The True Story of Christmas

This morning on NPR, one the republicans running for President, either Romney or Huckebee, said this the season to remember the true story of Christmas. I wonder if, whomever it was, knows the true story of Christmas. In any case here is the true story of Christmas.

Dec. 25 - In 325AD, Constantine the Great, the first Christian Roman emperor, introduced Christmas as an immovable feast on 25 December. Nobody knows when exactly Jesus was born but we can be sure it wasn't on Dec. 25. The Roman god, Mithras, has his birthday on Dec. 25. Constantine co-opted this date and called in the birthday of Jesus in a political move. Several other gods, including Ishtar and Sol Invictus, also had their birthdays on Dec. 25.

Virgin Birth Story - All through the Mediterranean area, stories of miraculous and virgin births abounded. Ceasar Augustus was supposedly born of a virgin. Caesar Augustus was also considered a god. When the gospels were written, some 30 to 60 year after Jesus died, there were no witnesses to the actual birth. The writers, in trying to appeal to a as wide an audience as possible, included mythology the Romans and Greeks would have understood into the Jesus story. If the Romans or Greeks at the time believed their king was the son of a god, born through a miraculous birth, it wouldn't have been much of a stretch to get them to believe in Jesus. Especially if the people the gospel writers were writing to were disgruntled towards their rulers. Also, miraculous births are nothing new to readers of the bible. Both Sarah and Rachel were barren, yet were able to have children. Mary was supposedly a virgin and was miraculously impregnated. The virgin birth story is a modification and a mistranslation of Isaiah 7:14. In it Isaiah is talking about his own wife and the imminent birth of his son.

Gospel Story of the Virgin Birth - When Peter and Paul were preaching and writing their letters in Greece and Rome, 5 to 20 years after the death of Jesus, they never mentioned anything about Jesus' miraculous birth. Why? Because the virgin birth didn't happen. The gospels writers added it later.

Bethlehem or Nazareth - Where was Jesus born? Peter and Paul, writer and preaching shortly after Jesus' death don't mention where Jesus was born. Later, the gospel writers try to create a birth story to make it appear he was the expected messiah. The gospels writers knew the old testament very well and they created a birth story to match old testament prophecies. Mainly that the expected messiah would be from the house of David.

3 Wise Men - This a retelling of the story in Genesis when 3 angels visit Abraham in his tent.

Slaughter of the Innocents - This is a retelling of the passover and the killing of all the first born sons in Egypt. There is no historical evidence of either event. Matthew tells the story of the escape into Egypt shortly after Jesus' birth yet Luke tells of Jesus' baptism, circumcision, and presentation to the temple after his birth. After they return to Nazareth. The escape into and back from Egypt is a retelling of Hosea 11:1 to make it fit the perceived prophecy of Jesus as messiah. Jesus and his family escaping to Egypt is also a retelling of Jacob and his family going to Egypt for protection.

Shepherds in the Fields - The only time shepherds would be their fields keeping watch would have been when the ewes were giving birth. The shepherds needed to sleep in the fields to protect the newborn lambs from predators. Ewes give birth in the spring not the middle of winter.

Genealogy of Jesus - Matthew and Mark both have genealogies of Jesus yet they are very different from each other. They also differ from the genealogy listed in the Old Testament. Again, this was done by the gospels writers to make it appear that Jesus was the messiah from the house of David.

If you take all this evidence and put it together, you can only come to the conclusion that the gospels writers were clever man and powerful writers for creating a history for Jesus when none existed.