia celebrations, known as the Sigillaria, many Romans gave their friends and loved ones small terracotta figurines known as signillaria, which may have referred back to older celebrations involving human sacrifice.

Saturnalia was by far the jolliest Roman holiday; the Roman poet Catullus famously described it as “the best of times.” So riotous were the festivities that the Roman author Pliny reportedly built a soundproof room so that he could work during the raucous celebrations. (End Quote from History.com)

What was Saturnalia became Christmas as the early church gained more influence in the world. Adoption of those things which were important in the gospel of Luke chapter 2 diverted the focus from a pagan festival to a Christian celebration. The birth of Christ became a central point of the holiday.

The birth of Christ was not celebrated by the church in any form until 336 A.D. It did not become an official holiday in America until 1870. That is a long span of time and during those years many evolutions of the church occurred. Some might even say revolutions. Our focus should be drawn now to the comparison of the Roman Saturnalia to our present situation. Reading those things which the Romans did in celebration bears a striking resemblance to how much of the world celebrates Christmas today.

The only thing important is what is in our hearts, Christ.

Isaiah 7:14 English Standard Version (ESV) Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.[a]

Footnotes: a Immanuel means God is with us

Matthew 1:21 English Standard Version (ESV) “She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

Before we begin with assigned discredited accounts let us explain who would have been discredited. Mary, a virgin, is pregnant. No woman up until this time was able to get pregnant as a virgin. Even Joseph did not believe it until the angel told him to not set Mary aside in shame. It was the angel that told Joseph to name Him Jesus, A common name among the Jews.

Jesus is a transliteration of the Heb. “Joshua,” meaning “Jehovah is salvation,” i.e., “is the Savior,” “a common name among the Jews.

Immanuel is Who He is to use and a Savior is what he does. If you want to get down to the issue of name calling then we must accept that Isaiah is speaking to us and we call Him God with us. The virgin was the sign but no instruction was given to her to name the child in that word.

This is yet just one more attack by the enemy of Christ to discredit the Word. There is no contradiction once you have the right understanding.

Saturnalia, the most popular holiday on the ancient Roman calendar, derived from older farming-related rituals of midwinter and the winter solstice, especially the practice of offering gifts or sacrifices to the gods during the winter sowing season. Source History.com

That festival did not celebrate birth, it celebrated the sowing of the seed. Animals that conceived during this period would give birth in the spring. Where the church went wrong in adopting that holiday for their own purposes was in celebrating Christ birth rather than His conception.

We can agree that conception is not a proper discussion for little children. Let us not discredit the decision by the church to celebrate His birth.