Christmas in Islam: Facts, Misconceptions, and the Qur’anic View

Christmas is celebrated as the biggest festival in the world. It generates more money in a single year than what Muslims spend during ten years of Eid celebrations. But while billions of people across the globe celebrate it with lights, trees, and gifts — Muslims choose not to. Why is that? What does Islam say about Christmas, and why is it not part of Muslim tradition?

To understand this, we need to explore both the religious and historical background of Christmas and examine it from an Islamic perspective.

The Christian Belief Behind Christmas

For most Christians, Christmas marks the birth of Jesus Christ (known in Islam as Isa ibn Maryam عليه السلام). He is believed to have been born on the 25 th of December and this is the day that is celebrated as his birthday. This is not a universal belief, but, even among Christians.

The Islamic teachings state that Jesus (peace be upon him) was a mighty Prophet who was born miraculously to Maryam (Mary) but the Quran does not specify the date of his birth. Actually, even Christian scholars acknowledge that no one knows the exact date. Others even say that the date of December 25 was selected long after in history not due to any divine revelation but to make Christianity compatible with the earlier Roman pagan customs.

The Historical Context of Jesus’s Birth

The Historical Context of Jesus’s Birth

Jesus (peace be upon him) was born over 2,000 years ago in a small town in Palestine during the time of the Roman Empire. The ruler at the time was Caesar Augustus, one of the most powerful emperors of the Roman era. Interestingly, the month of August is named after him.

According to Islamic belief, Isa عليه السلام was born miraculously without a father, and from childhood, he displayed extraordinary signs. One such incident occurred when he disappeared while walking with his mother Maryam through the market. After searching for him, she found him sitting inside a Jewish temple debating with religious scholars. Even as a child, he challenged their corruption and misinterpretations of the divine message.

Why Muslims Don’t Celebrate Christmas

The Qur’an clarifies the story of Jesus’s birth in a way that differs significantly from Christian theology. While Muslims respect and honor Isa عليه السلام as a Prophet, they do not consider him the son of God or divine in any way. This is the central reason Muslims do not celebrate Christmas — because the celebration is based on beliefs that contradict the core tenets of Islamic monotheism (Tawheed).

Furthermore, the Qur’an mentions that when Maryam gave birth to Isa عليه السلام, she was sitting under a palm tree and was told to shake its trunk so fresh dates would fall for her to eat. This scene suggests a warm climate — most likely summer — not winter. This alone raises questions about the accuracy of December 25 as his actual birthday.

Jesus (Peace Be Upon Him) and His Miraculous Powers

As Jesus (Isa عليه السلام) grew older, he continued to display signs of divine favor and wisdom. According to Islamic tradition, Allah granted him miraculous powers. He could heal the sick, cure the blind, and even raise the dead — all by Allah’s permission. These miracles were not performed for fame or profit but to guide people toward monotheism and the worship of one God.

Jesus began openly preaching against the corrupt practices of the Jewish scholars of that time. He challenged their manipulation of religious texts and exposed how they took advantage of the poor, collecting charity for personal gain. In his sermons, he often called them “hypocrites” — a term that enraged the religious elite. As a result, these scholars began plotting to silence him.

The Role of the Roman Empire

At the time, Palestine was under Roman rule, and Caesar Augustus reigned as emperor. While the Jews lived in the region, they did not govern it. The Romans, being polytheists, worshipped multiple gods — including Jupiter and Saturn. As Jesus’s message gained followers, both Jewish scholars and Roman authorities began to see him as a threat.

The situation escalated when Jesus entered Jerusalem (Al-Quds). According to tradition, large crowds came out to greet him, laying palm branches in his path — a symbol of high respect. The Roman generals were astonished at his popularity and began fearing a rebellion. The Jewish religious leaders, already hostile toward him, found an opportunity. Together with Roman officials, they planned to eliminate him.

The Islamic View of the Crucifixion

The crucifixion is one of the most significant differences between the Christian and Islamic beliefs. According to Christianity, Jesus was crucified, died and resurrected on the third day. Islam, however, does not agree at all.

