Christmas Archives - Astrology readings and writings by Lynn Hayes

Happy Yule and Christmas, and preparing for the New Year

artist unknown

A portion of this article has been posted several times since 2011. Anyone who has read this blog for more than five minutes will know that I am rather skeptical not only of Christianity but of any organized religion. Still, I love the Christmas season, with its pagan-derived trappings of pine trees decorated with colorful balls and lights, songs of celebration, and the sharing of food and sweets with family and friends. After all, the week of the Winter Solstice has been celebrated for thousands of years as Yule. And even if it’s only for a week, it’s lovely to hear people of all religions talk about peace on earth and goodwill to men.

The timing of the celebration of the birth of the Christ on December 25th likely comes from the pre-Christian Roman holiday Sol Invictus celebrating the invincible Sun and the patron saint of Rome and her soldiers which was established in 274 ce. Christianity was established as the official religion in Rome in the mid 300s.

Around this time of year people always ask about the astrological meaning of the Star of Bethlehem, and an MSNBC article presents a compelling case for the actual birthdate of Jesus based upon the astronomical Star of Bethlehem:

Historical records and modern-day computer simulations indicate that there was a rare series of planetary groupings, also known as conjunctions, during the years 3 B.C. and 2 B.C. [astronomical groupings, not zodiacal.]

The show started on the morning of June 12 in 3 B.C., when Venus could be sighted very close to Saturn in the eastern sky. Then there was a spectacular pairing of Venus and Jupiter on Aug. 12 in the constellation Leo, which ancient astrologers associated with the destiny […]
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By Lynn Hayes|2022-12-25T08:27:08-05:00December 25th, 2022|Holidays|1 Comment

Friday repost: Christmas and the Sun of God

Every Friday I dig into the archives to repost something of meaning in today’s world. Today I offer this alternative history of the religion of Christmas – please note that I mean no disrespect to any individual religion and apologize in advance for any of my readers who are offended.

The fact that our Judeo-Christian mythos is a derivation of earlier religions and legends has moved into the mainstream, and the idea that the divinity of Jesus has parallels with other gods is no longer a shocking idea. Most of us realize now that Jesus wasn’t born on Christmas day – shepherds don’t watch their flocks in December, even in ancient Judea – and that the Christmas holiday was adopted because it was already being celebrated as the Winter Solstice in the pagan world.

The Winter Solstice is celebrated as the time when the dying god (the Sun) is resurrected again – the Sun is reborn and the days begin to lengthen. From the book The Christ Conspiracy:

# The sun “dies” for three days at the winter solstice, to be born again on December 25th.

# The Sun of God is “born of a virgin,” which refers to both the new or “virgin” moon and the constellation of Virgo.

# The Sun’s “birth” is attended by the “bright star,” either Sirius/Sothis or the planet Venus, and by the “Three Kings,” representing the three stars in the belt of Orion.

# The sun at its’ zenith, or 12 noon, is in the house or heavenly temple of the “Most High;” thus, “he” begins “his father’s work” at “age” 12. Jordan Maxwell relates, “At that point, all Egypt offered prayers to the “Most High God.”

# The Sun enters into each zodiac sign […]

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By Lynn Hayes|2020-11-03T13:27:09-05:00December 27th, 2019|Holidays|7 Comments

Happy Yule and Christmas to my dear readers!

Father Winter

A portion of this article was originally posted in 2011. Anyone who has read this blog for more than five minutes will know that I am rather skeptical not only of Christianity but of any organized religion. Still, I love the Christmas season, with its pagan-derived trappings of pine trees decorated with colorful balls and lights, songs of celebration, and the sharing of food and sweets with family and friends. After all, the week of the Winter Solstice has been celebrated for thousands of years as Yule. And even if it’s only for a week, it’s lovely to hear people of all religions talk about peace on earth and goodwill to men.

The timing of the celebration of the birth of the Christ on December 25th likely comes from the pre-Christian Roman holiday Sol Invictus celebrating the invincible Sun and the patron saint of Rome and her soldiers which was established in 274 ce. Christianity was established as the official religion in Rome in the mid 300s.

Around this time of year people always ask about the astrological meaning of the Star of Bethlehem, and an MSNBC article presents a compelling case for the actual birthdate of Jesus based upon the astronomical Star of Bethlehem:

Historical records and modern-day computer simulations indicate that there was a rare series of planetary groupings, also known as conjunctions, during the years 3 B.C. and 2 B.C.

The show started on the morning of June 12 in 3 B.C., when Venus could be sighted very close to Saturn in the eastern sky. Then there was a spectacular pairing of Venus and Jupiter on Aug. 12 in the constellation Leo, which ancient astrologers associated with the destiny of the Jews.

Between September of 3 B.C. […]
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By Lynn Hayes|2022-09-13T12:48:49-04:00December 25th, 2017|Holidays|1 Comment

Happy Winter Solstice holiday!

Winter Solstice 2015 Winter Solstice card by Ernestine Grindal

It’s only recently, when Pluto (the destroyer of paradigms) moved through Sagittarius (the sign of shared belief and theology, among other things such as travel, world culture, etc.) that a healthy skepticism over religious dogma has moved into the mainstream. Since that time it has become easier to find scholarly articles about the origin of the Christmas holiday that celebrates the supposed birth of Jesus on December 25th. In fact, in 2012 even Pope Benedict questioned the fact of Jesus’s birthday on the 25th in the year zero.

Pope Benedict makes some controversial statements in the book. He writes of how the Gospel of Matthew claims that Jesus was born when Herod the Great ruled in Judea. However, given that Herod died in 4 B.C., Jesus must have been born earlier than Exiguus originally documented. Arguments surrounding Jesus’ exact date of birth have confounded scholars for centuries. Even the Gospel of Luke contends that the birth took place when Quirinius was governor of Syria in A.D. 6.

Regardless of the date of the actual birth of Jesus, the holiday that we now call Christmas wasn’t even celebrated on December 25th until 336 c.e. and that date was formally established a few years later by Pope Julius I. This date is nine months after the Anunciation, the announcement by the Angel Gabriel of the coming birth of Jesus, which is commonly celebrated on March 25th. March 25th is, of course, very near the Vernal Equinox. December 25th is very near the Winter Solstice.

The solstices and equinoxes (cardinal points) have an important correlation to the tropical Zodiac – they mark the date on which the Sun moves […]

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By Lynn Hayes|2022-09-13T12:31:48-04:00December 22nd, 2015|Holidays|4 Comments

Musings on Yule, 2011

Still, I love the Christmas season, with its pagan-derived trappings of pine trees decorated with colorful balls and lights, songs of celebration, and the sharing of food and sweets with family and friends. After all, the week of the Winter Solstice has been celebrated for thousands of years as Yule. And even if it’s only for a week, it’s lovely to hear people of all religions talk about peace on earth and goodwill to men.

Around this time people always ask about the astrological meaning of the Star of Bethlehem, and a recent MSNBC article presents a compelling case for the actual birthdate of Jesus based upon the astronomical Star of Bethlehem:

Historical records and modern-day computer simulations indicate that there was a rare series of planetary groupings, also known as conjunctions, during the years 3 B.C. and 2 B.C.

The show started on the morning of June 12 in 3 B.C., when Venus could […]
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By Lynn Hayes|2019-11-10T19:49:22-05:00December 24th, 2010|Holidays|2 Comments