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A Jolly Folly?
The Propriety of the Christian Endorsement of Christmas
Allan J. Macdonald
A Jolly Folly?
The Propriety of the Christian Endorsement of Christmas
Copyright © 2017 Allan J. Macdonald. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in critical publications or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without prior written permission from the publisher. Write: Permissions, Wipf and Stock Publishers, 199 W. 8th Ave., Suite 3, Eugene, OR 97401.
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paperback isbn: 978-1-5326-1791-1
hardcover isbn: 978-1-4982-4300-1
ebook isbn: 978-1-4982-4299-8
Manufactured in the U.S.A. November 28, 2017
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the ESV.
(The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
A section of the chapter entitled ‘Significance for the Christian’ includes an article published in an online Blog and authored by Dwight L. Longenecker. Used by permission.
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For
Jane my dear and
faithful in every way wife
and
my precious children
Lydia
Nathan
Susanna
Abigail
Daniel
Priscilla
&
Ruth
without whom this book
would have undoubtedly
been completed a very
long time ago!
Preface
The contents of this book probably contain little that readers have not considered in the past. The book’s purpose is to stimulate further consideration and reflection on the subject—the religious endorsement of Christmas by Christian churches. The stimulus for the book itself arose out of my exposure to a whole new branch of Christ’s church, after experiencing the repeated failure of Presbyterianism to govern churches righteously and having become convinced that the covenant theology of most Reformers (first and second Reformation periods) on the ordinance of Baptism was not based on a sound and logical interpretation of Scripture.
It appeared to me that they had, in a measure, been blinkered by the dogma and tradition of Rome, the non-Apostolic church-state connection they all grew up with and the fear of being viewed as too extreme, thus leading them into a position where they imposed an artificial presupposition on the Scriptural data, namely that Roman Catholic infant baptism had to be retained at all costs. This, I believe, not only resulted in the peculiar view that God’s everlasting covenant of grace applied to both the elect and the non-elect,1 but also in an ambivalence toward holy days because of the church-state connection.
Having abandoned Presbyterian convictions and embraced the Reformed Baptist world of autonomous, independent churches, I was struck by the widespread prevalence of Christmas and Easter services. It was not what I had expected and so began a search on my part to understand why this current practice prevailed and what its modern genesis was. I am not suggesting that if the church were to discard holy days such as Christmas, it would bring a reviving work of God or solve all of the church’s problems. The master sin of pride is what is to be discarded before such blessing can be expected and too many churches are too far from this to raise present expectations. However, is the discarding of holy days such as Christmas likely to please God and bring his favor? The suggestion we arrive at, in conclusion, is that from what we know of him in his Word, such a likelihood is very real.
You may not agree with the conclusions offered herein but we trust that even if that is your position, the book will nevertheless prove to be a useful analysis of and resource on this topic.
Soli Deo Gloria
1. Turretin, Institutes, 2:195; Blake, Vindiciae Foederis, 189; The outstanding exception to the majority view amongst Reformers, which these two references typify, is the covenant theology of John Owen (described by C. H. Spurgeon as “probably the most profound divine who ever lived”).
Introduction
What is Christmas all about? Should the Christian endorse it with joy or reject it as folly?
A subject such as this is not fundamental to salvation, therefore, we have to bear that in mind when discussing it. It is a subject we are obliged to the Lord to discuss with toleration and respect for other Christians who adopt a view different to ours. The believer’s sins are completely and eternally atoned for by Christ, yet the Day of Judgement will frustrate many present expectations regarding which believers lived their lives most pleasing to Christ.
The view held and presented here is that, on balance, Christmas is something that Christians should not recognize or practice in any religious sense. The view is founded upon a Reformed/Calvinistic interpretation of Scripture, with a mind-set which seeks to implement in every area of life the precept of Matt 28:18–20:
And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
In the minds of most people on earth, Christmas is the festival most people associate with Christianity. However, the Lord Jesus did not do Christmas, neither did his disciples and apostles. Following the ascension of the Savior, none of his followers that we know of celebrated his birth at any time of the year, or any “holy” day on December 25.
The earliest of the church fathers
