Mercurius Religiosus: Faithfully communicating to the whole Nation, the Vanity of CHRISTMAS:  
I. THe Observation of this Feast hath no warrant in the holy Scriptures, for we cannot find that it was ever commanded or practised, either by Christ himself, his Apostles, or apostolical men, we red how that Herod kept his birth day, but not any where that our Saviour or his Disciples did keep his, which if he had, in likelihood that would have been mentioned as well as the other: So that the Feast of Christmas, at best, can be but a humane institution; or at worst( and the worst I fear is true) a piece of will-worship, which God could never endure, he loves to appoint his own Service, both for manner, matter, time, and all other circumstances, and tis great reason that it should be so. If any shall object, the Churches practise in setting dayes apart, for commemorating great mercies, as the Feast Purim, Hest. 9. 21. Our fifth of Novemb. and other dayes of Thanksgiving: To this I answer, that God himself hath appointed a day in remembrance of his Sons Birth, Death, Resurrection, and all that concerns him, which is the First day of the week commonly known by the name of the Lords Day; Inasmuch then as the Lord hath appointed a time for that purpose, it can bee no less then high presumption, and a trenching upon Gods Divine Prerogative, to set our posts by his posts; and our thresholds, by his thresholds, Ezek. 43. 8. which we do, when we add to his Ordinances, or set up any invention of our own, with his Institutions: Whereof this Feast of Christmas seems to bee guilty, for that it doth upon the matter imply, that the day which God ordained for the memorial of Christ was not sufficient, unless we should add another, or a fitter time then Gods, making ourselves wiser then God in this matter.  
II. We know not the Day, nor at what time of the year Christ was born, so that we are very blindly lead in setting our devotion so punctually upon the 25. of December; for neither the Scripture nor any authentical human writer, do give us the least assurance that this was the day or about the time of his Nativity: The Lord perhaps, purposely concealing the day of his Sons Birth, to prevent the idolising of it. God doing by this day, as he did with the body of Moses, which he caused to be butted in an unknown place, that the people might not commit Idolatry with it; And tis conceived by good Divines that the contest between Michael and the devil, judas 9. Was on the Devils part to discover where Moses lay interred, that so the Israelites( always proane to Idolatry and Superstition) might be drawn to make an Idol of it; But on Michaels part to keep it from being seen or known by the people, and so to take away the snare which the Devil would have laid for them: I say, that in all probability, the wisdom and providence of God hath done thus with the Birth-day of Christ, buried it so closely, that no man to this day knows what day of the week, what week of the month, or what month of the year he was born on, so that they which will needs worship the day of Christs Nativity, it may justly be said of them, they worship they know not what, And though I will not tax them for setting up an Alter to the unknown God, as the super-superstitious Athenians did, Act, 17. 23 yet they may be taxed for dedicating a day to Christ in memorial of his Birth, whose Nativity they cannot find in any Register, yea it may be further said, that in all probability our Saviour was not born on that day, nor at that season of the year, but rather in the Summer time, for tis not likely that the people should be called to travel from all parts of Judea, to the chief cities of their Tribes, Luk. 2. 3. In the depth of Winter; nor that the Shepherds could keep the field by night with their flocks at that season of the year. Therefore unlikely that Christ should be born then.  
III. This Feast of Christmas was devised by our superstitious Ancestors in mere imitation of the Pagans and Heathenish people who had a Festival called Saturnalia, or Bacchanalia, consisting of twelve dayes, dedicated to those imaginary Idol Gods, Saturn and Bacchus, which were spent in games and revellings, but coloured over with the pretence of Devotion and Sacrificing to those Dietyes: Thus have wee learned and followed their ways contrary to Deut. 18. 9. Tis most certain that the time of our Christmas Festival is the same with theirs, for as they kept six dayes of the old year, and six dayes of the new year so do we, and as they spent those twelve dayes in Riot, excess, and game, so do we; and as they pretended Religion and Piety to their God bacchus or Saturne, in the observation of those dayes, so do we pretend Devotion to the memory of our Saviour Christ in the keeping of them, so that upon the matter there is nothing changed but the name of this Feast, from what it was in the dayes of paganism: The time of the year is the same, the number of dayes allotted to this Feast the same, the customs and practices upon these days the same, surely the Devil then hath not lost any thing by the hand, nor Jesus Christ gotten much by the change.  
