THE GIACOMINO NICOLAZZO PODCAST. A DIFFERENT CHRISTMAS STORY. PART 1

From the birth of Jesus in a manger to the Star of Bethlehem, the classic details of the Nativity story show up in Christmas pageants and storefront windows everywhere this time of year. But how many of those details are rooted in history? You may be surprised to know that the opinion of most biblical scholars is that there is very little in the Christmas Story of the Gospels that is historically reliable.

Most scholars agree that Jesus was neither born on 25 December nor even in AD 1. In order for Jesus to have been born during the reign of King Herod, who ruled the province of Judea at the time, the birth was likely closer to 1 B.C.

The Gospel of Matthew describes wise men, or Magi, who come to Bethlehem from the east to honor the baby Jesus with gifts such as gold, frankincense and myrrh, yet there are no historical records to attest to such trips by any Magi at the time.

Though King Herod was known as a cruel and fratricidal ruler, there are no historical records that mention the slaughter of the innocent babies under the age of two in Bethlehem. And even if such a ‘slaughter’ did take place, Bethlehem probably had fewer than 1,000 residents. Such a horrific event would not have involved any more than three or four babies at best.

Regardless of how many of the details are true, the Christmas Story still has power today. Even when the stories are only half believed in our times, they are comforting. No one really wants to rbelieve that there was no star, no manger, no Magi. But the truth of the matter is...there wasn't!

One would think the same principle applied to historical investigations would also apply to biblical data as well. But that is not the case. Somehow criticizing or even questioning the New Testament version of the birth of Christ has become forbidden. In this month’s podcast, we delve into that forbidden zone.