The Nativity of Jesus, or simply The Nativity, refers to the accounts of the birth of Jesus of Nazareth in the Gospels and in various apocryphal texts.
The remembrance and re-enactment of the Nativity in the Christian celebration of Christmas signifies their belief that Jesus is the "Christ" or Messiah promised by the Old Testament. The main religious celebration among members of the Catholic Church and other Christian groups is the Church service at midnight on Christmas Eve or on the morning of Christmas Day. During the forty days leading up to Christmas, the Eastern Orthodox Church practices the Nativity Fast, while the majority of Christian congregations (including the Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion, many Mainline churches, and Baptists) begin observing the liturgical season of Advent four Sundays before Christmas—both are seen as times of spiritual cleansing, recollection and renewal to prepare for the celebration of the birth of Jesus.
The New Testament provides two accounts of the birth of Jesus: one in the Gospel of Matthew and the other in the Gospel of Luke.[1][2] The birth narratives of Matthew and Luke have some elements in common. They both relate that Jesus of Nazareth was the child of Mary, who was betrothed to Joseph, a descendant of the Biblical King David. The narratives also present the conception, preceded by an angelic annunciation, not as the result of marital relations, but of the power of the Holy Spirit.[3][4] Meanwhile, the Gospel of John is silent on the nativity,[5] as is the Gospel of Mark,[6] which most textual critics consider the earliest of the canonical gospels. Critical scholars see the Gospel accounts as different, conflicting narratives, and they consider them to be pious fictions.[7] E. P. Sanders describes them as "the clearest cases of invention in the Gospels",[8] while John Hick states that "the whole beautiful Bethlehem Christmas story [was] created to fulfil supposed Old Testament prophecies".[9]
Contents |
|
Muzzerino
Sun, 30 Nov 2008 08:29:00 GM
A . nativity. scene may be used to describe any depiction of the . Nativity of Jesus. in art, but in the sense covered here, also called a crib or manger in the UK and creche in France (meaning "crib" or "manger" in French), ...
Q. what's the big deal in stealing the doll that represents the baby jesus in those 3D nativity scenes that you see in public places? i mean, if you really wanted to steal something, why not steal one of the wise men with the jewels? this happens all over the usa. why the baby jesus? do you think that the baby jesus doll should have a chip put into it (like a Lo-Jack) or GPS system so that the police can track down the thief and put him in jail? or maybe if the baby jesus doll were replaced with a cabbage patch doll, would it deter this horrific annual crime? what makes people steal the baby jesus doll and not any others? OH! i forgot! well, now they are crucifying jesus again over at the city center in downtown chicago… [cont.]
Asked by Louiegirl_Chicago - Tue Dec 25 22:29:59 2007 - - 20 Answers - 0 Comments
A. People who get "scroogeish" around Christmas (or Athiests) passing a scene like that only makes them angry. By taking baby Jesus, they take the most important part of the scene so everyone notices, and the scene suddenly has no meaning and seems as if it was just a waste to put out there. Think about it - Nobody would have noticed if the lamb was gone or if one if the bystanders had a big chip or dent in it's side...They do it to relieve their own stress so they don't have to see that anymore. Make quite an inconveinience for everyone else too. No, there shouldn't be chips in them. If those same people knew there were chips in those things, do you know what kind of chaos that would cause? They would take it and put it in someone elses… [cont.]
Answered by Deja Vu - Tue Dec 25 22:37:29 2007
