The "Gold, Frankincense and Many Doubts: Part I" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Decorations for Christmas are almost complete.  Carol and I put the 12' tree in place and made sure all the lights were working.  She decorated it with the couple hundred ornaments we have accumulated during our 46 years of married life while I took our shell collection out of our coffee table and replaced them with Christmas photos taken over the past 46 years.  As I arranged the photos in the two compartments of the table I stopped often, showing a photo to Carol and we would reminisce about it.  

LDub, Dr. Martin and my dad as the three Kings.

One of my favorites is a photo of the Three Kings posing by the altar  in our church.  The kings were Dr. Martin, my dad and myself.  We were each wearing outlandish outfits as was the custom for kings to do at the time when Jesus was born.  But, exactly what was that date?  Most assume that it was December 25, eight days before a new year's day in the year 1 A.D.  Many don't agree with that date.  And as for the three Kings ...... many believe it may have been anywhere from two to a dozen or more kings or as they are called elsewhere in the Bible, magi or wise men (Matthew 2: 1-11 refers to "magi from the East").  But, magi were astrologers and counselors to kings.   And, when did the magi really visit the baby Jesus?  Hey, our nativity scene, made by Carol's friend Margaret, has three magi or kings in it, so they must have visited right after Jesus was born.  Matthew 2: 11 says that "On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him."  Later in Matthew it says the wise men told King Herod of their plan to visit the little "king" and they never returned, prompting Herod to order all children under two years old killed.  To me that suggests that Jesus wasn't a baby at the time the kings appeared at his doorstep bearing gold, frankincense and myrrh.  Oh yeah, I was always the third king and had to bring the myrrh to the manger.  Know what myrrh is?  It is a gum resin that is used to make incense.  Nice gift for a baby wasn't it.  So, we really haven't determined when the kings-magi-wise men really visited the Christ child, have we?   At times I think all this is hogwash, but I'll go on.  And, how about those shepherds and their flocks in the fields.  In the Bible it says they were watching their flocks in the fields when Jesus was born, but it was the custom to bring the sheep into centrally located pens or corrals as the weather turned colder and the rainy season began, especially at night.  So, would the flocks be in the fields in December?  I think not.  In Luke 2: 1-4 it tells us that Joseph and Mary came to Bethlehem to register in a Roman census.  These census' weren't taken in the winter because of the cold temperatures and the roads being in a poor condition.  And,  just where was Jesus born?  

My wife's longtime friend, Marg, made this manger scene
for her years ago.  Hand-made with dough.  Pretty neat!

In my house he is in a manger with his mom and dad, animals, an Angel looking down on him with Amahl closeby.  But in real life, was he really in a manger?  Did the holy family really stay in the back of an inn in Bethlehem?  Back then the word "inn" (Greek for "kataluma") meant guest room.  A well known biblical scholar has suggested that Jesus was born at a family's home in the area where animals were kept, where the family may have placed Mary and Joseph because of questions surrounding the legitimacy of Mary's pregnancy.  Well anyway,  Merry Christmas!  Tomorrow I'll attempt to figure out the exact year and day of the exact month that Jesus really was born.  Does it really matter?  Nah! After all, it's Christmas to me!!  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.