Today is Christmas

Today is December 25. December 25 is synonymous with Christmas. It was not always that way. The holiday is based on the Biblical account in the Gospel of Luke. Based on the writing of the historian Josephus, Herod the Great died in 4 BC, since he plays a considerable role in the account told in the Gospel of Matthew that places the biblical account of Jesus's birth around 6 to 8 BC. Nothing in either gospel account says anything about December 25. This perplexed early Christians because the birth of the Son of God (or God made flesh) in a manger in Bethlehem is something that needs to be celebrated.

According to the Gospel of St. Luke, the Angel Gabriel told Mary: "Behold thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and shalt bring forth a son; and thou shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the most High; and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of David his father; and he shall reign in the house of Jacob forever. And of his kingdom there shall be no end."

Jesus was of the royal House of David, but David reigned from 970 to 1010 BC. The last king from the House of David was Zedekiah. His reign ended when Jerusalem fell to Babylon in 586 BC. Judah ceased to exist as an independent kingdom at that point. Zedekiah attempted to flee Jerusalem but was captured near Jerich. Neither Mary nor Joseph trace to Zedekiah as watching his sons die was the last thing he ever saw before he was blinded and taken in chains to Babylon. Jesus's ancestors were taken to Babylon along with all the other leading families of Judah. Under the Persians, they were allowed to return and rebuild the temple in 516 BC. The Hasmoneans under Judah Maccabees and his brothers (a priestly house) restored Israel's autonomy in 164 BC Hyrcanus II and Aristobulus II's Hasmonean civil war created a pretext for Roman intervention and in 63 BC Pompey the Great took Jerusalem. After defeating Pompey, Julius Caesar supported Hyrcanus II's claim, allowed the Jews to rebuild Jerusalem's walls, and returned a measure of autonomy to the Jewish people. Antipater the Indumaean exploited the internal rivalries between the Hasmoneans. He supported Caesar in Alexandria and was rewarded by being appointed chief minister of Judea, with authority to collect taxes. He appointed his sons Phasael and Herod as governors. In 40 Rome's longtime enemy – the Parthians – invaded Roman Syria and took Judah ransacking Jerusalem and much of the country. With Roman assistance Herod retook Jerusalem. The Roman Senate then voted to make Herod the King. Herod was a great builder. He rebuilt the Temple larger and more grand than the 500 year old structure he inherited. He also built the Port of Caesarea, built or rebuilt fortresses like Masasa, and his palace was magnificent. To pay for all of this and the grand lifestyle he lived and the tribute he sent to Rome the taxes were grindingly difficult for a largely agrarian people to pay. This is why tax collectors are so reviled by people in the New Testament and why everywhere Jesus went there were people in dire need.

Poverty and wealth disparity was on the rise during Herod's reign and Jesus's family was not spared from the hard times. An ordered census mean that Joesph and Mary had to march 89 miles back to Bethleham. Jesus was born in a manger there during the reign of Emperor Caesar Augustus (27 BC to 14 AD). The event was celebrated by angels who spoke to shepherds in the neighboring fields. They then paid their respects to the blessed infant.

According to the Gospel of St. Matthew the Holy Family received three visitors. We really don't know whether that was days, weeks, or years later from the events in the manger. That point is still argued by Biblical scholars and we don't really know is the three magi were astronomers, traveling traders, or even actual kings. We do know that from Matthew's account, they were high-enough status individuals to both assume they could get an audience with King Herod to discuss their mission to pay their respects to the child. That they brought gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh (gifts worthy of royalty) also indicate that they were at least wealthy.

Christians believe that Jesus is their savior and that Jesus is God made flesh.

"For God so loved the world, as to give his only begotten Son; that whosoever believeth in him, may not perish, but may have life everlasting. For God sent not his Son into the world, to judge the world, but that the world may be saved by him." (John 3:16-17)

Over time, December 25 became the day of the year that most Christians celebrate His birth. The Feast of Christmas has been celebrated since at least 200 A.D.

The Christian historian Sextus Julius Africanus in the early 3rd century calculated that Jesus' conception was March 25, which-adding nine months-yields December 25 as the birth date. This appears officially on the Roman calendar in 335 during the reign of the Emperor Constantine.

Some historians speculate that Church leaders may have chosen December 25 to replace popular existing pagan festivals, such as Saturnalia or Sol Invictus ("Birthday of the Unconquered Sun. This made it easier to integrate Christianity into Roman society.

Since the Fourth Century nativity scenes were found in Christian Churches. St. Francis of Assisi made the little nativity scenes so popular in 1223 that many Christians began having them even in their homes over the holiday. Over time, the decorations, gift-giving and feasting became a celebration almost to themselves.

Christmas trees began in Germany in the middle ages and were originally part of the celebration of Adam and Eve – celebrated on December 24. The trees were decorated with apples. The trees eventually became associated with Christmas and became widespread in the 1500s and 1600s.

Alabama was the first state in the nation to make Christmas an official holiday. That has since spread across all fifty states and federally. Banks, schools, courthouses and other government buildings will be closed, as well as many private businesses.

Christmas in contemporary times is partly a religious celebration of a savior born in a manger over 2,000 years ago in Roman-occupied Judea, partly a materialistic American display of wealth and partly a celebration of all things family..

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