The First Christmas audiobook

A very interesting book about bringing the stories of the First Christmas to one's life now. The last chapter is the most inspiring and a great recapitulation of the other chapters. The book discloses and analyzes the different and possibly not factual stories in the Bible of the first Christmas. This book was very enlightening and drills down on what it really means to be Christian.

While the majority of the world are winding down for the year and planning their exciting holiday adventures over the Christmas period, those of us who work in churches are about to enter one of the busiest periods of the year.As exciting and joyous as Christmas can be for clergy and lay-person alike, there is a certain level of anxiety that arises within those who are required to plan church services and events over the Advent and Christmas season. It is normal to wonder when/if sudden, new inspiration is going to appear on this well-known story that we have most-likely planned lessons and sermons on countless times already.One of the ways in which we can find inspiration to help us prepare for the busy Christmas season is by reading valuable insights from others.THE FIRST CHRISTMASThis year, I decided to seek inspiration for my Christmas preparations from a book titled The First Christmas, co-written by two popular theologians and scholars, Marcus J Borg and John Dominic Crossan.The nativity story is very familiar to those of us who have grown up in Christian circles. So familiar, in fact, that many of us have perhaps neglected to pay attention to the finer details in the story.TWO CHRISTMAS STORIES(view spoiler)[For example, are we aware that there are actually two nativity stories in the bible? One in the Gospel of Luke and one in Matthew. While they share a few similarities, Luke and Matthew’s nativity stories differ greatly from each other.Jesus is born in a stable and laid in a manger in the Gospel of Luke, but in Matthew, Jesus is born in a house. In Luke, Joseph and Mary were living in Nazareth before Jesus’ birth, but in Matthew, they were living in Bethlehem. In Matthew, the Christmas story is focused predominantly on male figures, while in Luke, women such as Mary and Elizabeth get prominent roles. As the authors say,“these examples are not meant to be a condescending comment about how little people really know about these stories. Rather, they suggest the need to read and hear these stories anew, seeking to see them in their rich distinctions.”Hearing the nativity story year after year, it is easy to presume that it is all one, uniform story. But when we pay attention to the details of each separate story, we can determine the author’s original intention in composing their nativity story in the way that they did. (hide spoiler)]CONTEXT IS KEYBorg and Crossan do an excellent job in analysing and comparing the two nativity stories found in Matthew and Luke, providing valuable insight and context into the world surrounding the time of Jesus’ birth.When we are assisted to re-read the Christmas story in its original context, we realise that the nativity story was more than a historical account of Jesus’ birth. Like much of the Gospels, the nativity story was a counter-narrative to the dominant empire in existence at the time.As we are faced with the reality of what the Christmas story meant then to the first hearers of this story, we are better able to discern what the Christmas story could mean for us now.

If you know what you're getting into when you read this, then you are likely to enjoy it. Borg and Crossan were prominent in the "Historical Jesus" and Jesus Seminar movements over the past 20 years, and so they have a relatively low view of the historicity of the birth narratives. If you are deeply uncomfortable with that perspective, then spare yourself the pain of reading this.That being said, there is massive insight to be gained from this little book. The parallels drawn between Jesus and Moses (through Matthew) and the emphasis brought out on the lowly and destitute (in Luke) is very convincing. The historical insights are also rich, especially the comparisons between Jesus and Augustus/Apollo in the ancient world. Borg and Crossan may push a little too far in some arguments, especially their constant emphasis on empire/imperial theology. However, this book enriched my own understanding of those birth stories, and I definitely recommend it to people who can take a critical eye to the Jesus Seminar perspective represented by the authors.

The Christmas story, told in context of first-century history and theology For many, the seasons of Advent and Christmas are sentimental and filled with childhood memories. They're filled with shepherds, angels, wise men, a manager, and the good news of a savior born to bring light to the darkness. The First Christmas challenges readers to dig deeper into the story and to look at the Gospels of Matthew and Luke in light of who wrote them, when they were written, why they were written, and what it was like to live during the first century CE. At the time this book was published, Biblical scholars Marcus J. Borg and John Dominic Crossan claimed more than ninety years between them in the scholarly study of Jesus but The First Christmas is not a hard-to-read academic tome. It is, in fact, patient and encouraging in both in structure and tone--helping readers see the story as parable, personal, and participatory. A book worthwhile of rereading every year.

