While the view that the celebration of Christmas on 25 December came about as the product of pagan influence continues to enjoy unbounded popularity, the rivaling "calculation theory" seems to have lost ground, owing in part to the recent criticism leveled against it by Hans Förster. The present article adduces Christian chronological sources from the third century in a fresh defense of the view that the choice of 25 December as the birthday of Christ was originally the result of chronological speculation. As will be demonstrated, Christian scholars from this period had the kind of arguments at their disposal that would have supported such a conclusion independently of inter-religious influence. Moreover, there is evidence to suggest that Julius Africanus already reckoned with this date at the beginning of the third century. As a result, the "calculation theory" is still deserving of serious consideration from scholars investigating the origins of Christmas. © 2013, all rights reserved.
