Why do Protestants reject Catholicism yet observe the Catholic calendar?

If you were to do a bit of study, you would learn that people were trying to determine the birthday of Christ long before there was a Catholic church. The "Catholic" calendar was a modification of an earlier calendar that was so modified by pope Gregory in 1582.

What you have done is to put the theological cart before the horse.

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Catholic Answers Calendar

When the Gregorian calendar, an amendment to the Julian Calendar, was proposed in 1582, the Catholic countries adopted it but the Protestant countries did not. Britain didn't use it until 1752 and the last European country to switch from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar was Greece in 1923.

You have to remember that all the thousands of Protestant sects had their beginnings in the 16th century with the Reformation. After well over a thousand years of Catholicism as essentially the only form of Christianity, the feasts were well entrenched and the new religions were not going to get many followers if they denied the people Christmas and Easter.

They rejected certain catholic practices and beliefs back in the 16C, but didn't think that the catholic church, or rather christians in the previous centuries, had got everything wrong. Some protestants though don't like celebrating Christmas, I think in the "Reform tradition" associated with Calvin. In Scotland the New Year is much more important than Christmas for this reason.

We reject some late additions to Catholic doctrine, many of which are directly related to issues which led to the Catholics expelling us in the first place. Most of the long-established Christian teachings are not only upheld by Protestants, but also cited as evidence for our positions on the points where we differ.

John Calvin's "Institutes of the Christian Religion," probably the most extensive document produced by a Reformation leader to explain Protestant positions, leans heavily on the writings of Augustine of Hippo and Bernard of Clairvaux, both of whom are regarded by Catholics as saints and as important founders of Catholic teaching.

We didn't come up with a new calendar because we didn't see much wrong with the old one.

I am a born again Christian and I actually agree with your statement. The Lord has asked us to remember Him when we break the bread and drink the wine at the Lord's Table. This is where we not only remember all His attainments and all that He has passed through for us, but it also includes His Incarnation. We do not see a pattern of the early believers celebrating Christmas, but we do see them breaking the bread and remembering the Lord in a simple way.

So for me, I " celebrate" each week when I meet together with other believers, to remember the Lord's Incarnation, Human Living, Death, Resurrection and Ascension.

I think we should all reconsider what we celebrate, whether it has any biblical standing or if there are pagan attachments to what we do. :)

Not all are like this. Some Protestants to pray the Rosary and some have baptismal certificates that is an extension of the Catholic church. Seems there is 2 kinds.

Why should we come up with a completely different calendar when many of the items and dates are legitimate? My differences lie in how one worships, how one believes their sins are forgiven, communion, prayer, etc..

I would point out to those who wish to argue that Catholic Church stood and fought for civilization's sake in the ancient past that perhaps the Church would have better served all of our spiritual interests better if they had chosen to not engage in violence against others.

Of course not they are not catholic or protestant dates. December 25th is the winter solstice when the sun starts to stay longer and Easter is the time when plants start to grow and the pagans and other religions would sacrifice at that time which is where to story of Jesus being crucified and coming alive again comes from. Did you really think the nativity and the crucifixion were actual events. How naive can you get?

Look this way.

Martin Luther the father of Protestantism died believing the Catholic Faith was the right Faith. He just wanted to amend some things in the Catholic church.

They broke from the church...They negate our teachings, But we are the oldest Christian church to exist, and we are the ones that made Christianism a strong powerful religion.

We died on wars defending all Christians freedom on the past.