When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea . . .

Today is Christmas Day, the day we celebrate the birth of Jesus. But . . .

No one knows the date or even the year Jesus was born. Several dates were observed in the early centuries of the Christian Era, with December 25 and January 6 the most common. As the Christian movement divided into Eastern and Western branches, with Rome the Western center and Constantinople the Eastern center, these two dates for Christmas firmed up. January 6 was the preferred date in the East and December 25 in the West in the middle of the 4th Century. Many Eastern Orthodox Christians now observe the Western date as well.

Christians think of time being divided in two categories: Time before Jesus was born is “Before Christ (B. C.),” and each year since his birth is the Year of Our Lord (Latin Anno Domini) or A. D. But these calculations did not begin the night the shepherds made their way to Bethlehem’s manger. Our present calendar is the result of counting back to the approximate date of events described in the Gospels. Most Bible scholars now think this backward count was a few years off and that Jesus was born no earlier than 4 B. C. 

The day after Jesus was born, life probably went on much the same for most people around 

Bethlehem, except for Joseph and Mary and those shepherds who had the heavenly vision of “peace on earth, good will to men.” No doubt, Mary would mark the day for as long as Jesus lived and as long as she lived. But their way of marking time was based on the number of years a king had ruled or the year a ruler died. Such a counting system would be very confusing to us, but in the grand sweep of history, it matters little whether we can know the day and year Jesus was born. 

Our faith is based on the life and teachings and death and resurrection of Jesus. He was born. He lived thirtysome years. He taught lessons which pointed people to God. He was crucified. He rose from the dead. His resurrection made a tremendous difference to his first followers. Those followers shared their faith with other people, and those people believed the testimony of those who had walked and talked with Jesus. Belief in the Resurrected Lord has been life-changing to countless millions of believers across the centuries. 

The day that matters in the life of Jesus is today. Not just Christmas Day, but each day we live in the awareness of his presence with us and within us. Each day we live, Jesus can be born anew in us. 

Verses for Today

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was 

God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, 

and without him not one thing came into being . . . And the word became flesh 

and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, 

full of grace and truth” (John 1:1-3; 14).

Each day through New Year’s Day, January 1, 2013, inspirational thoughts will appear, in keeping with Christmas and New Year’s Day.  These are from my book, Reflections for the Festive Seasons.  © 2002.  All rights reserved.