The Quran states that Jesus did not die on the cross. Allah instead lifted him to the heavens and it just seemed to people that he was killed. Someone else — possibly a traitor — was made to look like Jesus and was executed in his place. This belief is rooted in the following verse from the Qur’an:

“They did not kill him, nor did they crucify him — but it was made to appear so to them.” (Qur’an 4:157)

Therefore, Muslims believe that Jesus is still alive and will return to earth before the Day of Judgment to restore justice and defeat the false messiah (Dajjal).

The Rise of Christianity After Jesus

His close followers (who were thought to be 11 or 12) went on preaching the message of Jesus after he was taken to the heavens. First, they attempted to preach to the Jews, but they rejected them. Thus, they directed their activities to the non-Jewish world and Christianity started to expand.

Paul (Saint Paul) was one of the most influential people in this growth. Interestingly, Paul did not know Jesus in person. However, he turned out to be the most influential missionary of Christianity and brought many new ideas into the world, such as the notion that Jesus was not merely a Prophet but the Son of God and even divine.

The Transformation of Jesus’s Identity

Before Paul’s influence, early Christians viewed Jesus as a Prophet and servant of God. But, Paul introduced the belief that Jesus was the literal Son of God and part of a divine trinity — Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This marked a drastic shift in theology. Over time, Paul’s version of Christianity became dominant in the Roman Empire, while the original followers of Jesus who believed in strict monotheism were marginalized and persecuted.

Another key transformation was the change of Jesus’s name and appearance. His Hebrew-Aramaic name “Isa” or “Yeshua” was adapted to the Greek “Iesous,” which later became “Jesus” in English. Moreover, Jesus, who was ethnically Middle Eastern, began to be depicted as a white European man in art and culture — a move meant to appeal to the Roman and European populations who were mostly white-skinned.

Christianity Adapts to Roman Culture

The expansion of Christianity in the Roman Empire did not come without compromise. The early Christian leaders started to borrow the aspects of Roman religion to make their new religion popular among the pagan population.

An example of this is the Christmas holiday on the 25th of December. This date was initially linked to Saturnalia, a Roman pagan festival in honor of the god Saturn. It entailed partying, exchange of presents, and sun worship at the winter solstice.

Since this festival was already popular in Rome, the church leaders chose to associate the birthday of Jesus with this festival not because it was historically accurate but to make Christianity more familiar and acceptable to the Roman people.

This ruling formed the basis of Christmas as we know it today a combination of Christian ideologies and Roman paganism.

The Pine Tree and the Festival Spirit

The use of the pine tree was another Roman tradition that was incorporated into Christmas. Most trees would die during cold winters in Europe, but the pine tree was evergreen and healthy. Roman people regarded it as a sign of immortality and spiritual power. They would also decorate branches of pine trees in their homes during Saturnalia.

In an effort to combine the two religions, early Christians kept the practice and gradually began to provide it with a Christian meaning. That is how the Christmas tree tradition originated, something that is not based on the teachings of Jesus or the Bible, but on pagan winter rituals.

Islam’s Position on These Innovations

Islam is very much against the mixing of divine guidance with cultural innovations or paganism. The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ cautioned against bidah (innovation in religion), particularly when such modifications corrupt the original message of monotheism.

Because the celebration of Christmas is based on a set of beliefs that are contrary to Islamic teachings, including the divinity of Jesus, the idea of Trinity, and the birth of Jesus on a date that was adapted by paganism, Muslims do not celebrate it.

Rather, Muslims respect Jesus by accepting that he was a prophet, that he was born miraculously, that he preached monotheism, and that he will come again as mentioned in the Quran and Hadith.

Harsh Persecution and the Story of the Sleepers of the Cave

Despite efforts to blend Christianity with Roman traditions, early Christians were not always accepted. In fact, there came a time when the Roman Empire, fearing the growing influence of Christianity, began persecuting its followers. Christians were tortured, imprisoned, and even executed for their beliefs.

One of the most powerful references to this persecution appears in the Qur’an in Surah Al-Kahf, which tells the story of the Sleepers of the Cave (Ashab al-Kahf). These were young believers who fled their homes to escape religious oppression and hid in a cave. Allah caused them to sleep for over 300 years, protecting them from harm. When they finally woke up, they found that the world had changed and their faith had become dominant.

