Why did Christians do away with the Sabbath and dietary laws?
Question:
I don’t really consider myself a Christian anymore, more of a defender of Scripture. I just wanted to see someone answer why most Christians have done away with Sabbath (or replaced it), have done away with the dietary laws, and have adopted such horrible holidays such as Christmas as some sort of feast to Jesus.
Thanks in advance!
Answer:
The answers to your various questions are significantly different.
First, it was not Christians who "did away" with the Sabbath, but Jesus himself. Jesus did not exactly do away with the Sabbath. In fact, he said that not a jot or a tiddle (little accent marks) will disappear from the Law (of Moses). Jesus did not come to abolish the Law but to fulfill it. This is described in Matthew 5:17-20. Because Jesus fulfilled all the requirements of the Law for us in his sacrifice on the cross, we as Christians are not required to fulfill the Law of Moses. This includes the laws about ceremonial sacrifice, about ceremonial cleanness and about the Sabbath. Paul made this clear in Colossians 2:16 (and check the context with regard to the Law). The same is true with the dietary laws. In fact, Jesus "declared all foods clean." (Mark 7:17-19).
The case with Christmas is very different. Jesus certainly did not institute a celebration of his birthday. Neither did the apostles. Besides, December 25th certainly is not the birthday of Jesus. Christmas was started as a "Christian" holiday as a foil to the Pagan holiday Sol Invictus. This happened in the fourth century when the church wanted to counteract the Pagan influence on the church at a time when it was becoming more worldly. To be honest, although this holiday is not part of primitive Christianity, I can see the wisdom of the early church to celebrate the birth of Jesus rather than have the disciples be tempted to take part in the alternative Pagan holiday. I am kind of agnostic on the original creation of Christmas–whether it was a good or a bad idea. As for the current way Christmas is celebrated in the West, with all its Pagan ritual and gross, materialistic activities, I do not feel the need to defend this as a Christian event. There is nothing Christian about these things. However, let me tell you that I really enjoy the time with my family. To describe Christmas as "horrible" is a bit over the top in my opinion, but to me Christmas is really not a Christian holiday. Please do not blame Christianity for the way Christmas is celebrated in the West.
John Oakes
