Monday, October 7, 2024

The Religion Of Sexual Humanism

 The Religion Of Sexual Humanism

Bodie Hodge, M.Sc., B.Sc., PEI

Biblical Authority Ministries, October 7, 2024 (Donate)



A Fall From Grace

 

·        “Transgender kids being mutilated.

·        Drag queen story hour in libraries.

·        Female identifying biological males attack women in restrooms.

·        Homosexual “marriage” codified in US Law.

·        “Transgender” attacks and murders kids and teachers in a Christian school.

·        Why is infidelity so common?

·        Abortions increase in the U.S., reversing a 30-year decline

These types of headlines have caused many Christians to scratch their head wondering how the United States, which had been blessed by God in the past, has bowed to such madness of morality and ethics in such a relatively short time.

The United States (USA) was born out of a Christian nation (technically an Anglican nation—a protestant denomination that came out of the Reformation of the 16th century). The King or Queen of England is still the head of the Anglican Church to this day (the official Church of England).

A USA history textbook from the late 1800s and early 1900s said that the colonists were mostly protestant, along with a small percentage of Roman Catholics.[1] In 1892, the US Supreme Court Justice David Brewer ruled that the USA was “a Christian nation”.[2] In 1931, the Supreme Court again ruled that “We are a Christian people”.[3]

Mid-twentieth-century presidents like Harry Truman[4] and Dwight D. Eisenhower (who led the military defeat of the evolutionary Nazi’s in Europe) openly discussed the Christian God and His blessings on America. But today, precious few politicians would dare say such a thing!

Don’t get me wrong, there have been plenty of non-Christians—including leaders and early American fathers who were not fully on board with the Christian faith.[5] But notwithstanding, the point is that Christian morality held a strong sway in hearts and minds of many people not just in the United States but across the Western World for a long time. Yet the elderly in every Western nation today have seen Christian morality fall like a tree that was suddenly cut off at its roots.

It’s no surprise that many liberal (non-conservative) cities in the USA have been repeatedly compared to Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19)![6] But again, this is not just a problem in the United States. Sexual immorality, including homosexual actions and gender dysphoria, has now infected much ground in the Western World—England, France, Canada, Germany, Norway, Sweden, Australia, Spain, New Zealand, Portugal, and the list goes on!

If people are no longer standing on Christian morality—which gives us the standard for sexuality—then the obvious question to ask is “what religious standard are they now embracing?” This brings me to the religion of Sexual Humanism.

Sexual Humanism—The Religion

Sexual Humanism is a sub-branch of the secular forms of humanism (e.g., Secular Humanism or its various manifestations). Before we get lost in terminology, allow me to explain humanism first so that you can better understand the religion of Secular Humanism and thus its daughter Sexual Humanism.

The religion of humanism views man as the highest authority, not God. In other words, in this religious framework, man’s ideas/opinions/beliefs are elevated to supersede God and His Word (the Bible) as the supreme authority. If you have ever heard the famous mantra “man is the measure of all things”, then you’ve heard humanism preached.

Another way to put it, humanism is preached anytime man’s ideas are elevated to allegedly be greater than our omniscience (all-knowing), omnipotent (all-powerful), and omnipresent (all-seeing) God of truth.  Even if you were to take all the people who have ever lived and combine them together, we have an infinitely small amount of knowledge and power compared to the infinite God of the Bible, who created and sustains our very being into existence. 

And yet, people have the audacity to think man—and hence man’s ideas about religion, history, morality, science, and so on—is somehow greater than God! Now to break this down further, foundationally, there are only two religions in the world—just two: God’s religion and “not God’s” religion (otherwise known as “man’s” religion or humanism). Thus, the battle is really just Christianity vs. Humanism, in its broadest aspects.

All other religions (which are technically sub-religions of humanism) that do not come from God and His Word (all 66 books of the Bible) have elevated man’s ideas, one way or another, to ultimately take people away from God and His Word. Even if a religion is satanic or demonic, it still comes through the mind of man and is therefore, humanistic.

Humanism consists of many sub-religions. In addition to elevating pagan or secular ideas as the ultimate standard, some of these religions can be based on various beliefs and ideas of ancient sages. Other religions can also come from distortions of God’s Word, such as from alleged “prophets” (outside the Bible), adding books to the Bible, taking them away from the Bible, trying to change the Bible, and so forth. But regardless, in each case, they take man’s variant ideas and neglect what God has to say on the subject—whether it’s about origins, God, salvation, afterlife, morality, et cetera.

All false religions are humanistic because in every one of these religious systems, man’s ideas, either directly or indirectly, have been used to deceive people into false beliefs. Some of these humanistically influenced religions deviate only slightly from the Bible, whereas others deviate a lot. In general, there are four philosophical categories of humanism[7]:

1.      Secular [humanistic]/atheistic (i.e., materialistic/naturalistic religions that believe only matter [mass/energy] exist in the natural universe, where everything is purely governed by natural laws, and thus reject anything “supernatural”).

2.      Transcendental Mysticism, otherwise known as Eastern religions (e.g., spiritualistic religions that believe all is spirit, all is one, all is god, and thus there is nothing physical, where one’s mind can be deceived into thinking something is physical).

3.      Immanent Moralistic religions (i.e., some sort of moral code, not revealed from a god(s), but rather derived by man—they may or may not even have a god(s), but if they do, it is definitely not the true God of the Bible).

4.      Counterfeits of Christianity (e.g., religions that look or act like Christianity, which essentially pay “lip-service” to the Bible but deviate from it by being based on false beliefs, such as polytheism (e.g., Mormonism), pseudo-messianic (e.g., having false Christs) or Unitarianism (e.g., Judaism, Islam, and Jehovah’s Witnesses). These religions usually appeal to a new prophet/prophecies/prophetess and/or change the Bible to mean something else by adding books, interpretations, or subtracting books from Scripture.)

In some cases, some of these religions try “mixing” or “syncretizing” their view with another sub-religion or even with the Bible (called “syncretism” or “compromise”). But the man-made beliefs tend to supersede the plain reading of Scripture in these examples. Simply put, in each instance of humanism intermixing, God’s Word is not the absolute truth/standard in one or more areas. 


 

Sexual Humanism comes out of the secular forms of humanism (being another subset of this secular religion—a “denomination” if you will). Sexual humanists not only devote themselves to living sexually immoral lives but also to promoting these sexual sins in the culture. In many instances, they try to force others to hold to their religious views of sex and immorality in every area of culture, ranging from politics to classrooms to public company support. This is a very aggressive religion that pushes their sexually deviant agenda on all ages (including young kids and teens), governments, media, business, and even Christian churches.

All forms of sexual immorality (also called “unchastity”) are lumped under the religion of Sexual Humanism. This religious system can be further broken down into the following various tenets:

1.      Fornication

2.      Sexual Predation

3.      Homosexuality

4.      Adultery

5.      Transgender

6.      Rape

7.      Pedophilia

8.      Sodomy

9.      Bisexuality

10.   Sterilizations/Mutilations

11.   Prostitution

12.   Drag

13.   Exhibitionism

14.   Incest

15.   Pornography

16.   Sex Slavery/Trafficking (forced prostitution)

17.   Pederasty (forced homosexual sex with a castrated child)

18.   LaVeyan Satanism (a largely pro-sexual deviancy religion)

19.   Abortion (to cover sexual deviancy’s repercussions)

20.   Lust

21.   Polyamory

22.   Bestiality

23.   Sexual Harassment

24.   Infidelity

25.   Etc.

Different sexual humanists often hold to various tenets of the above listings and to various degrees as well—some are actively involved and others are merely allies (i.e., giving approval). The Bible condemns both equally in Romans 1:24-32.

