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My kids love the cartoon Teen Titans Go, most notably my 8-year-old son. In one episode, the main characters participate in a Dungeons & Dragons-style adventure that leads them to sing the catchy phrase, “You wanna ride a dragon.” They do this throughout the episode while embarking on an adventure filled with mythical creatures.
My kids love the cartoon Teen Titans Go, most notably my 8-year-old son. In one episode, the main characters participate in a Dungeons & Dragons-style adventure that leads them to sing the catchy phrase, “You wanna ride a dragon.” They do this throughout the episode while embarking on an adventure filled with mythical creatures.
After obsessively singing this song for what felt like an eternity, one morning at breakfast, my son asked, “Daddy, are dragons real?” Such a great question, I replied. I then shared how dragons have been around for over a thousand years. There’s even a tale called Beowulf, where there’s a greedy and evil dragon that this group of Anglo-Saxons must defeat. “Whoa…” my son responded.
What’s even cooler is that dragons are revered and respected in Asian cultures like China. To the Chinese, a dragon is a kind and protective guardian. Dragons are often seen to represent power, prosperity, and good luck. In some cultures, dragons remind us that greed can lead people to evil and become monsters we must overcome. In other cultures, dragons show us there are forces bigger than ourselves that we can go to and trust to help us live good and prosperous lives.
What’s even cooler is that dragons are revered and respected in Asian cultures like China. To the Chinese, a dragon is a kind and protective guardian. Dragons are often seen to represent power, prosperity, and good luck. In some cultures, dragons remind us that greed can lead people to evil and become monsters we must overcome. In other cultures, dragons show us there are forces bigger than ourselves that we can go to and trust to help us live good and prosperous lives.
After silence, my son said, “Daddy, I’m going to get some toys to be a dragon that saves the world from killer clowns.” He then hurried to his room, leaving his dishes on the table…
When my son asked ‘are dragons real?” I could have said something like, “Well, according to archaeology, there seems to be conflicting evidence with no clear consensus one way or the other. Even historically, some creatures have been named something different than a dragon, but they are described very similarly to what we envision a dragon looking like.”
The actual history of the dragon wasn’t the heart of my son’s question. The heart behind his question of whether a dragon was real was whether people had experienced dragons. Were dragons something that led people on adventures like the Teen Titans? As I shared, the answer was a resounding ‘Yes!’
In the same way, the authors of Matthew and Luke wrote two very different stories about the birth of Christ. Where church history tried to make these narratives about history. However, as I did with my son, the gospels of Matthew and Luke are responding to the question the early church was asking: “Is Jesus real?”
The Birth Narratives Aren’t Historical but Are Still True
While the seeds of belief in the historicity of the birth narratives were present in the early church, it was during the 2nd century and beyond that most Christians widely accepted these narratives as historical. The problem is that the two gospels discussing Christ’s birth possess many inconsistencies and variations between one another.
Since the second century CE, Christianity has dealt with these differences by avoiding each story as a whole. Instead, it adopted a method of ‘harmonizing’ the birth narratives by combining two distinct stories into one filtered version that seemingly removed or ignored the inconsistencies between them.
While the gospels’ birth narratives of Christ are often treated as historical accounts, their inherent inconsistencies reveal a more profound, non-historical truth. By harmonizing these narratives into a singular version, Christianity risks losing the rich insights and spiritual meanings that each distinct story offers, thus undermining the profound truths they convey about the nature of Christ and the significance of his birth.
Who visited the newborn King?
My goal in drawing attention to inconsistencies and variations is not to ‘debunk’ the birth narratives or argue that these stories are unworthy of our attention and adoration. It’s actually the opposite. Rather, we can better put ourselves in first-century shoes by acknowledging the distinctions and differences between the two nativity stories. Once we are in these shoes, we can take a few steps to see what these narratives meant to the earliest Christians and what they mean for you and me today.
To start, there are commonalities in the birth narratives in Matthew and Luke. Some of these commonalities are:
- Jesus’s parents are Mary and Joseph
- Jesus was born in Bethlehem toward the end of the reign of Herod the Great
- Jesus’s conception was by the Spirit of God
As mentioned above, where inconsistencies and variations appear, the Church has historically reshaped both stories to create a harmonized single narrative. For example, Matthew describes the Magi showing up at the birth of Christ, while Luke describes shepherds appearing. What the Church has typically done to harmonize these two is create a timeline to where both groups fit. Generally, the timeline method is articulated in one of two ways:
- Timeline 1: The Magi arrive at the birth of Christ, present their gifts, and shortly after leaving, the shepherds arrive.
