Devotional -

When Was Jesus Born? ( 12 December )

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God sent his messenger, a man named John, who came to tell people about the light, so that all should hear the message and believe. He himself was not the light; he came to tell about the light. This was the real light-the light that comes into the world and shines on all people. The Word was in the world, and though God made the world through him, yet the world did not recognize him. He came to his own country, but his own people did not receive him. Some, however, did receive him and believed in him; so he gave them the right to become God's children. They did not become God's children by natural means, that is, by being born as the children of a human father; God himself was their Father. The Word became a human being and, full of grace and truth, lived among us. We saw his glory, the glory which he received as the Father's only Son.

John 1:6-14

This is the time of the year when Christian tradition celebrates the birth of Jesus. There are at least three different dates in today's calendar, but they all go back to a single traditional date near the time of the year when the sun is lowest in the sky in this land and the nights are the longest.

Many have tried to calculate just exactly when Jesus was born. The fact that at least half of the months of the year have been suggested shows that the calculation is not easy. Some are attracted to the Jewish Festival of Tabernacles in September or October. After all, John says literally that "the word became flesh and tabernacled among us."

Others have tried to use some information from the New Testament (when Zechariah served in the Temple, how long after that Mary became pregnant) together with Jewish traditions about when the different orders did their Temple service. Since each order served twice a year, this calculation leaves us with two possible times: February/March or August/September.

Some years ago I found an explanation of the December date in one of the church fathers from a very early century, an explanation I liked very much. The new creation in the Messiah, he said, would begin on the same day as the creation of the world in the beginning. This was traditionally placed on the first day of spring, 21 March.

Then he did something very interesting. He said that John's statement, "the Word became flesh and lived among us" did not speak of one event but two. The Word became flesh when Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit in Mary. That happened on the date of creation. The second event, "he lived among us," was Jesus' birth, nine months later, in December. This recognized that from the moment of conception the Son of God was a human being.

In the end, of course, the specific date is not so important. What matters is that Jesus' birth was a historical event and a vital part of God's program of redemption.

- 12 DECEMBER -