Brief History of Sexual Humanism

Sexual Humanism is an ancient religion that began after sin entered the world in Genesis 3. Prior to sin, sex was perfect (Genesis 1:31) within marriage between Adam and Eve. After sin, sexual immorality began. As a point of note, marriage between close relatives was originally acceptable as Cain, Abel, and Seth (three of Adam and Eve’s many children) could intermarry with their female siblings (Genesis 5:4).[8]

Noah’s grandchildren could intermarry as well after the Flood. At the time of Moses (about 1400-1500 BC), God forbade close intermarriage (now called “incest”) in Leviticus 18.

We also see the following certain instances of sexual immorality in Scripture:

·           Sodom, Gomorrah, and the Five Cities of the Plain (Genesis 19)

·           Canaanites (Leviticus 18)

·           Benjamites (Judges 19-21)

·           Absalom (son of David) taking his father’s concubines (2 Samuel 15-20)

·           Greeks (1 Corinthians 5)

·           Romans (Romans 1)

As you can see, Sexual Humanism is often mixed in with many other false religions, and even the godly can be enticed into its practices. Though Sexual Humanism is not unified into a single organized body, there are many clubs and organizations that propagate this religion today.

Historically, pagans, in various forms, often had rampant sexual sin. Islam has child brides (pedophilia/cross generational sex), wife for a night (prostitution), and so on. Modern LaVeyan Satanism (the atheistic form) is loaded with sexual sin and pornography. 

The modern movement of deviant sexuality has increased the religion of Sexual Humanism to the forefront in our culture. Following the progression outlined in Romans 1 of being turned over to immoral lusts, the Western World has gone through the following stages in history:

A.        The Sexual Revolution (beginning in the 1960s)

B.        The Homosexual Revolution

C.         The Gender Revolution[9]

This brings us to today, the rampant worship of deviant sexual practices, transgenderism, and attacks on biblical marriage and family. God says,

“A woman shall not wear anything that pertains to a man, nor shall a man put on a woman’s garment, for all who do so are an abomination to the LORD your God.” (Deuteronomy 22:5 NKJV)

In our culture, not only do we see cross dressing, but we see the futility of sinner’s minds go so far as to have surgeries and try to alter their own bodies by mutilations to appear as the opposite sex! Such things are a sign of judgment on the unbeliever who has being given over to a debased mind that cannot think properly (Romans 1:18-28, 2 Corinthians 4:4, Ephesians 4:17-19, Titus 1:15-16, 2 Timothy 2:23-26). 

Syncretism in Churches

 Mankind was created to be fruitful and multiply, within marriage, and fill the earth (Genesis 1:28). But because we are in a sin-cursed and broken world (Genesis 3), mankind throughout history has been enticed to sexual sin. And sadly, this has had profound effects even on many local church congregations, ranging all the way from pastors to laymen.

As a result, we have seen many pastors and Christian leaders fall from grace into sexual sin—and in some cases, we’ve seen whole congregations go so far as to promote Sexual Humanism in their local congregations. Sadly, many local churches and denominations toss aside God’s Word on the subject (usually by heavily reinterpreting the plain meaning of various passages of Scripture) to support sexual sin like homosexuality, fornication, and transgender ideologies. Some “pastors” or “reverends” even go so far as to outright deny Scripture (reject God’s authority) in order to justify deviant sexual lifestyles![10] In doing so, God’s Word is demoted, thus allowing certain tenets of Sexual Humanism to be proclaimed from the pulpit!

When Christianity is mixed with another religion, especially with one like this religion, God’s clear teachings are being mocked. Fundamentally, it is no different than when the Israelites began mixing their godly worship of the one true God with other false gods like Baal, Molech, and other similar false gods. Even Solomon began offering sacrifices to pagan gods due to his sexual deviancy with pagan women who then influenced him to deny God’s Word. God was not happy with him (Nehemiah 13:26).

For clarification, this term pagan and paganism is an overview term. It is not just one religion but encompasses many types of religions, such as mythological and polytheistic religions (e.g., Baal Worship, Roman Mythology, Germanic/Norse Mythology, etc.) as well as pantheistic religions (where the universe or cosmos is all that supposedly exists). Secular religions, like naturalism or materialism, are pantheistic and so, by definition, they are pagan too. Famous secular atheist Carl Sagan used to open his show “Cosmos” with his mantra, “The universe is all that is, ever was, and ever will be”. This statement is outright pantheism, hence paganism.

In fact, when a local church or denomination accepts any form of secular religious views into their church (again, called syncretism) like big bang, millions of years, evolution, sexual immorality, etc., they are defending paganism and false secular beliefs associated with paganism. Why would a church do this? Consider what God said in Hosea:

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; Because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children. (Hosea 4:6 NKJV)

Many false religions tend to deviate on sexuality one way or another anyway. Many were saved out of such horrible situations (1 Corinthians 12:2). Like the ancient pagan religions of the past, the modern secular religious movements commonly deviate regarding sexuality. It is a sad indictment on the church when secular humanistic sexuality (e.g., Sexual Humanism) is promoted in the church in defiance of God and His Word.

What Else Does Scripture Say (NKJV)?

 Judges 21:25 In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.

·        Leviticus 18:22 ‘You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination.

·        Leviticus 18:23 ‘Nor shall you mate with any animal, to defile yourself with it. Nor shall any woman stand before an animal to mate with it. It is perversion.

·        Leviticus 20:13 ‘If a man lies with a male as he lies with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination. They shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon them.

·        Romans 1:24-32 Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them.

·        1 Corinthians 5:9-11 I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people. Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner — not even to eat with such a person.

·        1 Corinthians 6:9-11 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.

·        2 Peter 2:6  and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly;

·        Jude 1:7 as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them in a similar manner to these, having given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh, are set forth as an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.

·        [In the context Hell] Revelation 21:8 “But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”

·         [In the context Heaven and Hell] Revelation 22:14-15 Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city. But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie.

Jesus Christ is absolutely clear in His Word—recall that Jesus Christ is the Creator God (John 1, Hebrews 1, Colossians 1) and His Word—the 66 books of the Bible—are His written Word by the power of the Holy Spirit (2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:21).

Some critics may respond that these are “clobber passages”. But note that this is only done in an attempt to deceive Christians into simply tossing these biblical passages aside; and thus, view the arbitrary and fallible opinions of sinful man as superior to God and His Word (again, note the religious aspect of humanism). In other words, it is a subtle method to convince people, especially Christians, to deny God in this particular instance and instead follow the religion of sexual humanism.

But actually, if we look at this claim logically, the term “clobber passages” is just an epithet/emotive language fallacy.[11] There is no logical reason to toss the Bible aside regarding these passages. These passages, which are essential to understand what God is saying on the subject, are not to be tossed aside. The fact is that it is better to be clobbered with the truth in a gentle and humble effort to help someone come to repentance by the power of the Holy Spirit (e.g., 2 Timothy 2:24-26) than for that person to spend an eternity in Hell with the infinite wrath of God enduring for all eternity.

Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. (1 John 2:3-4 NKJV)

Let’s look at this from another biblical perspective—God commands purity. Regarding sexuality, we are to be pure and keep sexual activity within marriage between a naturally born man and naturally born woman.[12]

Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers God will judge. (Hebrews 13:4 NKJV)

Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity. (1 Timothy 4:12 NKJV)

 “But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. (Matthew 5:28 NKJV)

The Newest Established Religion of the USA—Sexual Humanism

In Government Schools

Today, we’re seeing the religion of Sexual Humanism being promoted with little restriction at state schools (schools that are funded by the state and public tax dollars). A dead giveaway—LGBT flags—are waved in grade schools and grammar schools! And with the increasing number of LGBT clubs, homosexuality and transgenderism are not only being encouraged but now also being imposed as standard beliefs at many state schools.