- Timeline 2: The shepherds were present at Jesus’s birth in Bethlehem, while the Magi visited him sometime later. Some views suggest Jesus was as old as a toddler before the Magi visited him.
Neither the Bible nor history provides us with such a timeline. The mere mention of timelines likely has Matthew and Luke rolling in their graves, as focusing on such things misses their points entirely.
For Luke, the shepherds represent humility, God’s grace, remembrance of the marginalized, and a reminder that Jesus is the ultimate shepherd. Meanwhile, for Matthew, the Magi embody recognition of Jesus' royal status and the universal call that Jesus's life and teachings apply to all humanity. This Jesus calls you to the way, whether a king or a pauper.
How Little We Know About the Birth of Christ
When asked, "Who brought Jesus gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh?" most Christians would answer, "The three kings from the East." According to Matthew, this answer is half correct. Yes, the Magi from the East did bring those gifts, but nowhere is the gospel ever explicitly that there were only 3 Magi. The word Magi, which is often interpreted as 'king' actually doesn't mean king or royalty at all.
In antiquity, the word 'magi' most often refers to 'wise men' or 'sorcerers' associated with Zoroastrianism. These men were involved in astrology, magic, and divination. Not only do we not know how many Magi were present, if any, at the birth of Jesus, but we fail to recognize that they were not literal kings but learned men who likely belonged to the Zoroastrian religion.
Another detail that Christians commonly believe is authentic but is a result of the filtered version of Jesus's birth narrative that's been handed down to us has to do with where Jesus was born. To be clear, Matthew and Luke agree Jesus was born in Bethlehem. However, according to Luke, Mary and Joseph lived in Nazareth of Galilee. When it's time for Mary to give birth, they travel to Bethlehem, where Mary gives birth to Christ in a stable. According to Matthew, Mary and Joseph were already living in Bethlehem; there was no census, no travel, and Jesus was born at home, not in a stable.
The reality is a filtered and harmonized re-working of Matthew and Luke, along with centuries-old hymns, have shaped Christian thought on the birth of Jesus far more than the Bible has. Our thinking that three kings visited Jesus is more the result of the Christmas Carol, "We Three Kings of Orient Are" than Matthew and Luke. Our idea that a third trimester, Mary traveled on a camel from Nazareth to Bethlehem to give birth in a stable is more the result of Christmas pageant and stained glass lore than history.
Limited Biblical Knowledge Among Bible Believers
The irony shouldn't go unnoticed. For a group of people who claim to base their faith and lives around the "clear" teachings of the Bible, we have been shaped more by culture and tradition when it comes to our understanding of the birth of Christ. It's entirely possible for harmonize the birth narratives of Jesus, Christian history has proven this.
There is also no judgment in harmonizing the story of Jesus's birth in the name of artistic expression. The issue is relying solely on the expression and believing you understand each story's nuances and rich meanings separately. It is hardly a radical notion to encourage 'people of the book' to take the time this holiday season to read each narrative individually and as a standalone story.
Here's a wild suggestion: this holiday season, let's step away from the filtered versions of the nativity story we've become accustomed to and revisit the original narratives with fresh eyes. Doing so allows us to engage with the profound truths embedded within Matthew and Luke's distinct stories. It’s an opportunity to explore the depths of their meanings and appreciate the diverse ways early Christians understood Jesus's significance. This Christmas, ask yourself, "Is Jesus real?" Then, read the birth narratives of Matthew and Luke and wrestle with all the ways they are answering with a resounding "Yes!" Not because what they're saying is historical but because this is genuinely how the early church experienced Jesus, and we can do the same today.
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Thanks for stopping by and reading this article! If my work has served you or you want to contribute to creating authentic faith connections, consider becoming an Authentic Faith Advocate.
Thanks for stopping by and reading this article! If my work has served you or you want to contribute to creating authentic faith connections, consider becoming an Authentic Faith Advocate.