Bethlehem in Biblical Lore
The story of Jesus' birth in Bethlehem, with its pastoral scenes of the first Christmas eve, is one of the most famous and most loved episodes in the life of the historical Jesus.
Yet in fact, the so-called New Testament "infancy narrative" that made Bethlehem famous is only mentioned in two books of the four Gospels - Matthew and Luke.
Because of the sketchy nature of the sources on Jesus' birth, many later books concerned with the historical Jesus avoided the subject altogether and begin dealing with Jesus' figure during his public ministry period, which takes place chiefly around the Galilee.
Even in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, the initial descriptions of the Bethlehem Nativity scene are almost totally ignored later in the same gospel readings. The adult Jesus is referred to solely by New Testament authors as : "Jesus of Nazareth" or "Jesus the Nazarene" or "Jesus the Nazorean" - and never "Jesus of Bethlehem."
If we compare the Infancy Narrative in Matthew to the Infancy Narrative in Luke, we also will find that the basic geographical plot is completely different. Matthew's account leaves the impression that Mary and Joseph were already living in Bethlehem at the time of the famous birth.
As the first place mentioned in Matthew is Bethlehem of Judea the reader naturally concludes that the events leading up to Jesus' birth, such as the "annunciation" of Joseph, happened there as well.
When the Magi from lands far to the east reach Bethlehem in the book of Matthew, they are said to have entered "into the house" to find Mary and the infant Jesus. reference indicates that the Holy Family dwelled in the town on a regular basis for a prolonged period after the birth.
Once the Magi make their flight back east, Herod calculates the stars that guided their journey to estimate the newborn's age. He subsequently has all the boys "two years of age and younger" in and around Bethlehem slaughtered in order to prevent the maturation of this so-called reputed messiah figure that he so fears.
But the book of Matthew must still bring the Holy Family from Bethlehem to Nazareth. The flight to Egypt, in an attempt to escape Herod, provides a suitable explanation. On returning from Egypt, Joseph is afraid to return to Bethlehem permanently. While Herod is dead, Archelaus, Herod's son, is now king in nearby Jerusalem. The Holy Family leaves Judea, and settles in Nazareth in the more remote Galilee, far away from the son of the king who had made an attempt on Jesus' life. The fact that Galilee at that time was ruled by another son of Herod the Great, Herod Antipas, and the future executioner of John the Baptist, is ignored by the author.
A classic olivewood scene of the Nativity which is produced by the
craftspersons of the Bethlehem area. |
The second "infancy narrative," related in the Gospel of Luke, offers a completely different version of events from Matthew. In this particular chronicle, the divine annunciation to Mary and to Joseph, telling them of Jesus' imminent birth, does indeed take place in Nazareth.
Luke, nonetheless, brings the pregnant Mary on a visit to her relative Elizabeth, the future mother of John the Baptist in Judea, near Jerusalem. Yet after this visit Mary returns "to her house" in Nazareth. Only then, does she learn from an angel of the details of her own imminent birth.
Mary, must return once more to the Judean area of Bethlehem for the story to progress. Luke cites a worldwide census decreed by Caesar Augustus when Quirinius was governor of Syria. Yet other historical accounts tell us that the census by Quirinius was held in 6 CE, at the beginning of his governorship. This worldwide census, incidentally, was held in Judea but not in the Galilee.
In Luke's account, nonetheless, the Holy Family arrives hurriedly in Bethlehem for the census, and Jesus is born. Luke relates how Jesus became quickly known in Bethlehem and Jerusalem. The infant Jesus is then presented at the temple in Jerusalem, and the family peacefully returns "to their own city Nazareth."
Many exegetes thus consider the narrative of the Bethlehem birth as primarily a theologoumenon - a theological statement - that comes to symbolize Jesus' status as the Messiah of the House of David, which was rooted in Bethlehem's history.
Finally it should be noted that if we study the two narratives then, according to Matthew, Jesus was born before the year 6 BC, and according to Luke after the year 6 AD. Amidst all of the doubts and questions vis a vis the accuracy of the Gregorian calendar that the western world counts by today, this still, in the minds of many, could make the millennium count of today a good compromise between the two contrasting Biblical dates and narratives.
Touring the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem
Bethlehem in Biblical Lore
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