Stop for a moment. Ponder this. Adults are talking to underage kids about sex and encouraging it—usually without the parents’ knowledge! Sometimes it is done to help “keep it a secret” from parents. Normally, such people are called sexual predators. But if it is done with the label of “teacher”, and it’s backed by administration, then it’s (somehow) called being “loving” or “compassionate” to the student!

Look at the parallel of this—what if an intermediary manager at a company was talking and encouraging odd sexual activity and pushing their employees—often privately—to engage in strange sexual activities…and then that manager told them not to inform their supervisor? This is called sexual harassment, which normally results in people getting fired and companies getting sued.

Yet, state schools do it openly with underage children and many times principals and school boards encourage imposing this on unsuspecting children. Sexual abuse is rampant in state schools by the way. Research done in 2015 in the USA revealed some shocking statistics:

  • “Of children in 8th through 11th grade, about 3.5 million students (nearly 7%) surveyed reported having had physical sexual contact from an adult (most often a teacher or coach). The type of physical contact ranged from unwanted touching of their body, all the way up to sexual intercourse.” [13]
  • “This statistic increases to about 4.5 million children (10%) when it takes other types of sexual misconduct into consideration, such as being shown pornography or being subjected to sexually explicit language or exhibitionism.”[14]

Note, these stats do not include senior year, when many of the kids are turning 18, but surely this abuse doesn’t suddenly just stop then! So as a conservative number, 1 out of every 10 children in state schools in the United States were sexually abused—bear in mind that these were the students that weren’t afraid to speak up. If you include the proclamation of sexual deviancy, like homosexuality or transgenderism, then this number would likely shoot up drastically. This statistic also doesn’t include peer-to-peer issues, merely teachers, coaches, and instructors.

When looking at sexual harassment in state schools, statistics conducted by American Association of University Women published 2022 state:

·        “Unfortunately, sexual harassment and violence continue to be prevalent in elementary, middle, and high schools across the United States. According to AAUW’s own research, nearly half of students in grades 7-12 experience sexual harassment.”[15]

At a undergraduate college level, it doesn’t get any better:

·        “Sexual harassment and assault are also shockingly prevalent on college and university campuses. AAUW’s own research revealed that two-thirds of college students experience sexual harassment. Studies have also found that approximately 26% of all female undergraduate students and 6.8% of all male undergraduate students have experienced sexual assault.”[16]

It doesn’t take a genius (it’s not rocket science!) to figure out that teachers talking to kids about all sorts of sexual activity can easily lead to sexual harassment and abuse from both teachers and their peers who are now thinking sexually about those surrounding them. The fact that state-funded government schools are encouraging underage sexuality and LGBT beliefs on children of all ages is a recipe for sexual predation. Parents beware what you are sending your children to at a government funded elementary, middle, high school, and college/university level. 

If you don’t want your children eaten by lions, then don’t throw them into a lion’s den. Sounds pretty simple doesn’t it? So, why do so many parents who say they don’t want their children sexually abused and taught homosexuality and transgenderism send them to state schools where such wicked things are rampant?[17] [18]

Codified In Law

Law is a biblical concept. God is the ultimate Lawgiver and He has imposed certain laws for man, for our good.

But we know that the law is good if one uses it lawfully, knowing this: that the law is not made for a righteous person, but for the lawless and insubordinate, for the ungodly and for sinners, for the unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, for fornicators, for sodomites, for kidnappers, for liars, for perjurers, and if there is any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine, according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God which was committed to my trust. (1 Timothy 1:8-11, NKJV)

It has been like this from the beginning. Even deeper to ponder is that God upholds the laws of nature and the laws of logic for existence to be possible (Hebrews 1:3). Being made in the image of a law-giving God, He also gave us dominion over the world to which we can rule over (Genesis 1:26-27).

When man sinned in Genesis 3 and committed high treason against God, we became corrupt in every part of our being. In man’s unrighteousness, it led to judgment with a global Flood (Genesis 6-8). After this, man’s heart was still hard (Genesis 8:21). God gave the Law through Moses—Genesis through Deuteronomy. The Law is defined in detail with judges, executives, inheritance laws, marriage laws, laws against sexual immorality, and so on. The Law of Moses is often summed up in The 10 Commandments (from Exodus 20, NKJV):

3  “You shall have no other gods before Me.

4  “You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth;

5  you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me,

6  but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.

7  “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.

8  “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.

9  Six days you shall labor and do all your work,

10  but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates.

11  For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.

12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the LORD your God is giving you.

13  “You shall not murder.

14  “You shall not commit adultery.

15  “You shall not steal.

16  “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

17  “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.”

 However, the Law can be further summed up as Matthew 22 says (NKJV),

 

35  Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying,

36  “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?”

37  Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’

38  “This is the first and great commandment.

39  “And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’

40  “On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”

 Romans 13:9-10 reiterates this passage of Scripture. With that being said, nations all over the world have laws. The problem is that many of these laws are not the best. When they mimic God’s law, they are good (do not murder, do not steal, and so on). When they have not been modeled around the law of an all-knowing God, they fall short.  Simply put, a nation with laws based on man’s word will always fall short compared to a nation with laws based on God’s word.  

This brings me to US laws that have deviated from God’s standard over the years. For instance, in the most powerful show of Sexual Humanistic power, our government has now demoted marriage [between a man and woman] and reinterpreted it to include homosexuality, which is sexual immorality! This is called “pseudomarriage” (or “false” marriage).

The government, in an obvious abuse of its power, is trying to force this new view of pseudomarriage on Bible-believing Christians—demanding that they acknowledge their new definition over what God says marriage is and a violation of the civil rights of Christians. This is an obvious case of the religion of humanism being imposed on the nation at the highest level. This decision was defended by the US Supreme Court in Obergefell v. Hodges on June 26th, 2015.

In other words, the government is demanding that Christians must bow down and worship their humanistic view of pseudomarriage and deny what God clearly says on this subject. If not, they can be sued and attacked in many ways.

My dear Christian brethren, this is no different from bowing down to the golden statue and the threat of the fiery furnace in Nebuchadnezzar’s Day in Daniel 3. Even in the New Testament, Christians in the early church who didn’t bow to government-imposed religion were often attacked, beaten, arrested, and tortured, even to the point of death. (And sadly, this is type of persecution is still happening to Christians around the world today in countries that are very hostile to the Christian faith, such as Afghanistan, Iran, Somalia, North Korea, and even Canada, Poland, and the UK to a certain degree!)

Consider the plundering of the property of Christians and their early struggles and sufferings in Hebrews 10:32-34:

But recall the former days in which, after you were illuminated, you endured a great struggle with sufferings: partly while you were made a spectacle both by reproaches and tribulations, and partly while you became companions of those who were so treated; for you had compassion on me in my chains, and joyfully accepted the plundering of your goods, knowing that you have a better and an enduring possession for yourselves in heaven. (NKJV)

To Christians reading this, the secular world is attacking our faith in an effort to impose secular religions on us—such as Sexual Humanism’s tenets like pseudomarriage. We must stand firm and keep our eyes on the prize of heaven, because this temporary world will one day be destroyed, and sinners will be judged for all eternity if they do not repent and turn to Jesus for their salvation. Consider the governing authorities orders in the apostles’ day in Acts 5:27-29 and 5:40-42:

And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest asked them, saying, “Did we not strictly command you not to teach in this name? And look, you have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and intend to bring this Man’s blood on us!”  But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: “We ought to obey God rather than men. (Acts 5:27-29 NKJV)

And they agreed with him, and when they had called for the apostles and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name. And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ. (Acts 5:40-42 NKJV)

God defines marriage, which means, regardless of what fallible/sinful mankind says, any pseudo-marriage definition is not marriage. (Rather, it’s merely a mirage!) The Supreme Court has made errors in their decisions in the past like the Dred Scott vs. Sanford decision on March 6, 1857 (regarding slavery) or the Roe vs. Wade decision on January 22, 1973 (regarding the killing of innocent children).

