Why Pagan New Years Celebrations
Go Against Yahuah
4th-day, Month 10, 10th
Wednesday December 31st, 2025
Shalom to my brothers, sisters and family in the faith of Father Yahuah who make up the body of believers in His Son Yahusha Ha’Mashiach. I hope this short blog finds you and your families in the strength, health and blessings of Father Yahuah walking in His set-apart way with Mashiach Yahusha.
The majority of the world will celebrate the old year leaving today and the new year coming in at midnight tonight. Recent statistics show that around 190 countries and about 75% of the worlds population celebrate new years eve and new years day as December 31st and January 1st on the Gregorian calendar. There are elaborate celebrations that will start this evening, culminating at midnight and continue late into the night, some until morning, that will begin on the international date line and go for 24 hours until the entire earth comes into the day of January 1st.
Why does the majority of the earth celebrate this as the beginning of a new year? This is a very good question and it is really a very simple answer that most overlook, the first month of the year is named January which comes from the distinctly Roman elohiym of Janus and we are still living in the Roman empire, just under a different name. Julius Caesar established January 1st as new year’s day in 46 B.C. and dedicated this day to Janus, the god of gates, doors and beginnings. (The World Book Encyclopedia N-O Volume 14; copyright 1984). Janus was a two faced elohiym that the Romans prayed to at the beginning and end of any important action, especially a war, and who is the whole world at war with right now? That’s right, the whole world is in a war of rebellion against Father Yahuah and His Son Yahusha Ha’Mashiach.
Why the Name, Date and Celebration of This Day are Against Yahuah
The name of January, which comes from the name of the two faced elohiym of Janus, is what the majority of the world, ±75%, worshipping or acknowledging this deity as the beginning of the year, whether done on purpose or in ignorance, and holding celebrations to this idol instead of seeking to find out what is the date of the True Creator, Yahuah’s New Year which He never calls us to celebrate. Janus is depicted as a demon with two faces, one that looks backward (the past) and one that looks forward (the future), and these two faces symbolize his duality and this duality or double-mindedness is warned against in scripture:
Ya’aqov (James) 1:8 –“A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.“
**The two faces of Janus symbolize what the world is all about today. It will tell you one thing and then do the exact opposite. We see this in all of the world leaders:
Tehilliym (Psalms) 12:2 – “They speak vanity every one with his neighbour: with flattering lips and with a double heart do they speak.“
Ya’aqov (James) 3:10 –“Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be.“
**We cannot be two faced in our service to Yahuah, we are either for Him or against Him, there is no middle ground or room for compromise.
The traditions and celebrations around this pagan holiday are best summed up in the one that we have all did before, and all have failed at, and that is with the new year comes new beginnings/the new year’s resolution. We think that we can start new, fresh or change old habits without coming into conviction through Ruach Elohiym and true repentance through Mashiach Yahusha.
Below is a table listing other new years, their deity/spiritual focus, date and how they go against Father Yahuah’s time keeping:
Table of New Year’s Celebrations
| Celebration | Deity / Spiritual Focus | Approx. Gregorian Date | How It Goes Against Yahuah |
|---|---|---|---|
| Modern Secular / Global New Year / Modern Christianity | Time itself / human authority/modeled after Roman New Year | January 1 | Human resolutions replace covenant obedience; self-determined “renewal” ignores Elohiym’s timing; celebrates transition without submission. |
| Roman New Year (Janus) | Janus | January 1 | Two-faced, looking past/future without moral correction; human calendar authority replaces Elohiym’s calendar; represents divided allegiance. |
| Rosh Hashanah (Rabbinic) | Human calendrical authority; Babylonian-influenced | Early September – Early October (Tishrei 1–2) | Human-decreed New Year replaces spring Aviyv start; tradition and judgment emphasized over Torah obedience; calendar influenced by Babylonian lunisolar system. |
| Babylonian Akitu | Marduk, Ishtar | Late March – Early April (lunisolar; 1st month Nisan, shifts with new moon) | Festivals timed by lunar months with occasional intercalation; human kings and myth-driven rituals replace covenant obedience; historically influenced Rosh Hashanah timing. |
| Zadokiym Calendar New Year | Human priestly authority (Zadokiym) | Varies; claimed spring equinox alignment, fixed by priests and not by the lights in the firmament | Human-devised, fixed calendar; not Torah-mandated; can misalign festivals; replaces Elohiym’s timing with priestly tradition; not solar-observation based. |
| Persian Nowruz | Zoroastrian dual gods (Ahura Mazda, Angra Mainyu) | March 20–21 (vernal equinox) | Solar-observed New Year; dualism and cosmic balance emphasized over obedience to Yahuah. |
| Celtic Solar Equinox Observation | Sun deities / nature spirits | Spring equinox ~March 20–21 | Seasonal cycles honored over Elohiym’s appointed times; divination, ritual, and nature worship replace covenant obedience. |
| Egyptian Wepet Renpet | Ra, Osiris | Late July – Early August (Sirius rising / Nile flood) | Solar calendar tied to agriculture and deity cycles; human-controlled life cycles replace Elohiym’s appointed times. |
| Mayan Solar Calendar (Haab’ Year) | Sun and agricultural gods | Solar year ~365 days; equinox-linked temples | Focus on human/astral cycles, not Elohiym; agriculture and civic authority replace covenant timing. |
| Chinese New Year | Ancestors, zodiac spirits | Jan 21 – Feb 20 | Appeasement of spirits and luck-focused rituals; replaces covenant trust and Elohiym’s guidance. |
| Hindu New Years | Brahma, Lakshmi (varies by region) | Late March – Early April / Oct – Nov | Prosperity tied to deity appeasement, not obedience to Yahuah; multiple calendars confuse covenantal rhythm. |
| Islamic New Year | No deity, historical commemoration | Shifts ~10–11 days earlier each year | Lacks covenantal foundation; human history (Hijrah) prioritized over Elohiym’s appointed times. |
| Wiccan Samhain (Wiccan New Year) | Horned God, Goddess, ancestors | Oct 31 – Nov 1 | Human-devised spiritual calendar honoring death and rebirth cycles; engages with spirits and liminal forces, not covenant obedience. |
Conclusion
As you can see the world has chosen to rebel against the calendar of Yahuah through the worship of fallen beings and just making things up on their own. The end of the year and the beginning of the year, according to the scriptures, are not to be celebrated. The importance of the start of Yahuah’s year is to give the start date of His Appointed Feast (Moediym) found in Vayiqra 23:4-44.
I hope this short blog helps you in your understanding of why celebrating other new year dates cannot be in alignment with Yahuah’s covenant He made with His chosen people.
I pray that you have a blesse rest of your week and be on the look out for Yahuah’s Calendar – What Is a Year According to the Scriptures? which I am planning to have ready in the next day.
Until then, I pray Yahuah continues to be an impenetrable shield of protection around you and your family while He continues to order your steps in His Word!
Shalom,
Minister Patrick