Thoughtful and I interesting. The Christmas stories explained as parable.

This one isn't as interesting as the pair's previous book on Easter, The Last Week, but that is mostly due to the source material - two of the gospels don't cover the nativity at all and the other two (which contain two rather different accounts) don't spend all that much time on it. But it's still worth a read if one wants to look at the subject from their usual Progressive Christian perspective - viewing the text as parabolic narrative, close attention to context and how the audience at the time Matthew and Luke's gospels were written would have understood the stories, etc. If you've read anything by the authors before you have a good idea already of the main themes they explore here; it sometimes seems like Marcus Borg is really writing the same book over and over. But it's a book that really resonates with me and there's always something new to discover in each iteration (and it's a perspective I really wish was more dominant in the Christian world these days) so keep on rewriting it, Mr. Borg. IN SUMMARY, read The Last Week (or The Heart of Christianity, or The God We Never Knew...) before this one unless you are only interested in Christmas, but thumbs up nonetheless.

Just another Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan explication of what it is to be a Christian in the times we live in. Full of surprises to those who do not know of the real stories and truths of the Christmas story.You can't go wrong with this read...

Opened my mind for an entirely new way of understanding just how radical Jesus was and, for that matter, still is.

Subversive? Possibly. Intriguing? Definitely. Worth your time and effort to read it? Absolutely.Authors and biblical scholars Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan examine the events and meaning of the first Christmas based on the two widely differing accounts of Jesus's birth that appear in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. But beware! Their conclusions may rock your spiritual world. They maintain that the historicity of the Christmas stories cannot be proven, including the virgin birth, the stable, Bethlehem as the location, the date of December 25 and the visit by the three kings. And that's OK! Maybe we should shed our 21st-century mindset and instead of arguing about historical facts, we should view these very different birth stories in Matthew and Luke as parables for the story of Jesus yet to come. Look at it this way: It is not historical time on which we should be focused, but rather sacred time.Borg and Crossan assert the following:• The Christmas stories are based on biblical tradition, rather than historical fact.• What counts is meaning more than facts that can never be proven to be historically accurate.• For the greatest understanding, we must read and interpret the birth stories from the first-century context in which they were written.• Just because we can't prove the facts of Jesus's birth doesn't mean we can't believe.• Each of the two Christmas stories is an "overture," that is, the Gospel of Matthew and the Gospel of Luke in miniature. But if the two are seamlessly combined into one story, the authors say this becomes the entire of the gospels in miniature.This is not a light book. Rather, it is dense with history and theology, but the language is easier to read than a theology textbook. Still, it is difficult enough that the reader must pay attention.

I found this book inspiring and informative. The author presents the birth narratives in Matthew and Luke as parabolic fiction designed to serve as introductions or "overtures" to the gospels that follow. I believe this approach is both accurate and fruitful. When studying the Bible the key question is not "what happened way back when" but "why was it written to me and to my world." This book explores the message God is sending us about faith, society, politics and daily living through the stories surrounding Christmas. Borg reveals many themes that would have been readily received by first century readers and amplifies their meaning for readers today. It is, for example, important to know that the titles like "Lord" "Savior" and "peacemaker" that appear in the stories relative to Jesus were all claimed by the Roman ruler Augustus This meant that these beloved stories had a confrontational quality in that they challenged all imperial demands.As a conservative Christian I understand how Borg's approach might seem challenging or even wrong to some. The question to ask is: if the Christmas story was designed by it's divine and human authors to offer both inspiration and insights is it wise to read it flatly as just one more historical report? This book encourages readers to cherish the Christmas story for the beautiful thing it is while also seeing and valuing the lessons it teaches.

