"XMAS" AN ABBREVIATION, NOT A NEGATION OF CHRIST

1. X does not stand for cancellation in the word Xmas. X is the Greek letter Chi (pronounced like "key"). When shorthand was used  in writing, X was used for "ch" and CHRISTMAS was written as "Xmas," CHARACTER as "Xter." The use of Xmas for Christmas was introduced in the 16th century and had no connection with atheism.

The explanation that  Xmas was an attempt by atheists and secularists to remove the religious root of Christmas and reduce it to merely social or secular festivity is a misconception.

2. Constantine was not alive in 533 AD. He was born in 272 and died in 337 AD. Saying he did something in 533 is placing him 200 years after his death.

3. There was no church called "Roman Church" when Constantine existed.

4. Constantine was not the head of the Church. He was the first Emperor of the Roman empire who became baptized and therefore, became the first Christian emperor. He banned persecution against Christianity. Consequently, Christianity thrived in Rome and in all places under the domain and influence of the Roman empire. That was how Christianity became the official religion of the empire.

5. Pagan feasts that existed previously were abolished and replaced with Christian feasts. December 25th was the feast day of the "Sun-god" when people worshipped the sun as a god. When Christian feasts replaced pagan ones, the celebration of the birth of the Son of God replaced the worship of the sun-god. That was how Christmas replaced the worship of the "Sun-god" - worshipping the sun as God - on 25th December.

6. The word CATHOLIC came into use in 110 AD and introduced by Ignatius of Antioch. That was 162 years before Constantine was born.

7. There was no Roman Church that later became the Roman Catholic Church. There was no Church called "Roman Church" in distinction from other churches because the whole of Christianity was one church called Catholic as an adjective meaning universal (that Christianity was universal). It was not the name of one church to distinguish it from other churches since no other church existed then.

8. The Catholic Church was the whole of Christianity and the world headquarters was in Rome. It was in 1054 AD that Christianity split into EAST and WEST but still remained one Catholic Church. Eastern Church had its own separate headquarters. The Western church remained with the Pope and known as the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Church was called Eastern Catholic Church. Even at that, the whole of Christianity remained one Catholic church but having two rites, the Eastern rite and the Western or Roman rite.

9. The first time that we had a church that was not Catholic was 1517 when Rev. Fr. Martin Luther broke away and formed his own church.
By Rev. Fr. Robert Agbo