20
votes
Accepted
Biblical significance of the gifts given to Jesus
Biblical References to Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh:
Gold is a highly valued commodity – not just for its beauty and use in jewellery and decorations, but also for its status. The Bible describes the ...
- 33.9k
9
votes
Accepted
What is the origin of the word "Nativity" as a title for Christ's Advent?
In Catholic culture it comes from the Latin.
"Festum Nativitatis Domini Nostri Jesu Christi" (the Feast of the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ) and the shorter form, "Dies Natalis Domini" (the ...
- 73.9k
6
votes
Where does the Catholic tradition that Mary did not have pain giving birth to Jesus come from?
Her painless childbirth follows from these truths of divine revelation:
Painful childbirth is one of the punishments of Original Sin (Gen. 3:16: "in travail shalt thou bring forth children")...
- 41k
6
votes
Accepted
Do Mormons believe in the Virgin birth taught in the Bible? (LDS)
Yes. Latter-Day Saints believe in the Virgin birth.
Perhaps one random sample from an official LDS Church manual called The Life and Teaching of Jesus and His Apostles Instructors Manual (Which can ...
- 304
6
votes
Accepted
According to Catholicism, why did the Blessed Mother stay a virgin during her pregnancy with Jesus?
An answer from catholic church teaching to satisfy your curiosity regarding
Why was Jesus born of a Virgin instead of just being conceived of a Virgin?
Short answer: she was conforming her will ...
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5
votes
Biblical significance of the gifts given to Jesus
I think there is more to the gifts than the symbolism of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Particularly within the Bible. Recently I was preaching on Isaiah 60, and verse 6 struck me:
Herds of camels ...
- 1,589
5
votes
What is the basis for saying Mary is not the mother of God from a trinitarian perspective?
While it is important to maintain that Christ's divinity is not separate from his humanity in the incarnation, and while that unity may be understood to extend back to conception, it is also important ...
- 19k
4
votes
According to Catholicism, why did the Blessed Mother stay a virgin during her pregnancy with Jesus?
Virgin during her pregnancy
She was a virgin during her pregnancy because prior to the Annunciation she took a vow of virginity:
Augustine says (De Sanct. Virg. iv):Mary answered the announcing ...
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4
votes
Question about nativity and timelines
This answer is from the perspective of history and the Bible (whether divinely inspired or merely a message that humans wanted us to hear).
There are four specific ages that are significant in ...
- 9,861
4
votes
Accepted
Where did St. Jerome say this quote about the manger of the nativity?
I was a bit skeptical, but the quote appears to be legitimate. It's from one of Jerome's homilies. Merely searching for jerome manger silver, I found this page in The Homilies of Saint Jerome, ...
- 890
4
votes
Accepted
Are there any Christian sects/denominations which reject that Jesus was born of a woman?
The most likely candidate would be one from the 'stables' of Gnosticism. It initially flourished during the middle of the second century and proved to be a major challenge for early Christianity, not ...
- 33.9k
3
votes
Why is the Crucifixion said to have been between 30-33 AD, if Jesus was born between 4-6 B.C. and lived to be 33 years old?
Reading the Wikipedia article cited in the question a little further we come to the Chronology section. In this we read that most scholars consider the most likely date for the Crucifixion to be ...
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3
votes
Accepted
What is the biblical basis for commemorating the birth of Jesus?
Let's start with what Scripture says about days:
Who are you to judge the servant of another? . . . One person regards one day above another, another regards every day alike. Each person must be ...
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3
votes
Has the Catholic Church responded to the apparent implausibility of a census as described in Luke?
The matter of which census Luke referred to requires knowing the year Jesus was born. The Bible does not specify which year and problems with this are written about in the ‘Concise Sacramentum Mundi ...
- 33.9k
3
votes
What is the biblical basis for commemorating the birth of Jesus?
The biblical basis is that the angel told the shepherds to celebrate the first Christmas, and the angels themselves were celebrating it:
But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I ...
- 1,840
3
votes
Is there any tradition that informs us of how old Mary was when she gave birth to Jesus?
In Mark 5:41-42, a 12 year old is referred to as a little girl. Mary was always called a woman in the Bible. So there is a strong possibility that she was much older than 12. Likewise, in Luke 1:42, ...
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3
votes
What was the Star of Bethlehem?
Whilst answering a recent (2018) question about the Star of Bethlehem, I came across an article that suggests this strange heavenly body might have a supernatural cause:
"What exactly was the ...
- 33.1k
3
votes
In which year was Christ born?
The estimation of the year of Jesus' birth depends on the estimation of the year of Herod's death. The information to date the latter event is provided by Flavius Josephus in his Antiquities of the ...
- 1,840
3
votes
Why is Christmas on December 25th?
There's a number of reasons to understand that Christ was conceived about 12/25 and was born at Tabernacles in the Fall.
Some believe that Nisan was the first month of the year. True enough at the ...
- 14.4k
3
votes
How could Jesus be born during the reign of Herod, and when Quirinius was governor of Syria, if those periods were not contemporary?
This is going to be very brief. For those who really want to get to the bottom of this I give two free online articles at the end.
The argument of Andrew Steinmann, John Rhoads and others is that ...
- 8,405
3
votes
Does Catholicism teach that the Wise Men from the East in fact, Jews settled in a far away place?
Given the accompanying texts to the Gospel that are read in the Epiphany of the Lord (based on the Roman Calendar), these magi might have well been non-Jews.
For example, the first lecture, in the ...
- 4,682
3
votes
Accepted
How do Protestants view the prophecy and birth of Jesus
Speaking as a Protestant:
One of the core tenants of our faith is Sola Scriptura. As it says in the scripture:
2 Peter 1:19-21
We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ...
- 204
3
votes
What is the most accurate calculation of Jesus' birth date?
The Exact Day is Unknown
The exact date of Jesus' birth is not given. This is very likely because, if we knew it, we would reverence the day, rather than the Man. However, we can come to within ...
- 1,688
3
votes
Were the Magi believers?
The wise men were spoken to, by God himself (not, as stated, by an angel) in a dream :
And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country ...
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3
votes
Biblical significance of the gifts given to Jesus
I know I've answered this elsewhere, but when teaching Catechism, I love to remind kids of this symbolism because it exemplifies the 3-fold office of Priest, Prophet and King which is shown in the ...
- 34.5k
3
votes
Do any denomination teach that Jesus was born in the Autumn?
Early Quakers did not observe Christmas nor mark other 'times and seasons'. They believed that no day was more holy than any other, and believed that each day, and all of life, was sacred (Quaker ...
- 33.9k
3
votes
What is the basis for saying Mary is not the mother of God from a trinitarian perspective?
I'm very glad you asked this fresh question because correct answers should help clear up particular misconceptions that many Christians suffer from.
In the first instance, it needs to be said that ...
- 33.9k
2
votes
How could Jesus be born during the reign of Herod, and when Quirinius was governor of Syria, if those periods were not contemporary?
A correct interpretation of Luke 2:2 requires taking into account a key item of historical information of a most practical nature: any census of subjects (as opposed to citizens) of the Roman Empire ...
- 1,840
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