When was Jesus really born? (spoiler: not in December!)

I of the bug about the development of traditions around Christmas is that people writing hymns or plays set Jesus' nativity in their ain globe rather than in what nosotros know of the first century. In particular, many assume that Jesus was born in winter, since Christmas is celebrated in winter in the northern hemisphere. (It would be interesting to see some genuinely antipodeal hymns: 'In the deep midwinter' would become 'In the elevation of summertime'…)

It is fairly widely recognised that the commemoration of Christmas was not determined past the historical date of Jesus' birth. There's also a common (mostly anti-Christian) myth that the appointment of 25th December was chosen to displace the pagan festival of Sol Invictus, only Andrew McGowan of Yale University has demonstrated that this was 12th-century anti-Christmas propaganda. From the earliest times there appear to have been two contesting dates, December 25th in the Due west, and Jan 6th in the E of the empire. The December date comes from counting nine months on from the believed engagement of Jesus' conception, March 25th, which was also (for theological reasons) believed to have been the aforementioned date that Jesus died on.

So can we know when in the year Jesus was born?

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The showtime clue comes in noting the relation between the nascence of Jesus and John the Baptist.

In the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy, God sent the affections Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a human named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin'southward name was Mary. (Luke one.26–27)

If Mary conceived presently after this, and assuming that Mary and Elizabeth both went to term, then Jesus was born v to six months after John. (Notice that the visit of Gabriel was in the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy.)

The second clue comes in noting when John'south father, Zechariah, was serving his term as priest in the temple. Zechariah belonged to the priestly sectionalization of Abijah (Luke 1.5) and we know when this division served from 1 Chronicles 24.7–19:

The kickoff lot brutal to Jehoiarib, the second to Jedaiah,
the third to Harim, the 4th to Seorim,
the 5th to Malkijah, the sixth to Mijamin,
the 7th to Hakkoz,the 8th to Abijah,
the ninth to Jeshua, the 10th to Shecaniah…

Each of the 24 divisions served for a week, but all divisions served together at major festivals. We need to remember that the ecclesiastical calendar began in the month of Nisan, effectually the stop of March, whereas the domestic calendar began at Rosh HaShannah ('the head of the yr') at the terminate of September. (We as well demand to remember that the Jewish calendar uses lunar months of 29 or xxx days, and has to add an extra calendar month in vi years out of every xix to align with the solar year. And then correspondences with months in the Gregorian calendar vary from ane year to another.) This pattern of service was interrupted during the exile when Solomon'south temple was destroyed, merely it was restored (presumably from this text) on the render from exile and the rebuilding of the temple.

Assuming Zechariah was on his kickoff duty of the year, the timing would expect similar this:

Event	Priestly division on duty	Calendar month	Calendar week
	ane. Jehoiarib	one Nissan	1
	ii. Jedaiah		2
Passover Festival	All 24		three
	3. Harim		4
	4. Seorim	2 Iyar	5
	5. Malkijah		6
	half dozen. Mijamin		7
	7. Hakkoz		8
	8.Abijah	3 Sivan	9
Schavuot (Weeks or Pentecost)	All 24		x
Zechariah returns home: John conceived	ix. Jeshua		eleven
	10. Shecaniah		12

So John was likely conceived in the second half of Sivan, which is around the beginning of June. Adding the six months between John and Jesus, and the nine months of Mary's gestation, brings us to effectually the centre of September the following twelvemonth.

So Jesus would have been born in September.

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Some interesting points ascend from this calculation:

1. This would mean that the shepherds in their fields were outdoors in September (Luke ii.viii). Given the mild weather at this time of year, this is highly plausible. The hill land effectually Jerusalem and Bethlehem is cold in the winter, frequently with snow, so this would be less likely in December.

2. There is a tradition that Jesus was conceived on or effectually 25th December (rather than born and then), and this would fit with Elizabeth'south visit to her in her sixth month.

iii. There is likewise a tradition that 'Elijah' who comes to prepare the way for the Messiah would be born at Passover, which is John's engagement of birth past this adding.

4. If Jesus was born in September, that would be shut to i of the three major pilgrim feasts, that of Succoth, likewise called Tabernacles or 'Booths'. This feast commemorates the menses of time that Israel lived in tents in the wilderness. 'Tents' is succoth in Hebrew,tabernacula in Latin andskenaiin Greek; nosotros become our word 'scene' from this, since tent material would accept been hung at the dorsum of the stage in a Greek theatre. This connects with John one.14:

The Word became mankind and made his abode [Gk: skenoo] among us.

which some take translated 'tabernacled amidst united states' to bring out this connection. And then it might be that John'south theological reflection on Jesus was prompted by knowing the date of his nascency.

Information technology is worth pointing out that it is rather unusual that we tin can be relatively confident of historical events at this kind of level of item. The root source of this is the Jewish involvement in schedules and calendars, in this case, the rota of priestly duties. Such precision and organisation is relatively rare in the aboriginal world, and it offers a historical framework for the cloth of the New Testament that is unrivalled.

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A further theological signal of interest is that Jesus' life, expiry and ministry are then connected with all three of the pilgrim feasts. He was born at Succoth, crucified and risen at Passover (Pesach) and the Spirit was poured out at Pentecost (Shavuot). [Many years ago I read David Pawson arguing that Jesus' return would happen at Pentecost, to complete the three, but I call back he missed the significance of the outpouring of the Spirit at this festival.]

Of grade, Gabriel'southward appearance to Zechariah could have taken place during hissecond duty as priest, which would have been effectually six months later, putting the Annunciation in June and Jesus' nascency in March. I take constitute no arguments either for or against this in the literature.

Does this all mean we are wasting our time celebrating Christmas in December?Non at all. The main indicate of Christmas is not chronology merelytheology. As I comment elsewhere:

As the nights close in, and the days shorten, nosotros long to run into light. As the winter gets colder, we long for warmth. Every bit nature effectually usa seems strangled past death, we need signs of promise and life. And every bit the inconvenience of going out gets greater, and we are more than isolated from friends and neighbours, we long for company…Who can bring us light but the calorie-free of the world (John eight.12)? Who can bring us warmth but the one who has poured God's love into our hearts (Rom v.v)? Who gives united states hope beyond death, simply the one who not merely tasted death for the states simply swallowed it upwardly in victory (1 Cor 15.54)? And who else tin can bring us into friendship with God (two Cor five.18–19)?

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