The Nativity is the story of the birth of Jesus Christ. It is the main reason why Christmas is celebrated.
Story[]
Somewhere around 6-4 B.C., the angel Gabriel visited Mary, the virgin, who was going to be married to Joseph. Gabriel told her she was going to have a baby, and that it would be God's baby. Before she was married, she became pregnant with this holy child, so Joseph decided to call off the wedding, but was encouraged to get married by Gabriel. They both travelled to Joseph's hometown Bethlehem because a census was taking place. There was no room in the inn at Bethlehem, so Mary was forced to give birth in a cave where animals were kept. The baby was born in a feeding trough.
Nearby there were shepherds camped out on the hills. Shepherds were the lowest of the low, but a host of angels came down to them, proclaiming that the Messiah, or promised one, had been born. They rushed down to see Jesus, bringing with them the gift of a lamb.
Far away, several Wise Men discovered a new star, which had been said to prophesy the coming of the Messiah. They travelled to Jerusalem, where they met with King Herod to see where the baby was. Herod didn't know about Jesus so he ordered them to find the baby, so he could worship him too. The Wise Men found the infant Jesus and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. They were warned in a dream not to return to Herod, so when they did not return Herod, who was jealous of someone who threatened his reign, ordered all baby boys under two to be ruthlessly murdered. Jesus escaped by fleeing the country until Herod was dead.
But the story doesn't end there. Jesus went on to do great things, even dying on a cross to save us from sin.
Extra information[]
Advent begins four Sundays before Christmas for Western Christian congregations (including the Catholic Church, the Western Rite Orthodox, the Anglican Communion, and even other Protestants, such as the Moravian Church). The Eastern Orthodox Church and the Oriental Orthodox Church have a common season, which starts forty days before Christmas and is often called Advent, but also the "Nativity Fast." Christmas is observed by certain Eastern Orthodox Christians (e.g., Greeks and Syrians) on December 25. Since their churches also use the Julian calendar rather than the new Gregorian calendar, other Orthodox (e.g. Copts, Ethiopians, Georgians, and Russians) observe Christmas on (the Gregorian) January 7 (Koiak 29 on the Coptic calendar). The Armenian Apostolic Church, on the other hand, adheres to the initial ancient Eastern Christian tradition of commemorating Christ's birth on the same day as his baptism (Theophany), which falls on January 6. Since the fourth century, Christian artists have been interested in depicting the nativity in painting. Since the 13th century, artistic representations of the nativity scene have stressed Jesus' modesty and encouraged a more tender portrayal of him, a significant departure from the early "Lord and Master" image, and mirroring shifts in traditional approaches to Christian pastoral ministry over the same period.
External links[]
| Christmas |
|---|