Ellen White’s views on Christmas
December 16, 2025 | Siler Spring, Maryland, United States | Anna Galeniece
In the culture I grew up in, Christmas was not observed, partly because of atheistic propaganda against religion, and partly for the Adventists’ belief linking December 25 with the pagan winter solstice. Years later, after moving to the United States, I encountered a very different picture. Christmas is widely celebrated, commercialized, and often emptied of its religious meaning. People exchange gifts and enjoy festivities, yet Christ is seldom at the center. These opposite experiences led me to wonder how Ellen White viewed Christmas, and what counsel she may offer to the church.
Preparing for Christmas
While reading Ellen White’s writings, one quickly notices how consistently she exalted Christ. He was the central figure she adored, loved, and devoted her life to. It is no surprise, then, that when it came to Christmas, Jesus remained the focus of this deeply spiritual occasion.
Around Christmas her heart extended to families with children. She urged parents to teach children and youth to understand the true significance of the holiday and to direct their thoughts, anticipations, and offerings to God. She specified that it was her “purpose to call the attention of the children to the humble manner in which the Redeemer came to the world.” And if “all heaven was interested in the great event of Christ’s advent to earth,”[1] why should we do differently?
Ellen White also encouraged Christians to be creative in their Christmas celebrations, to enhance its desirability and attractiveness because Christmas was an occasion to honor God with the whole family. Although Christ was not born on Christmas Day, she invited Christians to keep Him at the heart, and not to be distracted by various worldly practices and traditions. “There is no divine sanctity resting upon the twenty-fifth of December; and it is not pleasing to God that anything that concerns the salvation of man through the infinite sacrifice made for them should be so sadly perverted from its professed design. Christ should be the supreme object,”[2] she wrote.
In preparation for Christmas, Ellen White encouraged using an evergreen tree as a source of blessing rather than an object of idolatry or sin.[3] To her, it could serve as an inspiration for generosity, with its branches holding gifts for the poor and offerings dedicated to God.[4]
“God would be well pleased if on Christmas each church would have a Christmas tree on which shall be hung offerings, great and small. . . . Let its boughs be laden with the golden and silver fruit of your beneficence, and present this to Him as your Christmas gift. Let your donations be sanctified by prayer.”[5]
Thus, she used the available tool, a Christmas tree, by assigning to it the meaning that would give glory to God and elevate Christ’s sacrificial example.
Christmas Gifts
When it came to giving Christmas gifts, Ellen White advocated a balanced approach. While she did not discourage giving some gifts to children,[6] she recognized that the “holidays have been perverted from their intended use” and “gifts are lavished upon one another.”[7] She, therefore, urged believers to direct their giving toward more meaningful purposes—supporting charities on “behalf of those who are helpless,”[8]and advancing evangelism—“the work which Christ came to do.”[9]
This spirit of self-denial and generosity encourages selfless gifts and festivities, for “it is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35). As she put it: “On Christmas let the members of every church assemble, with offerings from willing hands and hearts, the fruits of love and gratitude to God. Let all exert their influence and ability to make these gatherings attractive and interesting. See how much means you can gather to advance the work of the Lord.”[10]
Instead of promoting “a day of feasting, of gluttony, of selfish indulgence,” Ellen White urged parents to reveal the true meaning of Christmas—generosity and love for those in need. She counseled, “This year we will not expend money in presents upon ourselves, but we will honor and glorify God. We will testify of our gratitude to Him who gave His Son to die as our sacrifice, that we might have the gift of eternal life.”[11]
What an example to follow!
The Mission of Christmas
For God’s messenger, Christmas also meant a time for mission. She advocated and supported missionary work through her preaching, writings, and personal life. For example, one can read about her preaching on Christmas Eve at Parramatta church, Australia, in 1893. There were many non-Adventists in attendance, and her message was centered on “the birth of Christ and the Christmas offerings, the great sacrifice made by Jesus Christ to save a lost world.”[12] Throughout her active ministry Ellen White often used preaching on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day as a way to reach people.
On another cold Texas Christmas morning in 1878, Ellen and James White had a real celebration—a breakfast with 13 poor, needy, and sick people, among whom were the Moore family of five. Furthermore, the Whites spent that Christmas Day helping the Moores, because they were in acute need. James and Ellen White provided them with the first necessities: food, clothing, some furniture, and arrangements for temporary living. They even gave part of their beddings to the Moores to keep them warm and comfortable.[13]
Thus, while many shop and buy gifts, not thinking about Christ, Ellen White’s messages call God’s people to open their hearts to the real reason for the season—Jesus Christ and His love for people.
What Now?
This Christmas season, as celebrations surround us, may Ellen White’s call to be mission-focused and Christ-centered guide you and your family. In that spirit, pause to prayerfully reflect on her searching questions:
“Shall we not this year consecrate to God not merely a part but all our holiday gifts for the relief of His cause, which is in so great need? How can we more appropriately celebrate the coming Christmas, how better express our gratitude to God for the gift of His dear Son, than by offerings to send to all the world the tidings of His soon coming?”[14]
[1] Ellen G. White, in Review and Herald, Dec. 17, 1889.
[2] Ellen G. White, “Christmas Is Coming,” Review and Herald, Dec. 9, 1884.
[3] Ibid.
[4] Ellen G. White, The Adventist Home (Nashville: Southern Pub. Assn., 1952), p. 482.
[5] Ibid.
[6] Ellen G. White to Lucinda Hall, Dec. 19, 1873 (letter 29, 1873).
[7] Ellen G. White, in Review and Herald, Dec. 11, 1879.
[8] E. G. White, The Adventist Home, p. 482.
[9] Ellen G. White, in Review and Herald, Dec. 15, 1885.
[10] Ibid.
[11] Ellen G. White, in Review and Herald, Dec. 11, 1888.
[12] Ellen G. White manuscript 89, 1893.
[13] Ellen G. White, Manuscript Releases (Silver Spring, Md: Ellen G. White Estate, 1993), vol. 14, pp. 318-321.
[14] Ellen G. White, in Review and Herald, Dec. 6, 1887.