Thankfully, by God’s grace, these horrible decisions were finally reversed. Pray that God will reverse these horrible attacks on marriage by those who unwittingly impose the religion of Sexual Humanism from the highest positions in the US government on Christians. Bear in mind that similar laws have been imposed in other Western Nations too! Oh how our once-Christianized nations have fallen indeed.

Why do the nations rage, And the people plot a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, And the rulers take counsel together, Against the LORD and against His Anointed, saying, “Let us break Their bonds in pieces And cast away Their cords from us.” He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; The Lord shall hold them in derision. (Psalm 2:1-4 NKJV)

Every king, president, supreme court Justice, governor, dictator, and government leader of any nation that disobeys the Lord’s standards will still stand before our holy God in judgment and give an account for their actions.

Now therefore, be wise, O kings; Be instructed, you judges of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear, And rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, And you perish in the way, When His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him. (Psalm 2:10-12 NKJV)

But for Christians, those who put their trust in the Lord, be still and know that God is God. For we know that God, who is above these rulings, hates these iniquitous decrees (Isaiah 10:1-4). And remember, God still sits on His throne with all authority in heaven and on earth (Matthew 28:18). It should be a reminder that we should be crying out to God for help in all matters and continuing to pray for our leaders (Philippians 4:6-7; 1 Timothy 2:1-2)—to do good and repent of their sin and turn to Christ. 

Conclusion

 If this religion has influenced you, I want to encourage you to consider the claims of Jesus Christ, the Son of God—His death, burial, and resurrection. I also want to encourage you to repent of your sin (this means to turn from it in a humble way and sorrowfully return to God). Then find a local Bible-believing church that can help you grow in your new faith. 

The religion of Sexual Humanism is permeating our Western Culture. We have now had entire generations of kids trained in this religion—and yet many of them have no idea this religion was imposed upon them.

Any time man’s deviant ideas about sex are elevated to supersede what God says in the Bible, a red flag should immediately go up in your mind—saying ‘this is Sexual Humanism’. It is time to get back to God’s Word in every area of life, especially when it comes to sex, marriage, and laws regarding sex and marriage.

Though a sinner does evil a hundred times, and his days are prolonged, yet I surely know that it will be well with those who fear God, who fear before Him.  But it will not be well with the wicked; nor will he prolong his days, which are as a shadow, because he does not fear before God. (Ecclesiastes 8:12-13 NKJV)

 Originally published here; Reprinted by Permission.

 



[1] D. H. Montgomery, The Leading Facts of American History, Ginn & Company Publishers, Boston, Massachusetts, 1890-1903, p. 143. 

[2] Dewey Moede, U.S. Supreme Court 1892: America is a Christian Nation, FGGAM.org, October 22, 2021, https://www.fggam.org/2021/10/u-s-supreme-court-1892-america-is-a-christian-nation/.

[4] In a public letter to Roman Pope Pius XII, President Harry S. Truman wrote, “Your Holiness, this is a Christian Nation.”

[5] For example, see Greg Frazer, The Religious Beliefs of America’s Founders: Reason, Revelation and Revolution, University of Kansas Press, 2012.

[6] For example, from a recent TIME article: “These Are The Most Godless Cities In America”, January 22, 2014, https://time.com/1541/godless-cities-in-america/.

[7] There are several ways to categorize false religions such as monotheistic, polytheistic, or atheistic, etc., but I’m using the philosophical method often used by presuppositional philosopher and apologist Dr. Greg Bahnsen but I’m calling secular forms as a distinct unit. For more, see the multi-volume set World Religions and Cults by Bodie Hodge and Roger Patterson, Master Books, Green Forest, AR. 

[8] For more information, see Chapter 6 of The New Answers Book 1, “Cain’s Wife”, https://answersingenesis.org/bible-characters/cain/cains-wife-who-was-she/.

[9] For more on these movements see the book, The Gender and Marriage War, Bodie Hodge, Ken Ham and Every Foley, Answers in Genesis, 2021.

[10] For a recent example, see the discussion between Apologia Church pastors (Jeff Durbin and Dr. James White) and “reverend” Brandon Robertson, discussing the so-called topic of “LGBT Theology”, in which Brandon clearly denies Scripture as being the Word of God, and thus elevates his own sexual ethics and ideas as the ultimate standard: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ti0FzdOHW_8&ab_channel=ApologiaStudios.

[11] Spotting logical fallacies is a very useful tool for Christians when defending the faith. Go here to learn more about how to spot common logical fallacies: https://answersingenesis.org/logic/logical-fallacies-series; and see also: B. Hodge, Abbreviated Fallacies of Reason, Biblical Authority Ministries, July 30, 2020, https://www.biblicalauthorityministries.org/2020/07/logical-fallacies.html.

[12] Definition of Man and Woman, Answers in Genesis, https://answersingenesis.org/about/definition-man-and-woman/.

[13] Sexual Abuse by Teachers is on the Rise, The Children’s Center for Psychiatry, Psychology, & Related Services, July 11, 2016, https://childrenstreatmentcenter.com/sexual-abuse-teachers/.

[14] Ibid.

[15] Quick Facts: Sexual Harassment and Violence in School, American Association of University Women, January 2022, https://www.aauw.org/app/uploads/2022/08/Sexual-Harassment-and-Violence-in-School-Quick-Facts-Jan-2022.pdf.

[16] Ibid.

[17] This is not to say parents should never send their kid(s) to state schools. But if you are a parent with kid(s) in a state school system, then you need to be aware of the humanistic (religious) indoctrination happening to your kid(s) and be prepared for it. As Voddie Baucham puts it, “We cannot continue to send our children to Caesar for their education and be surprised when they come home as Romans!”

[18] This also means we should stop using the unbiblical (and illogical) argument that children are to be “missionaries” in state schools. Like a soldier that first needs to train for battle and be properly equipped before entering a war, children need to be properly trained and equipped—fully putting on the armor of God—before they can defend against the hostile attacks from the secular culture. Much more could be said on this, but suffice to say, children cannot be proper missionaries in any worldly system without first receiving the proper biblical training.

Wednesday, September 25, 2024

Sapphires

Sapphires Don’t Take Millions Of Years To Form

Bodie Hodge, M.Sc., B.Sc., PEI

Biblical Authority Ministries, September 25, 2024 (Donate)

 


Introduction

In the secular religion, the claim is that sapphires took millions of years to form. The story goes that deep within the Earth, heat and pressure slowly formed sapphires over long ages, such as through slow continental collisions.

