"January 1, the
main festival of the Roman divinity Janus, also represents
the rebirth of the cyclical year and the renewal of time. Before the adoption of December 25 as the
birthday of Jesus the Spiritual Sun, the Nativity was
celebrated on January 6, the day of 'Epiphany' or 'manifestation of
the Lord'".
- Jesus
Christ, sun of God: ancient cosmology and early Christian symbolism, by David
R. Fideler p.159
“In the Orient, however,
the birth and the baptism of Jesus were celebrated respectively
on January 5 and 6. B. Botte, a Belgian Benedictine scholar, in
a significant study concludes that this date also evolved from
an originally pagan feast, namely Epiphany, which
commemorated the birth and growth of light.”
- The Meaning, Celebration and Date of
Christmas,
by
Dr. Samuele Bacchiocchi, p.24 (quoting
from B. Botte,
“Les
Denominations du dimanche dans la tradition chrétienne,” Le Dimanche, Lex Orandi 39,
1965, pp. 14ff.)