The Mystery Of Christmas

48 Hours Goes To The Holy Land To Explore The Nativity

(CBS)  This story originally aired on Dec. 20, 2005. It was updated on Dec. 19, 2007.

It’s one of the most powerful and beautiful stories in all of Western culture: the son of God, born of a virgin in a manger in Bethlehem, his coming announced by angels, celebrated by shepherds and wise men.

But is what the Bible tells us about the birth of Jesus really true? Where was Jesus born? When? How? And why? As the Christmas carol asks, “What child is this?”

48 Hours correspondent Maureen Maher explores these questions with curiosity and with respect.

Hard facts about Christmas are hard to come by, since the birth of Jesus was not a well-covered news event. To get any kind of glimpse into what really happened, one has to travel back to the first century and into the world of Jesus.

---

The troubled lands of Israel and the West Bank are saturated with pilgrimage sites where, at least according to legend, the events of the Christmas story occurred.

Nowhere does the story seem more concretely real than inside the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.

A small staircase leads down to the grotto where it is claimed that Jesus was born.

As much as we know anything, we know from multiple historical documents that Jesus was a real person who really died on a cross. But the mystery of his birth is much harder to solve.

The monuments to Christmas were built hundreds of years after the fact, and there are no contemporary documents such as birth records to delve into.

“We would like there to be records of all of this. And instead, what we have is Gospels,” says John Dominic Crossan, a former Roman Catholic monk and a professor emeritus at DePaul University.

Crossan has spent a lifetime studying the four separate texts of the New Testament that recount the life of Jesus - the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. On the subject of Christ’s birth, Crossan says, their stories are very difficult to harmonize.

“The interesting thing is, of the four gospels, Mark and John of course have no nativity story. Only Matthew and Luke,” he explains. “They agree that Mary and Joseph are the parents. They agree about a virgin birth. They agree about a birth in Bethlehem. But pretty much apart from that, the stories go completely their own way.”

The shepherds, for instance, appear only in Luke, while the magi are only in Matthew.

“When you start looking at them and realize that you can't make the way you heard it come out the same way, you have to ask, ‘Wait a minute, what's going on here?’” says Michael White, a New Testament scholar at the University of Texas. Unlike fundamentalist Christians, White concludes that the Gospels include plenty of creative writing.

“The Gospels themselves were not really intended to be the kind of newspaper-like reporting of day-to-day events that we tend to assume,” says White.

He says that’s because the Gospels aren’t just recording facts. They are making a case to convince people that Jesus was divine.

How would White suggest people read the Gospels? “To read them as religiously-motivated stories,” he says.

“They are not writing history. They are trying to tell you the meaning of history. So to do that, they have to take historical events, of course. But they will adapt them. They will change them. They will create,” says Crossan.

And most scholars agree that each Gospel author tailored his argument to fit his target audience.

“If they had a complete videotape of everything Jesus did and said, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John would still say, ‘Well, no, I'm going to adapt that for my community,’” Crossan says, with a laugh.

The Gospel of Matthew, for instance, was written for newly-converted Jews.

“It's a message that gets involved in the whole sense of Jewish identity and the role of Jesus as the Messiah,” says White.

“Matthew is in there, saying in effect, ‘It's the Christian way that is the future for Judaism,’” says Crossan.

The implications for the accuracy of the Christmas story are profound.

“It becomes pretty clear, I think, that Matthew is creating a lot of the story,” says White.

Where was Jesus really born? Matthew says in Bethlehem, which is, coincidentally, the home of the great Jewish King David and the place where the Jews had always expected their messiah to come from.

“It is the natural way to link Jesus into the lineage of David,” says White.

Some scholars argue that it all seems to fit too well.

“Born in Bethlehem is a clue that we are making the claim that this child is the Messiah,” says Crossan. “But nobody else seems to know anything about it in the New Testament…. It doesn't seem, for example, that John, in John's gospel, has any idea that Jesus was born in Bethlehem.”

But if Jesus was not born in Bethlehem, then where? Crossan and White believe the name says it all: Jesus of Nazareth.

