Recent Posts

We just got through the Christmas holiday season, and the way this day and time of year has been commercialized, and as a parent of two young children, my concern level has been elevated to an all-time high. Should Seventh-day Adventist parents celebrate Christmas with their children?

Your question is an important one at a time when our world has become increasingly commercial, despite the great needs around us. This is a good time at any stage of one’s life to ponder the significance of Christmas, and whether it serves a purpose noble enough that Christians should participate in it.

If you type the word Christmas in the search box of Wikipedia.org, the free online encyclopedia, you will find lots of information about how Christmas came to be, and its observance by Christians and non-Christians alike. Briefly, it is a yearly event celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ, most commonly observed on December 25 by billions of people around the world.

While it is true that no one knows exactly when Jesus was born, by the early to mid-fourth century, the Western Christian Church—essentially the Roman Catholic Church—placed Christmas on December 25. The practice was followed over the centuries by other Protestant denominations, including Anglicans, Lutherans, Presbyterians, Methodists, and others.

Ellen G. White offers counsel on this topic that Seventh-day Adventists, and Christians of other faith communities, can find solid guidance on how to navigate this global phenomenon. [i] White essentially suggests that is not easy to ignore this celebration. However, she counsels that Christmas should not be turned into a day of self-indulgence; rather, this day can be used to turn the minds of our children to God and His cause. The habit of gift giving—an important part of Christmas—can be employed to good use, as parents give gifts to their children that shares with them a clearer picture of God.

We especially like the counsel to make the Christmas season a time to help those who are less fortunate. Ellen White wrote: “Christmas and New Year celebrations can and should be held in behalf of those who are helpless. God is glorified when we give to help those who have large families to support” (The Adventist Home, p. 482).

Our prayer is that in the years ahead Christmas will be a time for you and your children to celebrate the value of giving; and by so doing become the heart and hands of Jesus, receiving great blessings yourselves in the process.


[i] “Christmas,” The Adventist Home, 1952.

AUTHORS

Willie Oliver, an ordained minister, pastoral counselor, family sociologist, and certified family life educator, is director for the Department of Family Ministries at the world headquarters of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. 

Elaine Oliver, a licensed clinical professional counselor, educational psychologist, and certified family life educator, is associate director for the Department of Family Ministries. You may communicate with them at Family.Adventist.org or at HopeTV.org/RealFamilyTalk.

The original version of this story was published on Adventist World on January, 2015.

Christmas for Christians

This is a good time at any stage of one’s life to ponder the significance of Christmas

Read MoreLong right arrow

What to Do With Differences?

What happens when you just can’t agree with your spouse?

Read MoreLong right arrow

Words That Hurt, Words That Heal

Being misunderstood is an awful experience, especially if you are a teenager and the person doing the misunderstanding is your parent.

Read MoreLong right arrow

Looking for Hope

How can we handle anxiety during this pandemic?

Read MoreLong right arrow

Let’s Not Waste the Pandemic

One year into our current world health crisis, it may be the time to ask “what,” not “why.”

Read MoreLong right arrow

Stay Together

Everything that is a meaningful accomplishment takes effort, patience, and dedication.

Read MoreLong right arrow

Ministering to Grieving Children: Jesus’ experience of grieving and restoration

Learning from the example of Jesus, church pastors, and members alike can aid in the healing and long-term spiritual health of a child who has experienced a significant loss.

Read MoreLong right arrow

In Need of a Do-over!

Have you had the kind of day where you just wanted to stop and have a do-over? I have certainly experienced a few of those during this pandemic.

Read MoreLong right arrow

Fundamental Belief on Marriage and the Family

Marriage was divinely established in Eden and affirmed by Jesus to be a lifelong union between a man and a woman in loving companionship. For the Christian a marriage commitment is to God as well as to the spouse, and should be entered into only between partners who share a common faith. Mutual love, honor,…

Read MoreLong right arrow

We do not see or hear from our son

What you have described is not all that unusual. Much of what you shared has to do with the rituals you and your son have developed over the years about connecting with each other on a regular basis.

Read MoreLong right arrow

My Marriage Is Over

Anyone can change the habit of referencing their busyness in conversation by recognizing the habit exists, and by being intentional about choosing a different response. You will be surprised at how much more pleasant and relaxing your conversations will become with your cousin.

Read MoreLong right arrow

Improving Time Together

Anyone can change the habit of referencing their busyness in conversation by recognizing the habit exists, and by being intentional about choosing a different response. You will be surprised at how much more pleasant and relaxing your conversations will become with your cousin.

Read MoreLong right arrow

What to do After Graduation

Feeling a bit lost, lonely, left out, or falling behind are not unusual emotions after completing an important stage in life like high school. It is quite common to feel out of sorts, even nostalgic, when experiencing a major life transition like going from high school to college or to a vocation.

Read MoreLong right arrow

When Marriage Is More Down Than Up

We’ve said this before, but it bears repeating: when couples are dating, opposites attract. But in marriage, opposites are more likely to repel.

Read MoreLong right arrow

A Marriage That Goes the Distance

God’s intent from the beginning was for permanence and intimacy in marriage when he said in Gen 2:24, 25: “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.”* 

Read MoreLong right arrow

Drawing the Line in the Sand

We encourage you to set sensible boundaries (rules) with your daughter and see to it that they are kept. There is no need to be harsh. Nevertheless, you must learn to be firm and kind at the same time to give your daughter the best chance at success.

Read MoreLong right arrow

Money Matters

The truth is, regardless of how much money a couple or family has, they almost always believe they need more. Family counselors suggest that most of these arguments are not really about the money. Rather, arguments about finances may indicate that a couple has been unable to develop an open and well-organized couple system.

Read MoreLong right arrow

Feelings of Resentment

Resentment and bitterness are byproducts of unresolved conflict or feelings of hurt that persist because forgiveness has not taken place.

Read MoreLong right arrow

Living Together Without Being Married

We believe God loves you and wants to save you and your partner regardless of what has happened or is happening in your lives

Read MoreLong right arrow