Last week, our children and youth as well as some of you
participated in an intergenerational service and shared stories
about the births of three individuals - - Buddha, Confucius, and
Jesus. This week, I want to delve a little more deeply into the
story of the birth of Jesus. Before I get too far, though, let’s
get a few things straight. We don’t have to take this story
literally to take it seriously. Modern day biblical scholarship
tells us the historical Jesus probably was most likely born in
or near Nazareth, not Bethlehem. He was probably born in a
house, not in a manger. I would say that the chances that he was
born on December 25 are about 1 in 365. There were most likely
no shepherds, magi, or little boys playing drums while cattle
lowed. But the biblical writers of the Gospels of Matthew and
Luke weren’t trying to write history. What were they trying to
tell us? I think it’s like this… Before, during, and after
Jesus’s lifetime, the Jewish people were having a very difficult
time. They were being vi