“It's probably the case he was born in Nazareth,” says White. “He's called ‘Jesus of Nazareth.’ And that would've been the norm, that is, wherever you're born is the namesake that you will carry with you.”

Instead of a manger, the actual birthplace might have been within a house. “The houses that we have excavated at Nazareth are very often very small, tiny houses, many of them backing into a cliff which has a cave in it,” says Crossan.

But we don’t know exactly where that house might have stood. While most of the ancient village has been excavated, part of it remains buried under what is now the bustling present-day town of Nazareth.

It may be hard to grasp, but there’s a real possibility that Jesus was actually born on a plot of ground now used as a market place, unmarked by a church or even a monument.

But if Matthew concocted the Bethlehem birthplace to inspire his Jewish audience, what else did he make up? White suspects other episodes were inspired by another Jewish hero.

“There's this constant undercurrent in Matthew to Moses stories and Exodus stories, and aspects of the life of Moses,” says White.

For example, Matthew writes that Herod, the power-mad king of the Jews, ordered the slaughter of all the young boys in Bethlehem, and Jesus, Mary, and Joseph fled to Egypt.

“So, now Matthew is saying to himself, ‘Jesus is the new Moses. Aha, I know what I'll do. When Moses was born, Pharaoh tried to kill him, and kill all the young men. I will say the same of Herod,' ” says Crossan.

In a cave underneath the Church of the Nativity lie the skulls of Herod’s alleged victims. To some they look too big to be those of children.

“We have no historical evidence that such a massive slaughter or any kind of event like that ever occurred,” says White. He adds that there is no historical evidence he is aware of that the holy family fled to Egypt.

But if Matthew took liberties with the truth, what about Luke?

“The birth narrative in Luke is far more miraculous at every turn. More spectacular,” says White.

And how did people who first heard the Christmas story respond to its most important miracle, the virgin birth?

[philcrew]

I found your program The Mystery of Christmas very disturbing. It was so unbalanced and skeptic. The fact that you ran a show like that on Christmas is sad. Scripture supports itself over and over throughout the Old and New Testament. There were so many issues that your program said could not be answered and they are clearly stated in the Bible. Do you realize that just because you can find no record of something other than the Bible it makes it no more untrue than true? The Bible is a historical document, look at all of the things it records that you can find proof of today. The virgin birth of Christ is very significant, He is the son of God, and He is the Savior of the World. Angels appeared to Joseph to assure him that it was okay to marry Mary that she had not be unfaithful (by the way Mary and Joseph were betrothed during the time in which she conceived Jesus), Mary also visited Elizabeth (John''s mother) so John knew of Jesus'' birth, Luke 2:11 states, "Today in the city of David was born to you a Savior who is Christ the Lord." Faith is an essential component of Christianity, Believing in God and in Jesus His Son, not in ourselves or in what we can or cannot prove. I challenge you to research more throughly and not make up your mind about truth before you research. Merry CHRISTmas. Loree Phillips

[watchergb]

December 25, 2007

Was watching "The Mystery of Christmas" tonight on KOLR-10, Springfield, MO.

It was interesting for the most part UNTIL later in the program, a segment where a Christian debunker visits the Holy Lands.

He and the female host of the show were walking with a "local archeologist".

They ask him about proof of shepherds and sheep being in a certain location....

He reaches under a large rock and pulls out an animal skull.

The host asks the "archeologist" what it was, and he said it is a SHEEP.

Unless sheep in the Holy Land have pointed canine teeth, it looked amazingly like a medium-sized dog skull similar to a collie.

Perhaps the "archeologist" sjould have taken the biology studies a little more seriously.

Or, maybe he actually belives that the furry, barking animals are sheep.

[gtmerritt]

It is truly refreshing to know there are still news people with total humility, and Maureen Maher is the most unegotistical reporter I have seen in years, I do not usually watch CBS news, but if she were the anchor or I find she is going to be doing more I will be hopefully sure to see whatever she does research on.

The Mystery of Christmas was more than well done, and she I believe is the reason, hopefully she keeps up the good work without having any head swelling.

