When was Jesus born? Apparently not Dec. 25.
WHEN WAS JESUS BORN?
When was Jesus born? Apparently not Dec. 25.
The birth of Jesus Christ is commemorated by millions of people around the world with Christmas celebrations on Dec. 25. Yet, most scholars agree that he wasn't born on that day, or even in the year A.D. 1.
WHY IS JESUS' BIRTHDAY CELEBRATED ON DECEMBER 25?
Researchers have speculated that the Roman Catholic Church chose Dec. 25 because it ties in with the winter solstice and Saturnalia, a festival dedicated to the Roman deity Saturn. The church could also co-opt this popular pagan festival, as well as the winter celebration of other pagan religions, by choosing this day to celebrate Jesus' birthday, according to scholar Ignacio L. Götz in his book "Jesus the Jew: Reality, Politics, and Myth-A Personal Encounter" (Christian Faith).
However, nobody really knows exactly when Jesus was born.
THE DEATH OF KING HEROD.
Some scholars believe that he was born between 6 B.C. and 4 B.C., based partly on the biblical story of King Herod the Great. In an attempt to kill Jesus, the king allegedly ordered the death of all male infants under the age of 2 who lived in the vicinity of Bethlehem, an event known as the Massacre of the Innocents. This occurred shortly before Herod's own demise, a date which is still disputed. Roman historians, who believed that Herod died in 4 B.C.
But historians disagree about Herod's actual year of death, and many have argued that the mass infanticide is nothing more than a legend. In any chronicle or history of the time whether Jewish, Christian, or Roman.
THE STAR OF BETHLEHEM .
Other scholars have attempted to correlate the "Star of Bethlehem," which supposedly heralded Jesus' birth, with actual astronomical events to pinpoint his birth year. In the Quarterly Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society, astronomer Colin Humphreys proposed that the fabled star was actually a slow-moving comet, which Chinese observers recorded in 5 B.C. However, Humphreys’ theory has since been debunked.
The month of Jesus' birth has also been a point of debate, with one theory suggesting that the Star of Bethlehem may have been Venus and Jupiter coming together to form a bright light in the sky, a rare event that occured in June of 2 B.C. Another possibility is a similar conjunction between Saturn and Jupiter, which occurred in October of 7 B.C.
There has also been speculation that Jesus was a spring baby.
EPIPHANY.
Epiphany is observed on January 6 by Roman Catholics, Lutherans, Anglicans, and Christians of other Western traditions.Why do Catholics celebrate Christmas until January 6?
Even before the year 354, the Western Church had separated the celebration of the Nativity of Christ as the feast of Christmas and set its date as December 25; it reserved January 6 as a commemoration of the manifestation of Christ, especially to the Magi, but also at his baptism and at the wedding feast of Cana.
Is January 6 the first or the last celebration of Christmas?
For those who thought that Christmas was over, Epiphany, celebrated on January 6, marks the final celebratory day of the Christian holiday season!
News not from Earth.
According to the Tarot cards, the birth of Jesus is accurate to the disappearance of the old Christian calendar, the date that was specified for January 6 on the day of Holy Nativity.
Queen of the Universe
by Margarita