These sapphires were supposedly transferred to the surface by magma or deposited in lava formations after an eruption. Sometimes secularists claim it was crustal plate movements that brought sapphires to the surface. Famous London jeweler David Morris states:

“No one is exactly sure how long-ago sapphire gemstones were formed. However, we do know that the sapphires which are discovered today were formed around 150 to 200 million years ago.”[1]

Morris goes on this say:

“Sapphire stones are formed deep within the Earth when aluminium and oxygen atoms combine under high heat and pressure. They develop slowly over millions of years in particular types of rocks.”[2]

I asked Google, “how are natural sapphires formed?” Google’s AI spit out the first sentences as:

“Sapphires are rare and valuable gemstones that are formed naturally over millions of years deep within the Earth's crust”[3]

Tyler Hayden, writing for the Natural History Museum quotes Dr. Aaron Celestian, Curator of Mineral Sciences that:

‘“If you look closely at it, you might see some bands of light-colored, dark color, light, dark, dark, light, dark, light, dark, and those are representative of the growth patterns of the mineral,”…“If there's a period of time where there's fast crystal growth, then one of those bands is going to be big. Or if there's a period of time where there's lots of impurities around, then one of those bands is going to be darker in color. So they're recording all those events that are taking place all in that one crystal.” There’s millions of years of geologic happenings in one dazzling blue package.’[4]

The point is that many have espoused millions of years of unobserved and unrepeated time as the origin of sapphires. This is a religious commitment, not a scientific one, and I think that is worth noting.

Interestingly, secular researchers have challenged some of these claims—whether they meant to or not—based on research samples in volcanic deposits from Eifel, Germany. Let’s take a look at an overview of this research.

Eifel Research?

Researchers collected sapphire samples from volcanic rock layers in Eifel, Germany, from Cretaceous rock (Flood rock). They studied these samples and concluded that sapphires within them were formed far more recently, during a newer eruptive phase of the volcano when either magma or lava was flowing. It was when the lava or magma was interacting with the clayey material near the surface, introducing the necessary impurities to form sapphire.

The point is that these sapphires were not formed deep in the Earth under extreme heat and pressure over long periods of time and then transported to the surface. Instead, they were actually formed near the surface with the heat, necessary elements, and sufficient pressure to do the job rapidly before cooling and solidifying.

What this means is that deep time is not necessary for the formation of the sapphires in this region—just the right conditions: heat, some pressure, and the right elements in the right quantities. In fact, that was all that was ever needed. “Millions of years” were never required to form natural sapphires.

What Is Sapphire?

Sapphire is a crystal oxide in the corundum mineral family—aluminum oxide (Al₂O₃) to be specific. When it contains certain trace elements, it can take on different tints and colors. Rubies are also in the corundum mineral family. When Al₂O₃ contains iron, it turns deep red and is called a ruby.

So rubies and sapphires are essentially the same thing, with different types of trace elements in them. Rubies are a specific form with iron traces, while sapphires result from other trace elements instead of iron.

Other gemstones have entirely different chemical compositions. For example, diamonds are pure carbon (C), emeralds are Be₃Al₂(SiO₃)₆, topaz is Al₂SiO₄(F,OH)₂, amethysts are SiO₂, and carnelian (sardion/sardius) is also SiO₂, with traces of iron oxide (hematite), which gives it a reddish to orangish hue.

Corundum (aluminum oxide, e.g., Al₂O₃) usually contains traces of titanium, iron, vanadium, or chromium, but sometimes other trace elements as well. If it were completely pure, without any trace elements, it would be clear, as the trace elements give it its luster.

As a crystal, sapphires and rubies have a crystal structure. There are various types of crystalline structures, such as body-centered cubic (BCC), face-centered cubic (FCC), or hexagonal. Sapphires and rubies, being aluminum oxide, have a natural hexagonal crystal structure.

The Bible mentions rubies 8 times (Job 28:18; Proverbs 3:15, 8:11, 20:15, 31:10; Isaiah 54:12; Lamentations 4:7; Ezekiel 27:16), and sapphires are mentioned 12 times (Exodus 24:10, 28:18, 39:11; Job 28:6, 28:16; Song of Solomon 5:14; Lamentations 4:7; Isaiah 54:11; Ezekiel 1:26, 10:1, 28:13; Revelation 21:19). Many other gemstones are also mentioned in Scripture.

Does It Require Millions Of Years To Form Sapphires And Rubies?

But does it really take millions of years to make these precious gems? No. It is common to find gemstones like sapphires (and rubies) in volcanic deposits. This indicates a relationship between rapid production and volcanic conditions.

Furthermore, researchers have known how to make sapphires and rubies in labs for years, and lab-grown gems are commonly found in jewelry today. No long ages are required. One of the primary methods mimics the natural process of heat, pressure, and the presence of trace elements.

Solution Process (e.g., Hydrothermal Synthesis): This method mimics the natural process quickly and is less expensive. The gems are not as large as those made by Flame Fusion (the next method).

Flame Fusion or Melt Processes (e.g., the Verneuil Process or the Czochralski Process): This method can grow up to 4 inches of sapphire crystal per hour and is more expensive.

A third method utilizes a solution process through either (1) Flux Growth, where solid material is melted, and dissolved minerals from that melt form crystals as the solution cools, or (2) Hydrothermal Growth, used to make synthetic quartz. This process is expensive but also requires heat, pressure, and dissolved minerals in a watery solution to synthesize crystals.

The point is that sapphire can be made rapidly without long ages (e.g., an inch of sapphire per 15 minutes, for example). The Eifel research is a good confirmation that natural sapphire formation defies the long-age scenario in favor of recent, rapid synthesis, similar to what is done in the lab.

Though the Eifel researchers wouldn’t affirm a biblical timeline, as they still wanted to leave open a couple of million years (based on their worldview)[5], the research fits nicely into the biblical framework. Volcanic activity was prominent during the Flood and early post-Flood periods, especially during the rapid mountain-building phases. I would love for future researchers to study a recent, active volcano and take a closer look at the production of natural sapphire with rapid formation in mind.



[1] David Morris, History of the Sapphire Stone, September 4, 2023, davidmorris.com, https://davidmorris.com/history-of-the-sapphire-stone/.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Google AI, Asked on September 23, 2024.

[4] Tyler Hayden, The Splendor of Sapphires, Natural History Museum (L.A. County), accessed September 23, 2024, https://nhm.org/stories/splendor-sapphires.

[5] Stephanie Pappas Sapphires form inside the fiery hearts of volcanoes, not deep in the mantle like we thought, Live Science,  August 6, 2024, https://www.livescience.com/planet-earth/geology/sapphires-form-inside-the-fiery-hearts-of-volcanoes-not-deep-in-the-mantle-like-we-thought.


Friday, August 30, 2024

Was Christmas Pagan?

Was Christmas Pagan?

And Other Attacks on Christmas

Bodie Hodge, M.Sc., B.Sc., PEI

Biblical Authority Ministries, August 30, 2024 (Donate)

Every year I get “love letters”—can I call them that? You know, those letters blasting me with the same old claims that “Christmas was pagan.” For some reason, I’m supposed to repent of not believing the pagans when they insist that their “holiday” is the true one. I’m chastised for not giving Christmas back to the pagans and locking myself in my house from the four Advent Sundays to the end of the Twelve Days of Christmas.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not criticizing or poking fun at people for not celebrating Christmas, the resurrection, or their own birthdays. But I think it is wise to refute these claims from time to time as a reminder that pagans usually don’t get it right. Polytheistic and pantheistic pagans—including believers in evolution, Roman and Greek mythology, ancestor worship, Wicca, etc.—attack Christianity with fervor.


We need to remember that false religions are not neutral but have an active opposition for Christ and His Word (e.g., Matthew 12:30; Luke 11:23; Titus 1:15). Sadly, there are some Christians that buy into what these pagans are claiming, and they become tools to advance paganism, even if they don’t realize it. So let’s look at these common claims.

The first one to plead his cause seems right, Until his neighbor comes and examines him. (Proverbs 18:17; NKJV)

What Is a Holiday?

A “holiday” is a “holy day.” Thus, it is predicated on the concept of absolute holiness, which is by definition, the God of the Bible. He is perfectly holy.