There is still hope, Thank you Maureen.

Sincerely,
George Merritt

[lpleo3]

What have been hidden so long in the dark,will surely come to the light(Jesus Christ)The people of this world should understand, the brainwash is almost over and the truth is closer than you may think.Jesus Christ is no mystery man has made it that way to have power and control, and to do that instill fear, and hide the truth.There so many shows that are seen on TV, and not one of them have investigated the color of Jesus Christ, and as long as people keep trying to make Him white, you will never find the truth, but until that happen the roots of deception will have to be dug up.People always talking about History His-Story.God made you, as He did with Christ, not the painters of that time painting everything in there image or color. But to truly be honest it''s not White people''s fault, most Blacks want Him to be white to.So if you really want to find the truth start in Egypt, and for His birth the 4th month,no one talk about the number four,look at all the things concerning the number four. Soon people will understand about how will live in the opposite of God''s word, you may find out what you have been calling myths,you might discover the real truth.

[robinspeer]

I wholeheartedly agree with philcrew about "The Mystery of Christmas" being unbalanced and skeptical. In order to judge the accuracy of a part of a document (such as the Gospels in the Bible), it is necessary to judge the accuracy of the entire document. No mention was made of the many proofs of the historic accuracy of the Bible and the gospels, in particular.

Instead, the Biblical accounts of birth of Jesus Christ were picked apart and anything that could not be proved was considered suspect. How would one prove the historic accuracy of any other accounts from the same time period?

We certainly cannot use the same standards used to investigate recent events when investigating events 2000+ years ago. Recent events have a much larger body of evidence with which to work. Instead, the standards used to investigate other events occurring 2000 years ago must be used.

I don''t see how the authenticity of the Biblical accounts of the birth of Christ can be considered without delving into the authenticity of the Bible as a whole. Also, a one hour news show is inadequate to cover such a complex subject.

[gwhoward1]

It seems to me, as noted above by some others, that there is limited understanding about the Gospel or too little time to address what is the root of what is critical here. Jesus, as noted by John the baptist in the book of John, is the "Lamb of God,who takes away the Sin of the world". To be that His virgin birth is an essential component. The question of who His father is speaks to prophesy. Agreeably if Jesus were the true son of Joseph and Mary by blood he would still be in the blood line ofthe house of David. But there are nuances of that line which won''t allow Joseph to be His father(ie the curse place on Jeconiah in the book of Jeremiah at the fall of Babylon which forbid any seed of his from ever assuming the throne of David and Joseph is in that line. And if you believe iin the doctrine of original; sin you know that anyone born of Adam carries the seed of sin and for Jesus to be born of man he could not be the sinless lamb of God. This is such a complex revelation that trails back through a remarkable geneology. I would ask your commentator to consider John MacArthur, president of the Master''s college and seminary, as well as James Merrit, former president of the southern baptist convention, and maybe give a look at the book "THe case for Christ" by Strobel. The Gospel does not begin in the New Testament, it begins in Genesis and through the Pass over in Exodus. Mahtew doesn''t have to fabricate anything; it''s all there in history! GH

[jennling]

How insulting to broadcast such a program on Christmas Day! Do you also plan to slander the Prophet Muhammad next Ramadan, or refute Exodus on Passover? And why are all of your experts non-orthodox theologians?

[jeff-fla]

We are supposed to believe the bible, when we know for sure that Moses never was, and they have proven the great Exodus never happened. Leave it all as it really is. A story told be people who needed medication. Move on and join the real world.

[foghorn000]

This was one of the worst documentaries that I have seen! Rogue "scholars" such as Crossan and White are free to debunk what is said in the gospels while providing ZERO proof of their own speculations. Most theologians laugh off their "theories", theories created mainly to sell their books.
Why dig up the gospel of Phillip, written in the 3rd century??? The Gospel of Luke was written by a brilliant physician, and for a medical doctor to emphasize a virgin birth is substantial. The Gospel according to Matthew was based on Apostolic witnesses. Apostles of Jesus Christ or John Dominic Crossan...a no brainer who to believe.
I appreciate the attempt to bring Ben Witherington to prove the historical veracity of the gospels, but too little to late.
The kids seem to make the most sense...simple faith based on 2,000 years of tradition. Why does CBS have to make it so complicated!

