Why Don’t Jehovah’s Witnesses Celebrate Christmas?
Common misconceptions
Myth: The reason why Jehovah’s Witnesses do not celebrate Christmas is that they do not believe in Jesus.
Fact: We are Christians. We believe that salvation comes only through Jesus Christ.—Acts 4:12.
Myth: You divide families by teaching people not to celebrate Christmas.
Fact: We care deeply about families, and we use the Bible to help build stronger families.
Myth: You miss out on the “Christmas spirit” of generosity, peace on earth, and goodwill toward men.
Fact: We strive to be generous and peaceable every day. (Proverbs 11:25; Romans 12:18) For example, the way we conduct our meetings and preach is in harmony with Jesus’ instruction: “You received free, give free.” (Matthew 10:8) In addition, we direct attention to God’s Kingdom as the true hope for peace on earth.—Matthew 10:7.
Why don’t Jehovah’s Witnesses celebrate Christmas?
Jesus commanded that we commemorate his death, not his birth.—Luke 22:19, 20.
Jesus’ apostles and early disciples did not celebrate Christmas. The New Catholic Encyclopedia says that “the Nativity feast was instituted no earlier than 243 [C.E.],” more than a century after the last of the apostles died.
There is no proof that Jesus was born on December 25; his birth date is not recorded in the Bible.
We believe that Christmas is not approved by God because it is rooted in pagan customs and rites.—2 Corinthians 6:17.
Why make Christmas an issue?
Many still celebrate Christmas despite knowing about its pagan roots and lack of support from the Bible. Such persons could ask: Why should Christians take such an unpopular stance? Why make it an issue?
The Bible encourages us to think for ourselves, to use our “power of reason.” (Romans 12:1, 2) It teaches us to value the truth. (John 4:23, 24) So while we are interested in how others view us, we adhere to Bible principles even if it means that we become unpopular.
Although we choose not to celebrate Christmas ourselves, we respect each person’s right to decide for himself in this matter. We do not interfere in the Christmas celebrations of others.