DEBATE ON THE BIRTH OF JESUS

Kuya Kim said: “Imposibleng ipinanganak Siya [Hesus] ng Disyembre. Dahil sa sobrang lamig ng winter sa Bethlehem, imposibleng ipinanganak siya sabsaban. Ipinanganak si Cristo ng spring kung saan naglabasan ang mga hayop at mainit-init na ang panahon. Ito ay mga buwan ng Marso, Abril o Mayo.”

OBJECTION: Kuya Kim may have not been aware [or failed to research] that we have conclusive evidences based on archaeological findings that Jesus was indeed born during winter season, specifically in the month of December.

The 2nd-century-B.C. Jewish text called the “Book of Jubilees”, one of the numerous manuscripts that was discovered by archaeologists in Qumram desert in 1947, has allowed us to know the dates of the sacerdotal schedule system for the Temple of Jerusalem, based on a cyclical order from Saturday to Saturday, recurring in the same period every year. This text then mentions that the class of Abia, the eighth of 24 that rotated to officiate as priest in the Temple, is schedule to enter the Temple in the week between 23 and September 30.

Now the Gospel of Luke mentions that Zechariah [who belonged in this priestly class of Abia (Luke 1:5)] received the message from the Angel Gabriel that his wife Elizabeth, although known to be barren, (Luke 1:7), will bear a son [the future John the Baptist] on the day “when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he [Zechariah] was serving as priest before God” (Luke 1:8). In fact if Zechariah indeed received the news from the angel on September 23, then Elizabeth would have conceived John on the very same day, or the following day [September 24]. (Surprisingly, the Church celebrates the feast of John the Baptist’s conception and birth on September 23 and June 24 respectively.)

The accounts in the Gospel of Luke, which were written in “an orderly account” (Luke 1:3), mentioned that the Virgin Mary received the message from the Angel Gabriel that she was to be the Mother of God "in the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy" (Luke 1:26; 1:36). If we count six months from September, the annunciation of the Angel to Mary would fall on March. Notice that the Catholic Church’s celebration of the feast of the Annunciation coincided on the 25th of March. If we add nine months from March 25, we will lead to December 25, more or less days.

Kuya Kim’s also said “dahil sa sobrang lamig ng winter sa Bethlehem, imposibleng ipinanganak siya sabsaban”. With all due respect to Kuya Kim, I find this statement unreasonable. Come to think of this: is it forbidden for any pregnant mother to give birth JUST BECAUSE IT’S WINTER? I strongly believe that Jesus’ birth is not “weather weather lang”.

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Kuya Kim said: “Ipinanganak si Cristo ng spring kung saan naglabasan ang mga hayop…”

OBJECTION: What Kuya Kim might be pointing out in this statement is the idea that the angels could not have met the flocks and shepherds in open fields because of winter. However, Kuya Kim likewise failed to know [or perhaps research] that Judaism is entirely subject to the rules of purity. According to many ancient Jewish treatises, the Jews distinguished three types of herds.

The FIRST TYPE includes animals with WHITE fleece, with no marks or colour variations. From a religious point of view they were considered “pure”, and so a day in the fields, they could go back to their stable, which was often – and this was even likelier in the cases of small inhabited centres – in a village or town. A SECOND TYPE, included sheep whose wool was NOT COMPLETELY WHITE, but partly white and partly dark. These flocks were also allowed to return to the stable at nightfall. However, their shelter necessarily had to be located outside the inhabited area: outside the city walls in the case of a fortified town and outside the urban perimeter, or, at most, in outlying areas.

The THIRD TYPE includes sheep with DARK, if not pitch black, wool. These flocks are considered unclean, and are no allowed to enter either the city or in the fold, even after sunset. Moreover, they are FORCED TO REMAIN OUTSIDE WITH THEIR PASTORS, day and night, winter and summer. In light of these considerations, it is CONCLUSIVE that the shepherds and their flocks met by the angels on that holy night in Bethlehem belong to the third group, consisting of only black sheep.

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Kuya Kim said:  “Kung taon naman ang pag-uusapan 4 A.D. ang birthday ni Kristo - ang taon kung kalian namatay si King Herod.”