[randycar1]

"The Mystery of Christmas" was largely failure. I think it was unfortunate that CBS enlisted the views of primarily skeptical scholars who used polite language to describe the Bible''s writers as liars. They make Christianity seem to be an uncertain faith which is based on subjective belief and not on historical accuracy. There is a rich resource of Christian scholars who are able to share reasons for being able to trust in the integrity and reliability of the gospel accounts. The executive producer and Maureen Maher made a major mistake by not including interviews of evangelical scholars from seminaries such as Dallas Theological Seminary, Talbot Theological Seminary, etc.

[mscharlie-2009]

Thank you CBS for airing this very important examination of the Christmas stories found in Luke and Matthew. Dr. Crossan has done his research deeply and broadly and has made a very significant contribution to our understanding of the relevance of Jesus for our day -- to confront those who choose the path of war to an unstable peace with the message of Jesus that long term peace can only be won through justice, the fair and respectful treatment of all people.

[calypsoblade]

A disappointing show of two "who are they" debunkers and one "christian" who seemed to have no clue himself (he looked foolish and like some angry child) and a reporter who is stated above as being "respectful" seemed anything but. And to air it on Christmas Day is a JOKE! At least in rebuttal of two opinioned scholars, indicative of todays education system, someone of knowledge could have been consulted (McDowell, etc). The media has always been agenda driven as it is today. Because it wasn''t a media issue it is untrue? Let''s look at that...if Jesus was an embarrassment to the Romans and a thorn in the side of the scribes and Pharisees of that day, why would it have come to light, they''d want to bury it in the deepest sea, NOT point out the "dark spot" on their glorious existance. I don''t see you pointing out the vile history of islam on their holy days, yes, these same people who hate all jews and americans and slammed airplanes into our buildings. No, instead we have "sensitivity training" for us dealing with them - lovely to see our tax dollars at work schmoozing murderers. Instead of spreading words of love and compassion on Christams for fellow human beings, we get an unsubstanced, supposedly fact-based (according to 2 disgruntled "Christian" scholars) attack on Christian beliefs. It took very little class to air this muddled show and no respect whatsoever.

[allunknowing]

lol, CBS playing the role of Judas this year?

[bar4h9]

You know, I have no problem with you questioning Christian beliefs...its everyone''s right...but I find it funny that journalists do this only to Christian beliefs...they do it because they are cowards and debunking Christianity (which you have still failed to do...offering the opinions of what? 3 or 4 so called scholars without even the chance for a rebuttle from the other side of the Biblical scholarly spectrum? Real objective on your part (note the sarcasm) . I dare you, as a journalist, to do this same sort of reporting on a Muslim holiday of great importance...you won''t...you know why? Because journalists are cowards...you know Christians won''t send you death threats or even raise a finger, so you go after a story thats safe...Try a story like that on a Muslim holiday and see what happens. The media is purposly trying to kill others beliefs so that the rest of the country will bow down to godless liberalism and weak minded, impotent multiculturalism.

Once again, journalism of this caliber doesn''t surprise me at all...its just one more example of the attack on culture and beliefs from the so-called "intellectual" elite. I don''t know if I''d even call this article intellectual since its been done so many times before by Time and Newsweek.

[bar4h9]

and something I failed to add...CBS just further showed that it has no respect or class in regards to its audience.

[rowdytexan2]

Believe or don''t...it''s your choice, this is America. Any modern thinking individual knows to sort the fantasy from reality. History is history, there''s no changing it. No matter what is written.

The principles taught by Jesus in the New Testament are still the best way I''ve found to live my life while on this earth. Debug it all you want to.

There is every purpose in this world for scholars, scientists, and sages. A little myth never hurt anybody.

God bless you one and ALL!

