Snowy scene, wrapped up baby Jesus, and shepherds who came to see. Do you really think it was snowing on the night of Jesus' birth? Does is ever snow in Bethlehem? I was curious and decided to investigate...like a Snopes detective! I found out that it very, very rarely snows in Bethlehem, although it has happened. But other facts make it even less likely. For one, the census that Joseph and Mary had come to submit to only happened in the warm months because of the difficulty in travel. Shepherds only put their sheep out in the fields during the the warm months from April until October. In December their sheep would have been in a warmer place.
I am interjecting a personal reason for my curiosity here. You see, I was looking at the small, treasured nativity here at my childhood home. My sister and I take out a few decorations while we are here and this is one of our favorites. The small figures are surrounded by a cloud of snowy blue (?) angel hair. As kids we loved the silky "snow" and were so tempted to stroke its soft strands. However, we were sternly warned never to touch it because the spun glass would cut our fingers! Really? I still hesitate to try! Ok, I must confess: this year I did try. And surprisingly, it does cut your fingers! Why would my Mom buy cutting snow? And blue? Questions I'll ask her someday!
After a little research over something most of you will think is silly, I am concluding that Jesus was probably born in September. If you add to the facts above, the idea that the date of Jesus' birth was arbitrarily set by the church. The timing of the celebration of the Christmas festival was determined to coincide with pagan tribal parties, honoring the winter solstice. These were pretty wild affairs, with lots of wassail, roasted animals, rich foods and sacrifices! Sounds like a Christmas party gone awry!
Why does any of this matter? I believe we cling to lots of myths and legends about Jesus birth. Even the timing of the visit of the Wise Men is one of those. But our focus can get lost, our ideas muddled by myths, and our search for a mythical baby King born in the snow can cloud the real truth. Jesus' birth was not a Hollywood production, no matter how the Jewish people looked for the king as a triumphant ruler. Baby Jesus did not have a halo on His sweet head! He was a real, ordinary baby, wrapped in rough muslin, not silk. Are we still looking for a king with an entourage of servants? Is that what we are searching for, as like the shepherds, we leave our flocks to go give Him praise? To kneel at the manger and see the God who became an ordinary baby who would grow up to save our souls! I want to see that baby! And forget about the snow!
"Let us go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which The Lord has told us about."
Luke 2:15
Pray:
Dear God, let us see the wonder, glory and majesty in the birth of Your Son, the ordinary baby who became the unbelievable miracle at Christmas! Amen
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