A holiday is literally a “holy day,” but the name is derived from the Old English hāligdæg (hālig meaning “holy” and dæg meaning “day”). “Holy” means “sacred, spiritually perfect, hallowed, and godly.” This is why we call the Bible the Holy Bible. “Bible” literally means “the book” or more properly, the collection of books from a Holy God. Furthermore, it is why Christians strive to live a godly and holy life as God patterned for man in the life of Jesus Christ (1 Peter 1:16).

The God of the Bible began instituting holy days in the Old Testament as types and shadows of Christ (Colossians 2:16–17):

  1. Weekly Sabbath (Exodus 16:23–29, 20:8–11)[1]
  2. Passover (Exodus 12:1–4; Leviticus 23:5; Numbers 9:1–14, 28:16; Deuteronomy 16:1–7; Matthew 26:17; Mark 14:12–26; John 2:13, 11:55; 1 Corinthians 5:7; Hebrews 11:28)
  3. Feast of Unleavened Bread (Exodus 12:15–20, 12:39, 13:3–10, 23:15, 34:18; Leviticus 23:6–8; Numbers 28:17–25; Deuteronomy 16:3–4, 16:8; Mark 14:1, 14:12; Act 12:3)
  4. Firstfruits (Exodus 23:19, 34:26; Leviticus 23:9–14; Deuteronomy 26:5, 26:9–10)
  5. Feast of Weeks (Exodus 23:16, 34:22; Leviticus 23:15–21; Numbers 28:26–31; Deuteronomy 16:9–12)
  6. Feast of Trumpets (Leviticus 23:23–25; Numbers 29:1–6; 2 Samuel 6:15)
  7. Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur—Leviticus 16:1–34, 23:26–32; Numbers 29:7–11)
  8. Feast of Tabernacles/Booths (Exodus 23:16, 34:22; Leviticus 23:33–43; Numbers 29:12–34; Deuteronomy 16:13–15; 1 Kings 8:3; 2 Chronicles 7:1; Zechariah 14:16–19; John 7:2)

There was also a Jubilee year. After seven cycles of seven years (49 years), the fiftieth year was the Jubilee! The point is that God gave holidays to man. In a nutshell, holidays exist by being predicated on the existence of the Holy God of the Bible.

The New Testament continues in this tradition with the Lord’s Day, which is the first day of the week (Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 16:2; Revelation 1:10) and honors when Christ resurrected. The Breaking of Bread—also called the Last Supper, Lord’s Supper, Communion, or the Elements—is a New Testament regular observance of the Passover fulfilled in Jesus for the New Covenant. Jesus, the Christ, is the final and perfect Passover Lamb. He was sacrificed and resurrected as the ultimate Victor once for all. The Lord’s Supper celebrates Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection.

Celebrating new holidays to the Lord is a Christian freedom. As the Bible says,

One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind. He who observes the day, observes it to the Lord; and he who does not observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it. He who eats, eats to the Lord, for he gives God thanks; and he who does not eat, to the Lord he does not eat, and gives God thanks. (Romans 14:5–6; NKJV)

In the Old Testament, we also find the Feast of Queen Esther (Esther 2:18). This festival was instituted by the king of Persia. Solomon once instituted a 14-day feast and celebration (1 Kings 8:65). We also see something like this in the intertestamental period: a new festival—Hanukkah.

Hanukkah

Just as man is made in the image of a “holiday-making” God (Genesis 1:26–27) who instituted feasts and festivals, so man has often honored God with new feasts and festivals. The godly Jews, for example, honored God with a holiday when they developed an eight-day winter festival called Hanukkah or Festival of Dedication (Hanukkah is derived from the word “dedication” in Hebrew). It was to rededicate the second temple, and one tradition is to progressively light a special nine-branch candleholder called a menorah. This is why this holy day is sometimes called the Festival of Lights.

Jesus had no problem joining this celebration at the second temple of God in Jerusalem approximately 2,000 years ago (John 10:22–23). Jews often celebrate this, but so do many Christians as a way of honoring God.

There is nothing inherently wrong with a Christian celebrating Hanukkah, as Christ did as well. This is not a holiday prescribed in the Bible, and yet Jesus shows us the freedom we can have by making new holidays dedicated to the Lord.

This freedom does come with some exceptions though. The Bible commands we abstain from certain things, and if feasts and festivals dishonor God by utilizing things from which God commanded us to abstain—then they become a problem. As a quick check, be sure to watch out for holidays openly trying to honor false gods or forcing practices such as these that were listed in Scripture:

How Long Ago Were Christians Celebrating Christmas?

Christmas Day (also called the Nativity of Our Lord), is celebrated on December 25. Christmas has been widely celebrated by underground Christians and documented by Christians since about AD 200. Christmas became even more popular when Christianity was allowed to be out in the open after the Edicts of Toleration and Milan in AD 311 and 313 respectively.

Popular early church father Sextus Julius Africanus wrote the Chronographiai around AD 221, which put the conception of Christ on March 25—nine months prior to December 25, the date being used for Christmas. For context, this was about 125 years after the last of Jesus’ apostles died. Hippolytus of Rome also mentions December 25 in the first decade of AD 200 in his Commentary on Daniel. Some Christians still celebrate an ancient feast on March 25 called the Feast of Annunciation (also called Conceptio Christi, Solemnity of the Annunciation, Lady Day, or Feast of the Incarnation), celebrating the immaculate conception of Christ.[2]

Is December 25 the actual day of Christ’s birth? That is a great question with mixed reviews, but what we know is that widespread celebrating of December 25 in churches across the Roman Empire as the birth and first nativity of Christ was very early.

In the AD 300s, Ephraim the Syrian, writing about the first nativity or Christmas, points out that, “All men honour the day of Thy birth. Thou righteous One, keep Thou the glory of Thy birth; for even Herod honoured the day of His Birth!”[3] John Cassian points out the connection between Christ’s birth and its connection to Epiphany (the Twelfth Day of Christmas) in the late AD 300s and early AD 400s:

In the country of Egypt this custom is by ancient tradition observed that—when Epiphany is past, which the priests of that province regard as the time, both of our Lord’s baptism and also of His birth in the flesh, and so celebrate the commemoration of either mystery not separately as in the Western provinces but on the single festival of this day.[4]

December 25 was defended by Sulpitius Severus in consultation with Sabinus and Rufinus in Sacred History (Historia Sacra) chapter 27 in AD 403. The point is that Christmas, the birth of Christ, was recognized and celebrated from the early days of the church.

Xmas

Christmas is also denoted as X-mas/X’mas/Xmas. The letter Chi (X) in Greek was used as the shorthand notation of Christ, being the first letter of the name Christ, or more specifically, Christos (Χριστός).

Today, a few people unwittingly think if they use “Xmas,” they are deleting the name of Christ from this holiday because of anti-Christian sentiment. However, Xmas is an ancient Christian usage for Christmas whether they realize it or not.

Did Christmas Come From a Pagan “Holiday”?

To start, there is nothing “holy” about anything pagan. Now that that is cleared up, there are some modern claims about Christmas—particularly that it is born out of pagan celebrations, such as Saturnalia, Sol Invictus, or Winter Solstice.

Saturnalia

Saturnalia is the popular Roman mythology festival to the god Saturn (god of the harvest and time) in the Roman pantheon. It was celebrated on December 17.

December was the tenth month in the Roman calendar. In the old Roman calendar, the year began with March (in honor of the god Mars, who is the Greek equivalent of Ares and the Germanic equivalent of Tiwas—these are just ancestor-worshipped corruptions of Noah’s grandson Tiras[5]). The second month was April—which is the Roman word for “second.” Many obviously recognize certain prefixes for several later months like Sept-ember (7), Oct-ober (8), Nov-ember (9), and again, Dec-ember is 10.