[w2gt]

What I find amusing is psy_war%u2019s stab at Christians who %u201Cbegin to lose [their faith] the minute anyone challenges the admittedly contradictory and ahistorical gospel accounts of Jesus.%u201D He wants to be able to throw a few punches at Christians while dismissing any rebuttal of admittedly biased and ahistorical reporting as evidence of Christians wavering in their faith. As your web board name indicates, this is a psychological war being waged here, but don%u2019t be so insulting as to think that this is mostly about the weak-minded Christians fearful about their own faith. This is about the battle for the minds and souls of non-believers. They watch programs such as these that prominently display %u201Cscholars%u201D, all complete with libraries of books behind them, that debunk the Biblical accounts while the only rebuttal comes from a lone Christian being interviewed at times with stained glassed backgrounds. They walk away from such programs never investigating any further the issues raised, assuming they have already been settled by true %u201Cscholars.%u201D

psy_war is also right. We Christians need to calm down. Debates in this forum rarely get read by such impressionable nonbelievers as only the impassioned from opposite sides that find their way to these sites to do battle.

[fload46d]

This is a bunch of hogwash! The Communists have nothing on you people! Whenever they started their program in a country they had to destroy real Catholicism and this is how they did it. With lots of lies. Why don''t you also do a show on the fraud of Islam, Protestantism and modern Judaism?

[rsmsd]

Thank you, thank you ... for having the courage once again to air this beautiful program. I am encouraged and revitalized by theologians like Crossan. He is an inspiration to me. I thank him, and I thank you, for enriching our faith with history. It can be easy sometimes to think historical accuracy conflicts with faith. This need not be so. Programs like this bless my life and renew my hope for Christianity.

[jubas7]

After a long and joyous holiday, celebrating our Savior''s birth, with my family, I settled in to watch with interest your 48 hr segment. I was horrified by the way the children were "grilled" about their beliefs and the correspondance continued questioning of these little children whether they believed the "story" of Christ''s birth was fictitious. What a horror and insult. Why didn''t the authorities of this Catholic school throw your crew out? You are no longer welcome in my home.

[mss0603]

The birth "divine'' or not?? It is your faith it really does''nt matter what anyone thinks. As stated, whether it is divine or not, you have to know that this belief has withstood the test of time. When you are in high school, every student asks "Why do I need to take a history class, it''s alrady happened??" Every teacher answers the same "Because history has a way of repeating itself.."
Just like in the days of JESUS, you have believers and non believers. As you read these comments by people, it seems to kinda be repeating itself, don''t you think? There will come a day when all questions shall be answered..I pray that we are all happy with the answer../. As for stabbing at Islam and other religions, I really don''t care to even here about any more of it. The Muslims are proving their beliefs everyday. Remember, any publisity is good publisity. God Bless..

[schmoog1970]

For once I would like an investigative reporting program, which is attempting to unravel the mysteries of Christianity, to do an actual thorough job. Why do you choose to only quote from liberal theologians? Why not choose those on both sides of the arguments and let the audience decide? You would do well to include some of the scholars that investigative reporter Lee Strobel, formal legal editor of the Chicago Tribune, has interviewed to answer some of the questions you asked in his book "The Case For Christmas". If you would have you and your audience could have seen that there is excellent proof for the census that was taken at the time of Quirinius, governor of Syria which would have forced Joseph and Mary to return to Bethlehem (and not Nazareth); or proof that the gospels are very accurate historically. Luke for instance is very meticulous in his descriptions and time and again archeology has confirmed his writings.

Next time please do a more thorough job of actual investigative journalism.

Signed,

A concerned viewer.

[schmoog1970]

For once I would like an investigative reporting program, which is attempting to unravel the mysteries of Christianity, to do an actual thorough job. Why do you choose to only quote from liberal theologians? Why not choose those on both sides of the arguments and let the audience decide? You would do well to include some of the scholars that investigative reporter Lee Strobel, formal legal editor of the Chicago Tribune, has interviewed to answer some of the questions you asked in his book "The Case For Christmas". If you would have you and your audience could have seen that there is excellent proof for the census that was taken at the time of Quirinius, governor of Syria which would have forced Joseph and Mary to return to Bethlehem (and not Nazareth); or proof that the gospels are very accurate historically. Luke for instance is very meticulous in his descriptions and time and again archeology has confirmed his writings.

