trilogy, dedicated to the life of Christ, that Jesus may have been
born earlier than previously thought. The calendar we use today, which
commences with the birth of Christ and was created by a Dionysius
Exiguus, a 6th century monk, may be mistaken. According to the
Telegraph, the Pope explains in his book that Exiguus, who is
considered the inventor of the Christian calendar, "made a mistake in
his calculations by several years. The actual date of Jesus' birth was
several years before." The suggestion that Jesus wasn't actually born
on Dec. 25 has been tirelessly debated by theologians, historians and
spiritual leaders, but what makes this case different is that now the
leader of the Catholic Church is the one asking the questions.
Pope Benedict's book, Jesus of Nazareth: The Infancy Narratives, was
published on Tuesday. Like the previous two installments, it's
predicted to be a best seller, and a million copies of the book have
already been printed. It is expected that the book will be translated
into another 20 languages for publication in 72 countries. The Infancy
Narratives follows the life of Jesus from conception to his
presentation in the temple at the age of 12. The Pope describes this
third book as a "small antechamber" to the trilogy on Jesus of
Nazareth, reports the Vatican Press Office.
(MORE: Holy Hashtags! The Pope Will Soon Join the Tweeting Masses)
Pope Benedict makes some controversial statements in the book. He
writes of how the Gospel of Matthew claims that Jesus was born when
Herod the Great ruled in Judea. However, given that Herod died in 4
B.C., Jesus must have been born earlier than Exiguus originally
documented. Arguments surrounding Jesus' exact date of birth have
confounded scholars for centuries. Even the Gospel of Luke contends
that the birth took place when Quirinius was governor of Syria in A.D.
6.
The author takes the opportunity not only to dispute the date of
Jesus' birth, but also to reaffirm the doctrine of the virgin birth as
an "unequivocal" truth of faith. Reuters writes that Benedict reminds
his readers that sexual intercourse did not play a part in the
conception of Jesus. He states that a belief in the virgin birth of
Christ is a "cornerstone of faith" and a sign of "God's creative
power." "If God does not also have power over matter, then he simply
is not God," the Pope argues. "But he does have this power, and
through the conception and resurrection of Jesus Christ he has ushered
in a new creation."
Pope Benedict also examines the "question of interpreted history,"
referring in particular to the attempts of the Gospels, like those of
Matthew and Luke, to make sense of events after they had occurred,
notes Reuters. "The aim of the evangelists was not to produce an
exhaustive account," the Pope explains, "but a record of what seemed
important for the nascent faith community in the light of the word.
The infancy narratives are interpreted history, condensed and written
down in accordance with the interpretation."
(MORE: Why Popes Never Have to Say Sorry)
There have been countless interpretations of the birth, life and death
of Christ throughout history. One such interpreter is Bill Darlison,
former Unitarian Church minister and current vice president of the
General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches in the
United Kingdom. Like others before him, he asks whether Christ was
actually born on Dec. 25 or whether perhaps he was born "on one of
about 150 other dates which have been proposed down through the
centuries. Was he born in Nazareth or in Bethlehem and, if Bethlehem,
was it Bethlehem in Judea or Bethlehem in Galilee?" He also argues
that the spiritual birth "is always a virgin birth, because it is not
related in any sense (except symbolically) to physical birth." In
2004, TIME asked the same question, with David Van Biema wondering if
"one might be tempted to abandon the whole Nativity story as
'unhistoric,' mere theological backing and filling."
The historical revisionism continues with the Pope raising the issue
of the presence of animals at the birth of Christ. He reveals in Jesus
of Nazareth that "there is no mention of animals in the Gospels." This
may come as a shock to the thousands of schools currently preparing
their Nativity plays. But Pope Benedict reassures his readers not to
worry — that "no one will give up the oxen and the donkey in their
Nativity scenes," notes the Telegraph. Even if animals did not feature
at the birth, the Vatican seems happy to keep up the myth as it
presents an elaborate life-size Nativity scene in St. Peter's Square
this Christmas.
Jesus of Nazareth: The Infancy Narratives is available in English and
published by Image Books. It follows the first two books, which dealt
with Christ's adult life and death.
This article has been amended. The original version referred to the
conception of Jesus as "the Immaculate Conception." The term refers to
the life of Mary, mother of Jesus.
Read more: http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/11/22/pope-benedict-disputes-jesus-date-of-birth/#ixzz2D8mErZUX
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