OBJECTION: Kuya Kim said it right that King Herod died in 4 A.D.; reliable secular records states that king Herod died 37 years from the time the Romans declared him King, and 34 years from the time he actually became King. That places his death at 4 A.D.

HOWEVER, Kuya Kim said it wrong that Jesus was born on the same year Herod died. The Sacred Scriptures explicitly tells us that Jesus “was born in Bethlehem in Judea, DURING the time of King Herod” (Matthew 2:1), at that time, he wanted to kill Jesus (Matthew 2:13) and told the wise men to bring back word to him about the child.

We should also take note that St. Matthew’s Gospel tells us that “he [Herod] gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were TWO YEARS old and under, IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE TIME he had learned from the Magi.” (Matthew 2:16). Hence, based on the infallible Biblical record, we could say that it was only AFTER TWO YEARS since King Herod had enquired of the wise men that he ordered the massacre of the children of Bethlehem. Considering this, we can add at least another two years to the date (Herod, obviously, was alive 2 years "after" he enquired of the wise men to make this proclamation). So it is clear Jesus must have been born at least sometime around or before 6 B.C. (4+2=6).

We also know from the biblical record that considerable time must have elapsed between Jesus' birth and King Herod's death, because after that 2 years passed, Joseph took Mary and Jesus into Egypt to escape the death edict. Therefore Jesus had to have been born BEFORE 4 B.C., NOT ON THE YEAR HEROD DIED, as Kuya Kim claimed.

Kuya Kim said: “Bakit December 25 ang Pasko ang selebrasyon ng Kanyang birthday? Noong unang panahon sa Europa at Middle East, December 25 ang pinakamahalagang araw sa mga pagano, dahil ito ang araw ng Natalis Solis Invicti. Ito po ang birthday ni Mithras, ang Iranian sun god. Dahil sa ginusto ni Emperor Constantine na maging popular ang Kristianismo, sinabay niya ang birthday ni Jesus sa araw ng kapistahang pagano.”

Objection: Kuya Kim would be disappointed to know that it was the EXACT OPPOSITE that actually occurred. First of all, the birth of Jesus on December 25 had basis since the beginning of the 1st century or [1 AD] long before Constantine the Great was converted to Christianity(Constantine became emperor somewhere around 300 A.D.)

Theophilus of Antioch stated in 183 AD, and also by Hippolytus in 203 AD that Jesus was born on December 25, antedating the recognition of the pagan feast by almost 100 years. Allow me to quote Hippolytus:

"The First Advent of our Lord in the flesh occurred when He was born in Bethlehem, was DECEMBER 25th, a WEDNESDAY, WHILE AUGUSTUS WAS IN HIS FORTY-SECOND YEAR, which is five thousand and five hundred years from Adam. He suffered in the thirty-third year, March 25th, Friday, the eighteenth year of Tiberius Caesar, while Rufus and Roubellion were Consuls." - Saint Hippolytus of Rome, Commentary on Daniel

Now the pagan feast of Natalis Solis Invicti was only officially recognized in Rome during the reign of Emperor Aurelian in 274 AD, and it was celebrated in Rome on DECEMBER 19. In an attempt to draw attention away from, or replace, the Christian festival celebrating the Lord’s Christmas (which was already been established since 1st century AD), the pagan festival of Deus Sol Invictus was timed, or rather delayed by the pagans, until the 25th of December – the entire opposite of Kuya Kim’s claim.

With all due respect to Kuya Kim. ") Merry Christmas :)

REFERENCES:

La Storia Conferma La Nascita Di Gesù Il 25 Dicembre

di Michele Loconsole

http://www.zenit.org/article-20824?l=italian

Accessed: December 16, 2011

“As Christmas draws near, here is an unusual tale about the birth of Jesus”

by Marco Tosatti

http://vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/homepage/world-news/detail/articolo/natale-christmas-navidad-betlemme-bethlem-belen-10491/

Accessed: December 16, 2011

Can We Know What Year Jesus was Born?

by Tony Warren

http://www.mountainretreatorg.net/faq/birth.html

Accessed: December 26, 2011

Other Links

http://tumbukin-natin.blogspot.com/2011/12/kim-atienza-dec-25-not-jesus-birth-date.html

http://raffandcompany.wordpress.com/2011/12/19/waiting-for-christmas-2/

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