Next time please do a more thorough job of actual investigative journalism.

Signed,

A concerned viewer.

[schmoog1970]

For once I would like an investigative reporting program, which is attempting to unravel the mysteries of Christianity, to do an actual thorough job. Why do you choose to only quote from liberal theologians? Why not choose those on both sides of the arguments and let the audience decide? You would do well to include some of the scholars that investigative reporter Lee Strobel, formal legal editor of the Chicago Tribune, has interviewed to answer some of the questions you asked in his book "The Case For Christmas". If you would have you and your audience could have seen that there is excellent proof for the census that was taken at the time of Quirinius, governor of Syria which would have forced Joseph and Mary to return to Bethlehem (and not Nazareth); or proof that the gospels are very accurate historically. Luke for instance is very meticulous in his descriptions and time and again archeology has confirmed his writings.

Next time please do a more thorough job of actual investigative journalism.

Signed,

A concerned viewer.

[schmoog1970]

For once I would like an investigative reporting program, which is attempting to unravel the mysteries of Christianity, to do an actual thorough job. Why do you choose to only quote from liberal theologians? At the minimum, why not choose those on both sides of the argument and let the audience decide? You would do well to include some of the scholars that investigative reporter Lee Strobel, formal legal editor of the Chicago Tribune, has interviewed to answer some of the questions you asked in his book "The Case For Christmas". If you would have you and your audience could have seen that there is excellent proof for the census that was taken at the time of Quirinius, governor of Syria which would have forced Joseph and Mary to return to Bethlehem (and not Nazareth); or proof that the gospels are very accurate historically. Luke for instance is very meticulous in his descriptions and time and again archeology has confirmed his writings.

Next time please do a more thorough job of actual investigative journalism and then truth will then speak for itself.

Signed,

A concerned viewer.

[schmoog1970]

For once I would like an investigative reporting program, which is attempting to unravel the mysteries of Christianity, to do an actual thorough job. Why do you choose to only quote from liberal theologians? At the minimum, why not choose those on both sides of the argument and let the audience decide? You would do well to include some of the scholars that investigative reporter Lee Strobel, formal legal editor of the Chicago Tribune, has interviewed to answer some of the questions you asked in his book "The Case For Christmas". If you would have you and your audience could have seen that there is excellent proof for the census that was taken at the time of Quirinius, governor of Syria which would have forced Joseph and Mary to return to Bethlehem (and not Nazareth); or proof that the gospels are very accurate historically. Luke for instance is very meticulous in his descriptions and time and again archeology has confirmed his writings.

Next time please do a more thorough job of actual investigative journalism and then truth will speak for itself.

Signed,

A concerned viewer.

[schmoog1970]

For once I would like an investigative reporting program, which is attempting to unravel the mysteries of Christianity, to do an actual thorough job. Why do you choose to only quote from liberal theologians? At the minimum, why not choose those on both sides of the argument and let the audience decide? You would do well to include some of the scholars that investigative reporter Lee Strobel, formal legal editor of the Chicago Tribune, has interviewed to answer some of the questions you asked in his book "The Case For Christmas". If you would have you and your audience could have seen that there is excellent proof for the census that was taken at the time of Quirinius, governor of Syria which would have forced Joseph and Mary to return to Bethlehem (and not Nazareth); or proof that the gospels are very accurate historically. Luke for instance is very meticulous in his descriptions and time and again archeology has confirmed his writings.

Next time please do a more thorough job of actual investigative journalism and then truth will speak for itself.

Signed,

A concerned viewer.

[xpagan]

You all beat me to it. I also was appauled at the program and I truthfully can not believe that CBS would air such a biased opinion of a religious holiday on that holiday. However, I am also encouraged to think that we are being persecuted (ever so little) in our own country. This is nothing brothers and sisters, keep the faith and tell everyone what the truth is.