Let me explain a little more about the old Roman calendar prior to ~700 BC. They had a 10-month calendar with the fifth and sixth months meaning five and six respectively:

  • Martius
  • Aprilis
  • Maius
  • Juniius
  • Quintilis (5)
  • Sextilis (6)
  • September
  • October
  • November
  • December

The remaining ~61 days, were just left to winter—not divvied up as months. About 700 BC, Numa Pompilius (a leader in Rome) added January as the first month before March (Martius) and added February after December. About 450 BC, February was moved to be between January and March—for reasons unknown to this author.

This calendar up to this point was a lunar calendar where each month was about 29–30 days. But the month-based year was off from the solar year (by about 10–11 days), so they had to add an intercalary month (like most do with lunar month-based years) called Mercedonius in Latin.

Essentially, every few years they add a thirteenth month to get the calendar back to being in line with the seasons. Julius Caesar, about 46 BC, decided to adjust the calendar to be a permanently solar calendar of 365 1/4 days, which keeps the seasons in line but requires adjusting of days within each month. This is called the Julian calendar.

In the original calculation of the Julian calendar, the solstice was on December 25, but by AD 300 the Julian calendar had drifted to have the solstice on December 23. It continued to move earlier until the adoption of the Gregorian calendar (which slightly adjusts the Julian calendar to fix this drift).

Why is all this important to Saturnalia? Some have suggested that Saturnalia was a holiday associated with the winter solstice. However, Saturnalia ends at the latest on December 23. Any celebration of Saturnalia prior to Julius Caesar still had many more days until the winter solstice. It came close to overlapping the winter solstice after Julius Caesar, but it took a few hundred years to properly overlap.

Saturnalia was originally on December 17. Later Saturnalia was expanded into a three-day (then a seven-day) festival marking the end of the autumn sowing season. According to historical records, Saturnalia lasted seven days in Caesar’s and Cicero’s days.

During Emperor Augustus Caesar’s day, it was shortened to three days (particularly for government officials like the courts).[6] Thus, it would have ended on December 19 in his reign. During Emperor Caligula’s reign, it was extended to five days.[7] So it was finished on December 21.

This festival was celebrated after the fall planting season so that the people (most of whom had agricultural jobs) were more available to “party,” if you will, in Rome and other provinces. But if you know much about the provinces of Rome, they weren’t Roman and they didn’t even follow Roman gods. So to them—whether in Judea or Egypt or elsewhere—it was merely a time off from customary work and a good time to travel and move if you were required to (think of Christmas break or summer break today). I can’t help but imagine if this was the perfect time for a carpenter to move from Nazareth to Bethlehem to get set up to be registered.

Regardless, this festival was always finished before Christmas. So, if Christians were taking this pagan day and making a Christian alternative, they failed miserably! Any way you look at it, they missed it by about a week!

Saturnalia is the equivalent festival of the Greek Kronia with the corresponding Greek god called Chronos/Chronus/Kronos/Cronus, the god of harvest and time (the name reflects time, think of chronology, chronometer, etc.). So although this might have been a huge festival for Rome and Greece, the rest of the provinces weren’t really celebrating a Roman god.

Interestingly, the Roman Saturn (where we get the name Saturday and the planet Saturn) and the Greek equivalent, Chronos, is a corruption of Noah. An ancient historian Eupolemus (as preserved by Eusebius of Caesarea in the early to mid-AD 300s) writes,

The Babylonians say, that the first was Belus, called Cronus or Saturn (that is, Noah), and of him was begotten another Belus and Chanaan (it should be read Cham), and he (i.e. Ham) begat Chanaan, the father of the Phoenicians; and of him another son, Chus, was begotten, whom the Greeks call Asbolos, the father of the Ethiopians, and the brother of Mestraim, the father of the Egyptians.[8]

You should be able to recognize Chanaan/Canaan in this list, whom God judged and gave their land to the Israelites led by Joshua. Also, Belus is a title passed from Noah to his son Ham/Cham and so forth. Although not mentioned here, this title ultimately passes as far down as Nimrod, the son of Cush (Chus), and was corrupted in Bel and Baal, which is where the pagan Baal worship in the Old Testament came from—merely a form of ancestor worship.

But of significant note, Chronos or Saturn is Noah. It is a corruption of Noah to a godlike status. It was ancestor worship of a great, godly man. Sadly, this makes sense. Noah and his early progeny lived longer lifespans. Noah lived 350 years after the flood; Shem lived 500 years after the flood, and so forth.

As the ages subsequently drop, these patriarchs outlived great, great, great grandchildren. Noah, for instance, outlived his great, great, great-grandson Peleg![9] Shem lived until Isaac was about 50 years old. So, many of these patriarchs were looked at as though they were “immortals” or “gods.” These “gods” still died—they just outlived everyone else.

Another thing that happens is that some of these patriarchs and their descendants get mixed up in their orally passed-down accounts. And the accounts themselves get warped, paganized, and embellished.[10]

Fascinatingly, Noah, the oldest patriarch after the flood, who became the first farmer and trainer of farmers (Genesis 9), is corrupted into the “god” of harvest and time. The point is that Saturn/Chronos, which is where Saturnalia and Kronia come from, is actually based on a biblical person: Noah. So that day really shouldn’t belong to pagans in the first place.

Sol Invictus

Sol Invictus means “unconquered sun.” Sol means “sun” and is where we get the name “solar,” for instance. Sol Invictus (or more properly Dies Natalis Solis Invicti [Birth of the Unconquered Sun]) was the celebration of the Roman sun god in the latter stages of the Roman Empire and also the patron of Roman soldiers. It was a form of sun-worship.

Sol Invictus, however, came into existence well after we have recorded history that Christmas was widely celebrated. Sol Invictus was first started by Roman emperor Lucius Aurelian in AD 274. If anything, the pagans took Christmas—which was already a widespread festival for Christians—and wanted a pagan alternative.

Winter Solstice

It is doubtful that Sol Invictus is related to the winter solstice. One could see how it relates to the sun since the winter solstice is the day with the least amount of sunlight on earth (in the northern hemisphere).

If Sol Invictus was meant to be associated with the winter solstice, then they missed it by a couple of days—even by the Julian calendar that they were using when they came up with that celebratory day. The shortest daylight portion of the year is the winter solstice. It falls between December 20–23, whereas Sol Invictus falls on December 25.

Solstices, as well as the equinoxes, mark the changing of the seasons. The summer solstice marks the day with the most sunlight hours and least amount of darkness. The winter solstice marks the day with the most darkness and least amount of sunlight—again, in the northern hemisphere. The opposite is true in the southern hemisphere—which is why Australia, Chile, Argentina, South Africa, New Zealand, etc., have their summer in our winter.

The spring and fall equinoxes have equal amounts of daylight and darkness. You could probably see the reflection of the same Latin root word aequus for “equal” in the name “equinox.” More to the point, the godly, since Adam’s creation in Genesis 1, have utilized the sun, moon, and stars to mark these seasonal events (Genesis 1:14), including each new moon (where the name month comes from). There is nothing inherently wrong with acknowledging these “turning-point” days for the seasons and months and even celebrating them in light of Genesis 1 (1 Samuel 20:24).

Was Jesus Born in March/April Because the “Shepherds Were Keeping Watch over Their Flocks by Night”?

Another common claim is that Jesus couldn’t have been born in December because it was not the lambing season. Let me explain this argument. Luke 2:8 says,

Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. (NKJV)

So, the argument goes that this takes place in the lambing season (when the ewes give birth to lambs) and therefore they were out in the fields at night during this time to watch for lambs being born to help and protect both ewe and lamb from predators. The argument then goes that this would have been in the early spring around March or April. Thus, those holding this view say that a December birth is untenable.