Very good stuff here. I have read several books by Marcus Borg and have found each of them to be very worthwhile. Here he collaborates with John Dominic Crossan whose contributions to my understanding of Jesus and the early Christian church have been valuable and enjoyable. This book describes the infancy narratives in Matthew and Luke as overtures to their Gospels and in many ways these chapters contain the key to understanding how they saw Jesus. Even acknowledging that these overtures are completely made up (blame Jesus if you don't like parables), and that they are inconsistent with one another, nonetheless there is a great deal in these chapters worthy of consideration and indeed contemplation. Jesus. in his infancy, escapes from Herod's attempt to kill him, and, of course, is killed by Pontius Pilate at the end of his life, a reminder of the lethal cruelty of the imperial domination system, and also of the fact that two thousand years later we still live under unjust economic and political systems, still have not brought relief to the poor and oppressed, still have not brought an end to war. In our most well-known and celebrated mythology, God takes human form, tells us we must transform this world to lift up the poor and abstain from violence, and two thousand years later, we are not much better than the Romans.

This small book -- 244pp plus 3 short appendices -- analyses the two birth stories contained in the gospels of Matthew and Luke as parables told by and to the earliest Christians, and their enduring appeal over two millennia later.The idea that especially got my attention on this first reading (this is a book that bears repeated readings) places the two birth stories firmly in the context of the Roman domination and contrasts the "peace through victory" of Caesar with the "peace through justice" promised by Jesus. The birth stories speak of "the perennial temptation of imperial power and hubris" that impede the establishment of that justice in the here and now. To quote a text from a first century historian, "They make a desert and they call it peace."The parallels to life in the 21st century American empire are unavoidable. How is it possible that so many American Christians -- politicians and citizens -- identify more with imperial Rome and less with the poor shepherds keeping watch over their flocks? That's a mystery to me, and this book doesn't really address that question, but it does state the question in pretty stark terms.

I haven’t found a Marcus Borg book yet that I didn’t like and this book, authored with John Dominic Crossan, was no exception. The authors don’t work to pull the rug out from anyone’s belief system, but they do an excellent job summarizing the historical context of the multiple birth narratives of Jesus (that’s right, there’s not just one mish-mash story). They explain things like the significance of providing Jesus’s genealogical lineage (a direct comparison to the descendants of the Roman God Apollo since Jesus existed in a world ruled by Romans) and give insight into the reason for dream narratives and more. The book isn’t always gripping suspense, but if you’re looking for a well-written book to read during the next advent season (or to listen to while you write your Christmas cards like I did this year), this is a good one and is very informative, whether you’re interested because of your own religious belief or history/mythology.

If you are looking to reconstruct your thoughts about Christmas, if you've lost your faith and the deconstructed bricks are lying in a messy pile around you, this is the tool with which to examine those bricks and build anew with fresh insight.For example: where just a couple years ago I would have dismissed an image of the crucifixion with a thought that "yeah, hundreds, thousands of people died by crucifixion, so what? Let's not glorify one man and forget all those others", now instead I see a story that Jesus' death pointed to the horrendous ways we humans torture each other, that this story doesn't dismiss all those other deaths but rather brings them to attention in a crescendo of tragedy, and so called us to bring the scandal of sacrifice to an end.

I know people who are convinced every detail in the Christmas story is like a newspaper report only more accurate. I know people who mock the idea that anyone called Jesus is even a historical figure and mock religion as useless delusion.Both should read this book and think about it- but probably won't.It examines the two stories of Jesus' birth,(three if you count the one in Revelation,) and asks why those particular stories were told about their Lord by the early Christians. Why shepherds? Why magi/kings? Why are titles give to this baby, Lord, Son of God, Savior,the same titles given to Caesar? And what difference does the Christmas story make to our lives?

A tidy little book on the historical and literary context of the Christmas narratives told in the Bible. It's surprising to see the details parsed out and see how much we conflate. Ultimately, the author's aren't interested in what "happened," since there's so little you can say with confidence. They aim to ask why the narrative would be written the way it is. Considering the season, I'm glad I gave this one the time it deserves. Thoroughly recommended for anyone interested in hearing about the Christmas event as more than a fairy tale.