God Bless and Merry Christmas,
xpagan

[crtclthnkr]

How respectful Maureen Maher is! Let''s see: A beautiful story, yes. But is it true? Let''s investigate. Of course the only way to get a true investigation is to go to the "Theologians" who really don''t believe the biblical record of Jesus'' birth. That''s the "hard reporting" way.

[crtclthnkr]

As a "hard reporter" you have to be polite and respectful to those you are postulating against, or else they might recognize your cloying, hit-and-run approach and realize this is not a soft interview. So what if it is a one-sided essay and not an objective report? To air this on Christmas Day is a direct challenge to believers. So what? It''s OK to insult Christians, and even popular, so let''s go with it. The question a lot of us have is "What Is The Point, CBS and Ms. Maher? To real believers, the miracles are seen every day in changed lives; not how big a car God got us, or how prosperous we''ve become as Christians, or how big the Fish sticker on our car is, but how our attitudes have been changed by God''s Grace by our Reconciliation to Him through Christ''s Birth and Sacrifice. No matter what anyone says, or how cynically non-believers try to stretch the Truth, NOTHING can change that. What IS the point, CBS?

[jeff-fla]

Why is this story a bad one?
Because x-mas just might be make believe?

No story from the bible can be untrue?

Here are two.

Moses

Exodus

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Exodus

Humm makes you think?

[jeff-fla]

Why is this story a bad one?
Because x-mas just might be make believe?

No story from the bible can be untrue?

Here are two.

Moses

Exodus

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Exodus

Humm makes you think?

[red8730]

If only the reporter did her homework or is she paid to be ignorant? Let%u2019s see if CBS will do a show on Islam and doubt some of Islam''s doctrine. Oh wait they can''t do that - they would be in fear for their lives.

Miss TV Reporter and those noted scholars forgot about this - It was prophesied some 500 years earlier that the Christ would be born in Bethlehem.

Mat 2:5 And they said to him, In Bethlehem of Judea. For so it is written by the prophet,
Mat 2:6 "And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are not the least among the governors of Judah. For out of you shall come a Governor who shall rule My people Israel."

Shall we talk about the 100 other prophesizes of the Christ?

CBS is a joke if it considers itself a reliable source of information. Its not.

[LKanner]

How sad... This program picks apart the New Testament, specifically the gospels without fair and balanced reporting! I watched it expecting it to attempt to unravel my faith (although I am not sure what good that would do). Having worked in PR for most of my life I can tell you this is an example of LAZY reporting. Producers find someone who has an opinion and will call them back! To have a balanced report would require that they double the number of interviews and the expense/time/effort that goes with it. Please know Ms. Maher and CBS producers you will have to answer for every soul lost resulting from your poor reporting...

Signed-
One Less CBS Viewer

[teilhard8]

Having seen this special for the third time, it has really become benign from a theological point of view. All of the Gospels were written by groups of people over the course of at least 100 years after Christ, so there is plenty of room for conjecture.

I can honestly say from my contacts that no single church, including the Catholic Church, has the subject down pat. The information age (Internet) has allowed the vast sharing of information which is contrarian to the inculcated, indoctrinated responses most people have grown up with. I have yet to find any real continuity even among Catholic priests on their interpretations.

This special has given me one idea. John Dominic Crossan''s current address is one mile north of my parents, west of Orlando. He would certainly be an interesting person to look up.

Before I close, I wanted to wish Maureen Maher a belated Happy Birthday.

Lordy, lordy, now ALL 48 Hours correspondents have indeed, officially, turned...40!!!

[gwhoward1]

For Loree Phillips'' report of 12/25/07@ 11:19pm. I agree with your overall setiment regarding the Bible and it''s authenticity being of utmost importance. I would just like you to clear a slight error in your thnking. The John who is the son of Elizabeth is John the baptist, not the apostle John. The apostle''s writings of John the baptist, knowing Jesus to be the sinless Lamb of God, would certainly bring a sensible understanding that he knew everything pretaining to this revelation.