IV, The vanity of observing this Feastivall may further appear by the quality of those persons and people who are so zealously addicted to the observation of it, and pled so strongly for it, if we mind them well, we shall find them to be none of the best, nor to be guilty of over-much knowledge or piety, The Papists generally are extremely addicted to the solemn keeping of Christmas, but we know them to be gross Idolaters, and such as pretend to be Christs best friends, but are indeed his worst Enemies, and as for our common Protestant that dotes so devoutly upon this time, you shall find him commonly but a statute Christinan, sufficiently endowed with ignorance and superstition.  
In a word, if all the worshippers of this Diana were well examined it would appear that very few of them are such mighty zealots for Christ indeed, as they would seem to be, by their earnest contending to uphold the Feast of his Nativity: If there were not more of the flesh then the spirit in many men, Christmas would be as little set by as Easter; Tis the Butlers box, the Cookes fees, the Parsons good cheer, the Sextons vailes, the old mans custom, the Plow-mans play dayes, the Tenants rost-meate, the Land-lords Capons, the schoolboys vacation, the Gentryes New-yeers gifts, the Dunkards good Ale, the Gamesters Delight, the Gluttons Mince-pyes, the fiddlers meat, drink, and money, and the Devils advantage, that makes so many cry great is Diana of the Ephesians: It is no wonder then that so many popish, ignorant, idle, deboist, superstitious, Atheistical, loose, and profane people, are unwilling to part with Christmas, it being a time so suitable to their corrupt humours, and base lusts.  
V. Consider, that although piety is pretended, yet al manner of profaneness is practised these twelve dayes, custom hath made Christmas a time of Licentious Liberty, for all sorts of persons, as if the remembrance of the grace of God which hath abounded in the gift of Jesus Christ, gave toleration for men to abound in sin and wickedness, Gluttony, drunkenness, chambering, wantonness, Riot, excess, Carding & Dicing, are counted not only lawful, but commendable in Christmas, as if by such doings Christ were honoured, and took delight in these works of darkness. The world is now grown to that pass, that he who will not run with his Neighbors in this excess of Christmas riot, or shows but the least dislike of it, shal be censured for a strange, and rigid spirited man. It is very strange that in these days of the Gospel, the Devil should so delude Christians, as to make them do him service, and yet make them believe that they serve Christ; for it is most certain, that according to the usual manner of keeping Christmas here in England, the Devil and the Butlers box, have carried away all the gains from Jesus Christ: For of all the whole year, this time( though set apart for Christ) hath proved the Devils best harvest.  
VI. If Paul were afraid of the Gallatians, that he had bestowed labour in vain amongst them, because they observed some legal Feasts Gal. 4. 10, 11. which yet were formerly of divine institution, but abolished by the coming of Christ, how much more may we fear the state of such seeming Christians, as will not be taken off from the keeping of such idle, groundless, superstitious and profane holidays, as never had any colour of warrant from God, Christ or his Apostles, but were the Inventions either of Pagans or Papists or such like ignorant Idolaters? doubtless the Lord will one day say to the best observers of this time of Christmas, Who hath required this of you? In what part of my Word have you found any command or rule for so doing?  
But much more will he expostulate with others of the profaner sort, and will say to them, Who gave you this liberty to turn my grace into lasciviousness? Why do you cellbrate my sons Nativity with the excess of riot? By what warrant do you spend these days and nights so contrary to my Commandements? O certainly it is to be feared that such practices may justly cause the truth of many mens Christianity to be called into question; and questionless if Paul were now alive amongst us, he would have the same doubt of us he had of the Galatians.  
Seventhly and lastly, the Vanity of this feast may yet further appear, in that it is almost utterly abolished in all Christian Reformed Churches( but ours) which upon the breaking forth of the light of the Gospel, have abandoned the gross abuses of this time, as an Heathenish Antichristian practise, becoming none but the children of darkness. And I do believe that there are few or none, whose understandings are truly enlightened with the grace of saving knowledge, but do hearty dislike these times, with all the fooleries that belong to them, and dare not allow themselves the liberty that others take.  

