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WHEN WAS JESUS BORN?: M. M. NINAN<br />
We know that the Donatists who broke away from the church on the<br />
issue of accepting believers who under persecution cursed Christ<br />
openly around 305-310 AD celebrated the birth of <strong>Jesus</strong> on December<br />
25. This group, who were studious in their avoidance of anything that<br />
even resembled compromise with the world or hint of paganism, could<br />
have done this only because it <strong>was</strong> an old tradition of remembering the<br />
birth of <strong>Jesus</strong> on December 25 in spite of its association with<br />
astronomy as the winter solstice.<br />
There is no record of celebrating Sol on December 25 prior to CE<br />
354/362. So the likelihood is that the Romans borrowed the day from<br />
Christians and not the other way round.<br />
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