First, we don’t know this was lambing season. Even if it were not lambing season, in those days, shepherds were still tasked with keeping watch over the flock in shifts by night due to predators. It may have been a smaller number of them than a typical peak lambing season.

But let’s say it was lambing season. Let’s be a little more accurate. The range of lambs being born is from December to May, peaking around March and April. Farther north, it becomes later; farther south, it goes as early as December. When sheep give birth depends on when the ewes become pregnant (called “tupping”), which happens as early as late summer but usually later fall and has a five-month gestation.

Diligent shepherds should be ready and keeping watch in December. If anything, when looking at this subject in more detail, December is indeed within the range of lambing season. So, this shouldn’t be used to rule out a December date for Christ’s birth.

Christmas Trees Are Forbidden in Jeremiah?

Jeremiah 10:2–8 says:

Thus says the LORD: “Do not learn the way of the Gentiles; Do not be dismayed at the signs of heaven, For the Gentiles are dismayed at them. For the customs of the peoples are futile; For one cuts a tree from the forest, The work of the hands of the workman, with the ax. They decorate it with silver and gold; They fasten it with nails and hammers So that it will not topple. They are upright, like a palm tree, And they cannot speak; They must be carried, Because they cannot go by themselves. Do not be afraid of them, For they cannot do evil, Nor can they do any good.” Inasmuch as there is none like You, O LORD (You are great, and Your name is great in might), Who would not fear You, O King of the nations? For this is Your rightful due. For among all the wise men of the nations, And in all their kingdoms, There is none like You. But they are altogether dull-hearted and foolish; A wooden idol is a worthless doctrine. (NKJV)

This passage of Scripture is a warning about following the gentiles in their ways of making false wooden idols and the futility of worshipping such false gods. Pagan craftsmen cut down trees, obtain wood from it, cut it up, craft it, and use silver and gold; and the idols still have to be fastened to stand upright and not fall over! This type of alleged god is worthless and can do neither good nor evil! It shows how dull-hearted and foolish one must be to think these little wooden statues are gods and have power!

When someone uses Jeremiah 10 to argue that Christmas trees are forbidden, then they commit an equivocation fallacy. They are equivocating that idols and Christmas trees are the same thing. But they are not. Christmas trees are not gods and not items of worship. Furthermore, I’ve never even heard of single Christian who has ever bowed down to a Christmas tree and worshipped it as a god. That would be futile indeed.

Some might argue that the trees are cut and they are brought into the house and decorated with gold- and silver-looking tinsel. They seem to think this is a good response, but by this standard, then the temple of God built by Solomon would be called into question! Consider the wood cut and brought into the temple and the craftsmen’s intricate work and overlaying it with gold and so on. 1 Kings 6:23–35 says,

In the inner sanctuary he made two cherubim of olivewood, each ten cubits high. Five cubits was the length of one wing of the cherub, and five cubits the length of the other wing of the cherub; it was ten cubits from the tip of one wing to the tip of the other. The other cherub also measured ten cubits; both cherubim had the same measure and the same form. The height of one cherub was ten cubits, and so was that of the other cherub. He put the cherubim in the innermost part of the house. And the wings of the cherubim were spread out so that a wing of one touched the one wall, and a wing of the other cherub touched the other wall; their other wings touched each other in the middle of the house. And he overlaid the cherubim with gold.

Around all the walls of the house he carved engraved figures of cherubim and palm trees and open flowers, in the inner and outer rooms. The floor of the house he overlaid with gold in the inner and outer rooms.

For the entrance to the inner sanctuary he made doors of olivewood; the lintel and the doorposts were five-sided. He covered the two doors of olivewood with carvings of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers. He overlaid them with gold and spread gold on the cherubim and on the palm trees.

So also he made for the entrance to the nave doorposts of olivewood, in the form of a square, and two doors of cypress wood. The two leaves of the one door were folding, and the two leaves of the other door were folding. On them he carved cherubim and palm trees and open flowers, and he overlaid them with gold evenly applied on the carved work. (ESV)

The difference is that this wood in the temple was not to be an idol and not to be worshipped but to give glory to God.

The history of Christmas trees begins in Europe (most say Germany; others have it in Baltic States) in the 1500–1600s. It has nothing to do with worshipping trees or false gods, but like the temple, its use is meant to give glory to God in Jesus Christ. The evergreen trees in winter were a reminder of a more perfect time. These trees in the home originated as “paradise trees” representing the garden of Eden and made their way into Christmas decor.

How Did Saint Nicholas Become Santa Claus?

Falling on December 6 is St. Nicholas’ Day—which is during the Christmas Advent season and runs for the four Sundays preceding Christmas. Advent is like a month of Sundays counting down to Christmas. St. Nicholas of Myra was a bishop (minister/pastor) in the AD 300s. He died on December 6, hence the day that is used to celebrate his life. He was an orphan who became a wealthy man living in what we now call Turkey but which was traditionally known as Asia Minor (the town of Myra was later called Kale and is now called Demre).

St. Nicholas used his wealth to help the less fortunate (for example, he kept some poor young girls out of forced prostitution by paying their debt). He was said to have hung stockings of coins for the poor on windowsills and so on. For his faith in Christ, he was persecuted by Roman Emperor Diocletian and put in jail for a time. He was released by Emperor Constantine about AD 325.

Because St. Nicholas’ Day always falls in the Christmas season, it makes sense why Christmas today has a corrupted version of him. Saint Nickolas is corrupted into Santa Claus (think: Sainta niclaus).

Sadly, attributes of God are applied to St. Nicholas. This paganized version of St. Nicholas sees all, judges between naughty and nice, gives blessings (gifts), can be everywhere at the same time, etc. It’s better to leave St. Nicholas as St. Nicholas. As a result, many Christians today avoid using Santa Claus as a deceptive tool on children.

Conclusion

When it comes to Christmas, the Bible simply doesn’t tell us the day Jesus was born. We know it was at nighttime though. Early Christians were uniformly celebrating Christ’s birth throughout the Roman Empire on December 25 by about AD 200. They commented on it without defense as though it were common knowledge.

Christmas was not, however, born out of a pagan holiday. Should you celebrate? That is up to you. Consider the words of Holy Spirit through Paul the apostle.

So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ. (Colossians 2:16–17; NKJV)

 

Originally published here on December 17, 2022; reprinted by Permission

[1] See Hosea 2:11 and Colossians 2:16.

[2] The Feast of Annunciation was originally April 6 in some churches, but it represented more than just the conception then. It also collectively included things like Christ’s birth, circumcision, and baptism.

[3] Ephraim the Syrian, “On the Nativity of Christ in the Flesh,” Hymn III, AD 306–373, https://www.biblestudytools.com/history/early-church-fathers/post-nicene/vol-13-gregory-ephraim-and-aphrahat/ephraim-syrus/hymn-iii.html.

[4] John Cassian, Conferences of John Cassian, Chapter 2, “Of the custom which is kept up in the Province of Egypt for signifying the time of Easter,” AD 360–435, https://www.ccel.org/ccel/cassian/conferences.ii.xi.ii.html.

[5] Bodie Hodge, Tower of Babel (Green Forest, AR: Master Books, 2013), 174–179.

[6] Macrobius, Saturnalia, I.10.4.

[7] Suetonius, Life of Caligula, XVII; Dio, Roman History, LIX.6.4.

[8] Eusebius of Caesarea, Praepar. Evangel. l. 9. c. 17. p. 419.

[9] Hodge, Tower of Babel, 199–204.

[10] This is why we see the Saturn/Chronos figure convoluted into Japheth, Kittim, or Ham (some of Noah’s descendants in Genesis 10) in various accounts.

 


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