Objections for keeping Christmas, Answered.  

1 Ob. This day and the other Holy dayes in the Twelftide is solemnized in memorial of our Saviours Nativity, and the rest in honour of the other Saints, to whose names those days are dedicated.  
Ans.  

1 We know not that Christ was born on this day.  
2 It is more likely that our Saviour was born in Summer.  
3 We have neither precept nor practise from Christ or his Apostles, for the keeping of this day.  
4 The Sabbath was changed from the seventh day to the first day of the week, in memorial of Christ and his benefits, and is therfore called the Lords day.  
5 New-yeers-day is merely heathenish, and so are the customs belonging to it.  
6 The other dayes were instituted by the Popes of Rome, when Antichristian darkness overspread the face of the earth.  
7 This Feast, pretended for the Honour of Christ, and other Saints, yields more dishonour to Christ and Christianity, then the whole year besides.    

2 Ob. The observation of Christmas is of great Antiquity, and hath been continued in the Church for many ages.  
Ans.  

1. The Popes Kallender is the first Record we have of this Festival; Augustins and Chrisostoms Nativity Sermons are adulterate, and foisted into their Works.  
2 Antiquity without other Authority is no safe rule for Christians to walk by: Superstition, Idolatry, Bigamy, &c, are ancienter then Christmas, yet not tolerable, because they can pled prescription.    

3 Ob. Many learned Bishops, and other eminent men for parts and piety, have observed this Feast, as by their preaching upon it, and pleading for it, appears.  
Ans.  

1. Some good Ministers have used to preach upon these days to keep their people out of worse employment.  
2 It is no new thing for Bishops and other learned men, to be maintainers of superstition and profaneness.  
3 The Scribes and Pharisees were eminent amongst the people, yet Christ nailed them up for Counterfeits.  
4 Godly men may be dim-sighted in some things: Bernardus non vidit omnia.    

4 Ob. Almost all men pled for Christmas, and it is kept by a general consent, none dissenting but a few factious precise people.  
Ans.  

1 We must not follow a multitude to do evil, Prov. 1.  
2 If most voices might carry things, wee should have a mad world, Paul had never preached down Diana of the Ephesians, if the cries of the Common people had been authentical.  
3 Those few that dislike the superstition and vanities of this Festival, will be sound to out-weight the giddy ignorant multitude, in point of understanding and piety.    

5 Ob. The long continued custom of observing Christmas may pled for the continuance of it still.  
Answ.  

1, Bad customs ought rather to be broken then kept.  
2 Tis now high time to put away childish things and to lay aside the works of darkness, now that the grace of God which brings salvation hath appeared to all men, and teacheth all men to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts, to live soberly, righteously and godly in this present world, Tit. 2. 11, 12.    

6 Ob. Tis a time for feasting, and entertainment of neighbours, and of giving relief and doles to poor people.  
An.  

1. Hang the Devil if he have not one trick or other to cheat the world withall.  
2 Any other time of the year, is as good for that purpose as this.  
3 The usual way of relieving the poor at this time, is, I fear, more out of custom and ostentation, then out of charity and true Devotion.    

7. Ob. Though some have abused this time, as the best things are liable to abusing; yet the abuse of a thing ought not to take away the use.  
Ans.  

1. This rule holds only in things that are in their own nature lawful and necessary.  
2 This festival is in itself unnecessary, and unlawful, because without warrant, and the world may very well spare it, and therfore being so extremely abused, it may and ought to be utterly abolished.     

Exhortations.  
1 TO the Honourable Court of Parliament, that they would cause this Romish idol to be ground to powder, and that they would abstain from committing whoredom with it themselves.  
2 To the Reverend Assembly of Divines, That they would do something before they part, towards the stigmatizing of this Pagan-Popish Strumpet, that the Nation may be convinced how unsuitable Christian practices, are to Christian profession.  
3 To the royal City of London, That they would banish this grand Impostor, out of the lines of communication that the light of the gospel may no longer be blemished with the works of Antichristian darkness.  
4 To all the Clergy of this Nation, That they would no longer give countenance to this ungospel-like foolery, but set themselves to cry it down as a reproach to Christianity, though it be with the loss of some new-years-gifts, and a few customary Christmas dinners.  
5 To the two famous Universities: That they would expel this youth corrupting master of mis-rule out of their colleges, no matter though the Cook and Butler grumble at it, or the Schollers miss their exceedings for that time.  
6 To the Magistrates of England, That they would bind this unruly time of Christmas to the good behaviour, or sand it away with a passe-port to Rome the place of his birth.  
7 To the Gentry of this Nation: That they would shut their doors against this mis-begotten Epicure, and not suffer themselves and estates to bee abused any longer for fashion sake, nor let their houses be polluted with the Devils sacrifices.  
8 To almanac makers, That they would leave lying, and either find out the true time of Christs Nativity, or blot it out of their books.  
9 To all the people of this Nation, That they would dote no longer upon this babylonish Hag, which hath so long enchanted them with her devout looks, pleasing pastime, and good cheer.  Written by him that loves a choler of brawn, and a Mince-pye, as well as any common-council man in this City.  
FINIS,   

Printed at London for Robert Ibbitson dwelling in Smithfield near Hosier Lane, 1651.  
Published according to Order.