Statesman, Salem, Ore., Fit, Dec. 21, 53 (Sec.
Mami flimeiinnr
imuiij uugjiiuio -
About Christmas
Unanswered
shop 'til 9 Monday thru Friday
By GEORGE W. CORNELL
AP RELIGION WRITER
Many an unanswered question
(till exist! today about a birthday
that millions o( people ara getting
ready to celebrate.
The occasion: Christmas.
It marks the birth ot Jesus
Christ, but on just what day or in
what month or even in what year
it happened is not definitely
known, and popular pageantry
has given some misleading fea
tures .to the setting.
Net Bera is 1 A.D.
One thing that scholars accept
as certain, Christ -was not born
in the year 1 A O., as the- calen
dar suggests. It was at least four
or live years before, maybe mx
or seven.
Another thing, the "wise men"
did not appear with their gifts at
the time. It was weeks, months
and probably a year or more
later, as can best be calculated.
Certainly they weren't present at-t
the manger scene.
Besides, the idea that there
were "three wise men" is only
reasoned conjecture. The Bible
doesn't specify. Some old writers
say there were 12. of them.
Qaestleas Uaaaswered
And since it was Just a census
taking that caused Mary and
Joseph to go to Bethlehem where
the birth occurred, why did they
remain ' there for months after
ward? "Why didn't they return
home to Nazareth?
How long did that star hover
over Bethlehem and what caused
HI What made Christianity settle
on December 25 as the birthday?
Were the shepherds in the pasture
in midwinter? Whence came the
mistletoe? .
Geeaela Give Meaalag
Although the Gospels give the
meaningful part of the story, it's
an old human urge to try to re
duce weiehtier truthi down la
simple, tangible things names, :
dates, places and plain, step-by-step
chronology.
The historians back in the be
ginning years of Christianity don't
record these details abdut Christ's
birth and life, apparently consid
ering it of little consequence, but
they do make general references
to him.
Writes Judoaa historian Flavlus
Josephus:
"About this time there lived
Jesus, a man full of wisdom, if
indeed one may call him a man.
For he was a doer of incredible
things. ..he thus attracted to him
self many Jews and many Gen
tiles1 TaeHaa Traces Nasse
Roman historian Publius Tacitus
ays of. the newly rounded Chris
. tianity: "This name comes. ..from
Christ, whom the procurator, Pon
tius PUate, tinder the rule of i
Tiberius, had banded ever to tor-'
tore." x . i
They don't give the usual bio- i
graphical data. But bit by bit,
supplementing Gospel accounts ;
wkh other ancient recorded in-j
formation, pieces and threads;
have been drawn together, pro- j
viding some historically based
conclusions.
First of all. it is evident Jesus i
was born prior to 4 B.C., since!
that is the year of the death of
Herod the Great, who ordered the
slaying of infants under 2 in
Bethlehem to try to kill the Christ
child.
Hered Leaned Lata
Since Herod didn't learn of the
child until the arrival in Judes of
the "wise men from the east," the
baby already was many week,
perhaps more than a year, old
when Herod decided to act. 1
' Exactly bow fong it took the i
wise men io get is newienem
after Jeaui's birth is not estsb-
lished.
Gosoel terminolocv and earlv
church writers suggest the east-j
enters came from Persia or Chat-'
dea. This meant a trip of 1.000
to 2,000 miles. Counting prepara
tion time, such a journey by
camel must have taken . many
months. '
Herod Died 4 B.C.
Also, the fact that Herod or
dered death for infanta np to two
years old indicates the child was
then considered over a year old.
More time went by, during
Joseph' and Mary's stay in
Egypt, before Herod died m 4 B.C.
Another factor enters here the
star over Bethlehem. Around that
period, astronomy records some i
spectacular solar conjunctions of
Jupiter and Saturn in 7 B.C. and
of Jupiter and Venus in B.C.
.These would have persisted for
some time, as would have been;
necessary to guide the wise men
all through their long journey.
Assuming Jesus was born in
1. C, what about the month and
day? '
laraarkef 9M Years
It was nearly MO years after
his birth before his followers be
gin to observe the anniversary.
There were great differences
about the dale.
Strangely,, there's no month In
the year that hasn't been named
as the proper one by soma reputa- j
ble authority back in early church
times. They argued cases for var
ious dates May 20, Nov. 17, Jan.
I, April 19. March 25 and others.
Eventually, about 250 A. D..
Western churches centered in
Rome began to use Dec. 23. East
ern churches termed this idola
trous, since the same date was
celebrated as the birth of the sun
god, Mithta. They stuck tempo
rarily to Jan. t.
Whatever the influences, by 400
A. D., both Eastern and Western
churches had 'accepted the Dec.
25 date, and it became the norm.
By then, Christianity was embla
toned across the Roman Empire
nd Mithraism wu dead.
form ; '
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