God’s birthday refers to the day of the year that is celebrated as the birth or incarnation day of God by various religions. As God is generally considered eternal, all-powerful, and existing outside of human timeframes, assigning a specific date of birth is largely symbolic or metaphoric. However, many faiths have attached significance to particular days as marking the “birth” or incarnation of their divine figure for theological reasons and spiritual celebration.
When is God’s Birthday Celebrated?
There are a few major religious celebrations that are considered the birthday or incarnation day of God:
Christmas – December 25th
In Christianity, Christmas on December 25th is considered the birthday of Jesus Christ. Jesus is considered by Christians to be God incarnate in human form, so Christmas marks the day of God becoming man on Earth.
The date of December 25 was chosen by the early church sometime in the 4th century AD to coincide with pagan winter solstice festivals. The intent was to mark Jesus’ birth with a day already imbued with celebratory meaning and symbolism for the public.
While the exact birth date of the historical Jesus is unknown, December 25 has been the traditional Christmas date celebrated by the Catholic Church, Protestant churches, and Orthodox churches for over 1600 years. Many popular Christmas traditions, like gift-giving, decorating Christmas trees, and Santa Claus, are rooted in the celebration of Jesus’ birth.
Annunciation – March 25th
March 25th is celebrated as the Annunciation in Catholic and Orthodox Christianity. This marks the date when the angel Gabriel informed the Virgin Mary she would miraculously conceive Jesus.
As Mary was told she would be “overshadowed” by the Holy Spirit and conceive Jesus directly from God, this event is seen as the incarnation or start of Jesus’ divinity. Nine months after March 25th is December 25th, lending symbolic significance to the December Christmas date.
Guru Nanak Jayanti – November
In Sikhism, the birthday of Guru Nanak on the full moon day in the month of Kartik (November) is known as Guru Nanak Jayanti or Guru Nanak Gurpurab. This celebrates the birth of the first Sikh Guru in 1469, who is considered a prophet that established the religion. The day involves religious observances, pilgrimages, festivals, and readings of the Guru Granth Sahib scriptures in Gurdwaras.
As Guru Nanak is revered for his divine revelations central to Sikhism, Guru Nanak Jayanti honors his advent as a holy enlightened figure and incarnation of the divine in the faith. The date is calculated based on the lunisolar Hindu calendar, so changes year-to-year.
Krishna Janmashtami – August/September
Janmashtami is the Krishna birthday celebration observed on the eighth day of the month of Bhadra in the Hindu calendar, which falls in August or September. This observance marks the birthday of Krishna, an avatar of the god Vishnu.
Stories describe Krishna’s miraculous birth and his divine revelations later in life. As one of the most popular and important Hindu gods, Janmashtami is a major religious festival and public holiday in India. It is celebrated with dance ceremonies, prayer rituals, fasting, night vigils, and offerings to Krishna.
Are There Other Gods’ Birthdays?
Along with the major religious observances above, there are a few other divine birthdays celebrated:
Mawlid – Islam
Mawlid al-Nabi is the observance of the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad, founder of Islam. While not considered divine in mainstream Islam, Muhammad is regarded as the last prophet sent by God. The date is observed by some Muslim groups and nations but disputed by others as a non-Islamic innovation.
Sol Invictus Festival – Roman
Several pagan Roman emperors celebrated December 25th as the birthday festival for the sun god Sol Invictus. This helped establish the date as auspicious for later Christian adoption as Jesus’ birthday.
Ra’s Journey – Ancient Egyptian
In the Egyptian religion, the sun god Ra was thought to be born each morning. Followers would celebrate Ra’s mystically renewing himself in the sky daily.
When are God’s Birthdays Not Celebrated?
While the major monotheistic religions of Christianity, Islam, and Sikhism mark divine birthdays, some faiths do not, including:
Judaism
Judaism generally does not celebrate birthdays, as the date of birth is not seen as spiritually significant. More emphasis is put on the anniversary of a person’s death. God’s “birthday” is not marked, as the eternal divine is beyond human concepts like being “born.”
Hinduism
Aside from Krishna, Hinduism generally does not celebrate the birthdays of its major gods like Shiva, Vishnu, Rama etc. The gods have complex, cyclical lifetimes in Hindu cosmology, making birth anniversaries less relevant. For most deities, birth dates are unknown and not fixed.
Buddhism
Buddhists do not celebrate the birth of Gautama Buddha or any conception of a divine being, as Buddhism does not teach the idea of an eternal god. Buddha’s entry into the world is seen as a significant event, but he is not worshipped as a supernatural deity.
Taoism
In Taoism, the Tao is the ineffable source and rhythm of the cosmos. The Tao is not imagined as an individual being and has no fixed birthday to celebrate. Taoist thought emphasizes living in harmony with the natural flow of the Tao rather than specific events.
When Was God Born According to the Bible?
The Bible does not provide any direct statements about a birthday celebration for God, for several reasons:
– God is described as eternal and existing before time began, making the concept of being “born” not literally applicable.
– The Bible condenses the story of creation into six days in Genesis 1, providing no birth date for the Creator.
– While Jesus’ human birth is recounted in detail in the Gospels, no date is mentioned.
– Early Christians did not celebrate birthdays, seeing them as a pagan practice.
However, we can analyze Biblical texts for clues to estimate Jesus’ birth:
– The Gospel of Luke states Jesus was 6 months younger than John the Baptist. John’s father Zechariah, a priest, was on duty in the temple when Gabriel visited him. This places Jesus’ birth around the Jewish fall festivals.
– Shepherds were watching their flocks outdoors at night when angels appeared to announce Jesus’ birth. This implies a spring lambing season around Passover.
– The magi who later honored Jesus said to Herod they saw his star “at its rising” – perhaps calculating from 12-18 months prior to their visit.
So while the Bible does not provide an explicit date, context suggests Jesus was born in the spring somewhere between 6 BC to 4 BC based on other historical figures and events. But again, the day was not celebrated in the early church.
Conclusion
While most faiths do not literally believe in a human-like birth for the divine, some major religions have established feast days celebrating God “becoming flesh” or being incarnated on Earth. Christmas, Annunciation Day, Guru Nanak Jayanti, and Krishna Janmashtami are key examples. However, the significance is more spiritual than marking a physical birth date. Other religions avoid such celebrations, seeing their god or gods as eternal beings beyond human attributes like birth. The Bible itself does not record the date, though historical analysis suggests spring circa 6-4 BC for Jesus’ incarnation. So the date of December 25th is more a metaphor than reflecting the actual day a supernatural God was born on Earth. But the winter solstice timing filled an important religious and cultural role in allowing early Christian converts to commemorate the incarnation.
| Religion | Holiday | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Christianity | Christmas | December 25 |
| Christianity | Annunciation | March 25 |
| Sikhism | Guru Nanak Jayanti | November (full moon) |
| Hinduism | Krishna Janmashtami | August/September |