I invite you to test your Christmas intelligence quotient. Much of what we KNOW about Christmas comes from TV specials, greeting cards, holiday songs, legend, and tradition. Is your knowledge about The Reason for the Season based on Matthew and Luke or Currier and Ives?

• Q1:      Christmas has always been celebrated on December 25.
• A1:      False. No one knows the exact date of Jesus’ birth. December 25 originally marked the Winter Solstice. The church baptized the date to celebrate the advent of the light of the world during the 4^th century.
• Q2:      What did the innkeeper say to Mary and Joseph?
• A2:      The innkeeper supposedly said, There is no room in the inn. Despite countless children’s plays to the contrary, the innkeeper does not have any speaking lines in the Biblical accounts.
• Q3:      Who saw the star in the east?
• A3:      The wise men saw the star in the east. Many Christmas cards show the shepherds following the star to the manger; but the shepherds went to Bethlehem after the angelic chorus announced the Christ’s birth.
• Q4:      How many wise men made the journey?
• A4:      Most people know the correct answer is THREE. Most people are wrong! The Bible never mentions how many wise men came to see the newborn king. They DID bring three gifts. By the way, they were not kings, either. The carol We Three Kings is inaccurate in every detail!
• Q5:      What is frankincense and myrrh?
• A5:      My favorite response is that frankincense is an eastern monster story! In reality, it is a precious perfume. Myrrh is a spice often used for preparing bodies for burial—a strange gift for a newborn. Even at his birth, the babe of Bethlehem was also the Christ of the cross and the Lord of the empty tomb.
• Q6:      Where did the wise men find the baby Jesus?
• A6:      Months and even years may have passed before the wise men arrived. Matthew states they found the Holy Family in a home and not a stable.
• Q7:      Which animals does the Bible say were present at Jesus’ birth?
• A7:      Don’t throw away your manger scene’s barnyard menagerie, but the Gospels say nothing about any animals at the nativity.
• Q8:      Where do I find the Christmas story in the Bible to check these answers?
• A8:      Matthew and Luke contain the stories of Jesus’ birth. Matthew focuses on Joseph and includes the wise men. Luke focuses on Mary and describes the angels appearing to the shepherds.

Many families enjoy the tradition of reading holiday books together. I encourage you to include the Gospel accounts of the first Christmas, too.

By the way, there WILL be a test.