The Mystery Of Christmas

48 Hours Goes To The Holy Land To Explore The Nativity

(CBS)  By far the most sacred tradition in the Christmas story, and one of the few points on which the gospels of Matthew and Luke agree, is the phenomenon of the virgin birth.

“The two gospels that talk about the birth of Jesus are very emphatic about the virgin birth,” says White.

But biblical scholars like Prof. White see reason to wonder whether the circumstances of Jesus’ birth may have been less miraculous.

One has to wonder why an eye-popping story like the virgin birth gets absolutely no mention in the gospel of Mark, written decades before Matthew or Luke.

“Had it been known that the birth of Jesus was some kind of extraordinary miracle in the way that Matthew and Luke suggest, the author of the Gospel of Mark might have heard about it, or known about it, or cared about it. Certainly not said nothing,” says Princeton University professor Elaine Pagels.

She says that what Mark does say about Jesus’ family background is somewhat suspicious.

“In the earliest account, the gospel of Mark, is the statement that Jesus is the son of Mary. There's no mention of a father there,” says Pagels. “Now, it would be very unusual to talk about a Jewish boy as a son of Mary if he had a legitimate father. So, it's an odd account.”

Does Pagels think Jesus was illegitimate? “I think we don't know. But I do know that there was something embarrassing or troubling about the birth of Jesus that caused a lot of questions,” she says.

Pagels believes that Matthew and Luke, in an effort to put an end to those nagging questions, reached into the Old Testament for the solution: a virgin birth.

“Matthew read the prophet Isaiah, and he read a passage in chapter seven that said, ‘Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and this will be a sign,’ I think he must have said, ‘Oh. That's it. It was a miracle. The woman was a virgin.’ That's why people said it was illegitimate. But in fact, it was a divine sign,” says Pagels.

Not everyone was convinced. As Christianity spread in the second century, its critics began spreading outrageous rumors of Jesus’ birth.

“There later developed a counter legend in Jewish tradition that, in fact, Jesus was the product of an illicit liaison between Mary and a Roman soldier by the name of ‘Pantera,’” says White.

Archeologists have found the gravestone of a Roman soldier inscribed with the name “Pantera.” But most scholars view that theory as far-fetched.

“It's the obvious rebuttal. I don't think what came first was the adultery, and then the virgin birth. I think what came first was the claim of the virginal conception. And then the obvious rebuttal by opponents,” says Crossan.

Crossan thinks Luke had his own reasons for including the virgin birth. He says that, just as Matthew was writing for Jews, Luke was writing for Pagans of the Roman Empire, people ruled by a living god: Caesar Augustus.

“In texts and inscriptions and on coins, Caesar was announced to be the Lord, Capital "L". The savior of the world. The one who brought peace,” says Crossan. “My own idea is that the virginal birth comes up as opposition to the birth of Caesar…. They're saying, ‘No, peace does not come from Caesar. Peace comes from God.’ In a way it's terribly subversive.”

To put Jesus on a par with Caesar, Crossan says, Luke borrows from Roman myths about the emperor’s birth.

“Caesar Augustus was born of a human mother, Atia, and a divine father, Apollo. Jesus, who would become the Christ, was born of a human mother, Mary, and a divine father, Yahweh, the God of the Jews,” explains Crossan.

And just as in imperial mythology, Luke has angels triumphantly announcing the new Lord’s arrival.

“Luke is writing almost a caricature of the birth of Caesar,” says Crossan. “He's really saying as clearly as he can, ‘In your face, Rome.’”

Crossan says there is one important difference.

“Apollo doesn't ask permission. It's really a divine rape,” he says. “In this story of the Annunciation it is much more delicate. The angel asks, as it were, God's permission first. A far more beautiful, and far more magnificent, story.”

But many Christians would find it very offensive that there is any sort of association between Jesus, the Christ, and Caesar and Apollo.

“It's not offensive because it is a counter-story. You're saying, if in the first century I want to say God is not on the side of Caesar, how do I tell that story? They understood it,” says Crossan. “The people in the first century got the message. Jesus represents a different vision of peace on Earth.”

Eventually, Jesus’ vision would dethrone the pagan gods. Today, Christmas is the holiday, not Caesar’s birthday. Ironically, it falls on a day that was once a Roman festival.

But before the virgin birth became official church doctrine, some other early Christians had their own ideas and their own Gospels.

In 1945, an extraordinary discovery of dozens of ancient texts was made in Egypt. They describe a more controversial version of the birth of Jesus than anyone had ever heard before.

One of those texts was a later Gospel, ultimately declared heresy by the Church - the Gospel of Phillip.

“The Gospel of Phillip basically implies that Jesus had biological parents as we do,” says Pagels. “It's not a literal truth that Jesus was born from a mother impregnated by the Spirit. But, rather, one has to understand that as a metaphor for the divine process of rebirth that takes place when we're born again spiritually."

Pagels says the Gospel of Phillip questioned the entire concept of the Virgin Mary. “What it does is suggest that it's a mistake to take literally the idea that Jesus was born from a woman who hadn't conceived with a man,” she says.

Though Christianity eventually rejected that opinion, it remains popular among some biblical scholars.

“If I had to reconstruct it as a historian, I think Jesus was born in the normal way any children are conceived and born in the normal way any child is born,” says Crossan, conceived by Joseph and Mary.

“Mary is not a virgin. It's a way of saying that this child is unique, and therefore the conception of this child must be as unique as you can imagine,” says Crossan.

But Crossan argues that such an interpretation does not negate the belief in Jesus as the son of God. “You do not need to take the stories, say, of Matthew and Luke, the infancy stories, literally in order to believe that Jesus was the Messiah or the Lord or the savior of the world or the Christ.”

If you take away the elements of the story of Christmas that scholars don't really believe actually happened -- the site in Bethlehem, the birth in a humble manger -- what does Michael White think one is left with?

“There, I think, you do have a legitimate question, there is something lost,” he says.

But millions of people don’t want to lose any part of Christmas.

They include Ben Witherington, a conservative Bible scholar and an evangelical minister. “Christians assume that this is part of the foundation of the story, and it's extremely important,” he says.

Witherington headed to the holy land to refute the skeptics. “The event of the virginal conception happened. History. All right? The event happened,” he says.

[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.

[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!!!

[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

[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.

[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?

[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?

[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.

[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

[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.

[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? 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.

[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..

[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.

[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.

[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?

[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.