Why do we celebrate Christmas in December? It is actually a long and quite complicated story. Most people do not realise that the date that we celebrate Christmas Day now is not the same as it was in times of Christopher Columbus. Similarly, they do not realise that many of our Christmas traditions were imported [...]
Before we can hope to answer the question of what the Star of Bethlehem was, we must first find out when the events associated with it related by Matthew and Luke actually happen: when was Jesus born, or phrased differently, when was the first Christmas? This is actually one of the most difficult elements of [...]
There is one part of the western Christmas that is probably common to all of us, either directly or indirectly. Who has not participated in a Nativity play at school, or, at the very least, seen one as or with a proud parent? We all know the story: the journey in response to the census, [...]
If I had a 10€ note for every time that I am asked about the Star of Bethlehem around this time of year I would probably be able to retire (well, maybe not “retire”, as I do have a mortgage). I have been writing and speaking on the Star of Bethlehem for nearly forty years [...]
