The Mystery Of Christmas

48 Hours Goes To The Holy Land To Explore The Nativity

(CBS)  Perhaps the most touching part of the Christmas story is also one of the least verifiable: the visit of the Magi to pay homage to the baby Jesus.

The Magi, and the fabled star they followed, appear only in the gospel of Matthew, but Witherington says that’s no reason dismiss them.

“Now, they themselves were not kings. You can call them sages, you can call them star-gazers, they were not kings. But these were the kind of people who knew a king when they saw one,” he says.

Witherington says it was common for ancient astrologers to travel to investigate heavenly signs. “We know these kind of things did happen; we have other historical parallels,” he says.

If there was a celestial event that prompted a cross-continent journey, then surely the Magi would have had to travel through the ancient stone city of Petra.

At the time, it was also a great place to buy frankincense and myrrh.

Now, as then, the road through Petra is best traversed on camelback.

But could there really have been something in the sky guiding their journey? One astronomer says yes.

“There really was a historical basis to the star of Bethlehem,” says Michael Molnar of Rutgers University.

He says that if ancient astrologers saw the planet Jupiter in the constellation Aries, it would have had great historical significance.

“If you had Jupiter in the East in Ares, the Ram, you had the sign that a King of the Jews was born,” says Molnar.

Using a computer model, Molnar discovered just such an event.

“I was really ecstatic when I found in my computer screen all these things coming together in this time frame, that is April 17, 6 BC,” says Molnar.

Could April 17, 6 BC be the real Christmas? In fact, most scholars agree that our calendar is off by a few years. And the possibility that Jesus was born in the Spring is supported by Luke’s mention of shepherds tending their flocks.

“The shepherds tend their flocks during the spring time in that part of the world. So there were a number of things that just fell together very nicely,” says Molnar.

Other scholars like John Dominic Crossan say that Luke, by having angels appear to shepherds of all people, is sending a subversive message to the Roman Empire.

“Romans would think of shepherds, they're kind of on the margins,” he says. “That heaven would send angels to shepherds is another way of saying, this ain't your regular birth, people.”

But there actually is evidence that shepherds were in Bethlehem.

“What we've got here is a sheep pen, where you can keep them. And you have a feeding trough right here, conveniently sheep height, not the height for an oxen or a beast of burden but sheep height,” says Witherington.

One of the local archeologists excavating the site showed 48 Hours what he had found: the skull of a small sheep.

“It's clear that these stories are not simply made up out of whole cloth,” says Witherington. He says he has no problem with the story that the shepherds saw angels in the sky. “Historically speaking, we've got thousands of accounts of people seeing angels,” says Witherington.

We usually think of the shepherds and the wise men arriving moments apart. But if the wise men began their journey the night Jesus was born, their trip would have taken months, and Matthew tells us they went first to Jerusalem for a meeting with King Herod.

Witherington also believes King Herod, after meeting the wise men, did order the slaughter of all male infants in Bethlehem. But he’s not persuaded by bones underneath the Church of the Nativity.

“I think it's very possible we're looking at the skulls of monks,” he says.

Instead, he points to King Herod’s obsession with power - which can be seen clearly with a visit to the Herodion, his mountaintop fortress.

“He shaved off four or five hills around here to build up this artificial mountain here. Can you say 'Fear Factor' times ten? That's who Herod was,” Witherington explains.

And Witherington says King Herod even executed wives: “His own wives. He executed some of his children when he thought they got too old and were likely pretenders to the throne. So, the paranoia was deep.”

Witherington says there’s no record of the slaughter simply because it was a minor event by the standards of the time.

“From what we can tell from the archeological ruins of first century Bethlehem, a few hundred people lived there. I think we're talking between six and ten children max,” he says.

Did the Holy Family really go to Egypt? To investigate, 48 Hours traveled to Cairo.

Though rarely noticed in the West, there is a large population of Christians in Egypt. They pray at over a dozen sites where, according to legend, the Holy Family stopped along their journey.

The church of St. Sergius in Cairo, for example, is revered as a spot where Mary, Joseph and Jesus sought refuge.

Professor Witherington doesn’t have proof the family came to that particular spot, but he took 48 Hours to an ancient synagogue nearby to make a point.

“This is the largest cluster of Jews outside of the holy land, anywhere in the world. There were 100,000, 200,000 Jews down here,” he says. “If you believe you're the parents of the Messiah, then you need to go to a safe haven. And you want to go to a Jewish one.”

From here, traditionalists believe Jesus and his parents eventually returned to Nazareth, though his ministry would not begin for almost 30 years.

But how much of the Bible’s account do we need to prove before we have faith? Can the biblical story of Christmas still be true, even if it’s not entirely accurate?

[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.