This Qur’anic story mirrors the early Christian struggle under Roman rule and is an example of how Allah protects sincere believers during times of extreme trial.

Emperor Constantine and the Christian Roman Empire

A hundred and fifty years later, there was a radical change. Constantine the Great, the Roman Emperor, turned to Christianity. Christians were now legally safe and highly influential with the most powerful empire on their side. Christianity transformed itself into a religion of persecution to an official religion of the Roman Empire.

But the Constantine version of Christianity was not the same as what Jesus taught. During his era, the Roman paganism and Christianity were at their peak of fusion. He was instrumental in the standardization of Christian doctrine such as the divinity of Jesus and the birth of Jesus on December 25. This gave rise to the official recognition of Christmas as a religious holiday but it was not founded on divine mandate but rather politics and pagan influence.

The Evolution of Christmas: From Worship to Entertainment

Over the centuries that followed, Christmas gradually lost most of its religious content and turned into a cultural occasion. Although the holiday used to be celebrated by going to church and taking time to reflect spiritually, people started to introduce music, feasts, gifts, and, finally, commercialism.

Santa Claus was one of the greatest additions to the modern Christmas. Santa was originally depicted as a green or blue-robed bishop, who gave gifts to children, inspired by a real Christian bishop called Saint Nicholas, who was a generous man. However, in the early 20 th century, Coca-Cola started a campaign of adverts featuring Santa in red and white, the colors of the brand. This Santa became legendary and nowadays he is more popular than the original teachings of Jesus himself.

Christmas, which was a small religious event, has become a worldwide commercial event- even in non-Christian nations such as India and China. Christmas is the biggest economic event on earth with more than a trillion dollars being spent every year all over the world.

The Qur’anic Account of Jesus’s Birth

The Qur’an provides a very different picture of the birth of Isa عليه السلام (Jesus) than the one associated with Christmas. According to Surah Maryam, when Maryam (Mary) experienced labor pains, she withdrew to a remote place. There, under the shade of a date palm tree, Allah instructed her:

“And shake toward you the trunk of the palm tree; it will drop upon you ripe, fresh dates.” (Qur’an 19:25)

This detail indicates that it was not winter when the baby was born. Palm trees do not have ripe dates in December, least of all in the climate of Palestine. This also questions the historical correctness of December 25 as the real birthday of Jesus- even in a Biblical and scientific perspective. Actually, most Christian scholars concur that nobody knows when he was born.

Why Muslims Respect but Do Not Celebrate

Muslims accept Jesus as a great Prophet, who performed miracles, and who delivered the message of Allah. Still, they do not think that Jesus is God or the son of God. Islam is very strict in its observance of Tawheed, which is the oneness of God and does not allow the association of partners to Him.

Christmas celebration means acceptance of fundamental Christian doctrines like the Trinity and divinity of Christ which are in direct conflict with Islamic faith. This is why despite the fact that Muslims highly regard Isa عليه السلام and his mother Maryam, they do not celebrate Christmas, they do not give gifts, and they do not decorate their houses.

The Islamic Way to Honor Jesus (Peace Be Upon Him)

According to Islam, the only way to honor any Prophet is to believe in his/her actual message, obey his/her teachings, and practice the same values he/she believed in. Isa عليه السلام taught the truth, fairness, modesty, and the belief in a single God. Muslims express their love for him by:

• Believing in his miraculous birth
• Acknowledging his prophethood
• Refuting the false claims about his divinity
• Waiting for his second coming before the Day of Judgment

In fact, the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said:

“There is no one among mankind who is closer to Jesus, son of Mary, than I am. The prophets are all brothers…” (Sahih al-Bukhari)

Conclusion: A Respectful Distance

Whereas Muslims exist in a world where Christmas is celebrated on a grand scale, Islam promotes the idea of keeping a respectful distance. We do not interfere with the rights of others to their religion but we do not engage in practices that are against our beliefs. The Christmas that is celebrated today is not just a cultural phenomenon but it is based on theological assertions that Islam cannot accept.

Therefore, Muslims do not recall Jesus as a divine figure but as a noble Prophet. They rejoice in his real message that is the message of monotheism, sincerity and submission to Allah only.