The birthday of Jesus Christ
The birth of Jesus (sws) is one of the very important events in the history but there is no independent historical record of his birth or life other than the Gospels, the earliest of which were written no less than hundred years after his birth. About five hundred years after the Gospel’s account, the Qur’an mentioned it. Out of the four canonical Gospels, the birth of Jesus is mentioned in two: Matthew (1:18) and Luke (1: 27-38), while the other two (Mark and John) are completely silent about it. Matthew and Luke both agree that Jesus (sws) was born of the virgin Mary (sws) and that it was a miraculous event but in details the two accounts differ greatly. The Qur’an mentions the birth in two surahs: Ali ‘Imran (3:42-49) and Maryam (19:16-35). The Qur’an agrees, adds, differs, corrects or criticizes the Gospels’ account. Following is a description of events as mentioned in the Gospels and in the Qur’an.
Date of Birth
Neither the date 25th Dec. nor any other date on Jesus\’s birth is mentioned in the Bible. It was not until the year 530 CE that a monk, Dionysus Exigus, fixed the date of Jesus\’s birth on Dec. 25th. “He wrongly dated the birth of Christ according to the Roman system (i.e., 754 years after the founding of Rome) as Dec. 25, 753”. (Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1998 ed.) This date was chosen in keeping with the holidays already indoctrinated into pagan’s beliefs.
Roman pagans celebrated Dec. 25th as the birth of their god of light, Mithra. “In the 2nd century AD it (Mithraism) was more general in the Roman Empire than Christianity, to which it bore many similarities” (The Concise Columbia Encyclopedia, 1995 ed.)
Other pagan gods born on Dec. 25th are: Hercules the son of Zeus (Greeks); Bacchus, god of wine (Romans); Adonis, god of Greeks, and god Freyr of Greek-Roman pagans.
(ii) Is the Year of Birth Known?
The date of Jesus’s (sws) birth is not known exactly. “Many sources estimate the year of birth as 7-6BC” (Encyclopaedia Britannica), but biblical researchers have proposed as far as 12BC to as early as 4BC as the possible year of birth. The evidence is mainly based on an account of a census mentioned in Luke and viewing of “Star of Bethlehem” in Matthew.
Is there any clue in the Qur’an?
There are two possible clues in the Qur’an:
a. The Qur’an says that at the time of birth, fresh ripe dates fell from a palm tree close to Mary (sws) indicating that Jesus (sws) was born between the end of July to the beginning of October (the months in which dates are ripe).
b. The Qur’an has mentioned that Jesus (sws) would reach a mature age (The Qur’anic word used is Kahl meaning a mature age). Given that, some Qur’anic Scholars (Islahi in his “Tadabbur-i-Qur’an”) argued that Jesus reached a mature age before the alleged crucifixion which biblical scholars says happened at 27-28 AD. This could mean that the year of birth was much early.
Place of Birth
Luke and Matthew agree that Jesus (sws) was born in Bethlehem (Hebron). The Qur’an says that his mother Mary (sws) went to a “distant area” away from Jerusalem and it was there that Jesus (sws) was born. The name of this “distant area” is not mentioned, but many Qur’anic scholars say that it could be Bethlehem.
Events at Birth
In the Gospels, the events of Jesus’s birth are only mentioned in Luke who says that Mary (sws) and Joseph found shelter in a stable. Jesus (sws) was born there and Mary (sws) made a cradle for him in a manger. The shepherds near Bethlehem saw angels in the sky, singing the glory of the Lord.
The Qur’an says that when the pains of childbirth started, Mary (sws) went to a palm tree in a deserted area. Jesus (sws) was born there. In the moments of her anguish and grief, the angel spoke to her. By a miracle, a water stream came out around her and fresh ripe dates fell close to her.
Events shortly after Birth
Matthew and to some extent Luke say that news of Jesus’s (sws) birth spread in somewhat these words “King of the Jews has been born; a promised Messiah who will restore the kingdom of Israel”. Such news disturbed King Herod, who was the Roman ruler at that time; so he ordered all boys of two or below the age of two to be killed. According to Matthew, King Herod found out about Jesus by one magi who studied stars and had come from the east to see the newborn Messiah. They first asked about him at Herod’s court in Jerusalem and then they followed the light of a star to Bethlehem. The star went ahead of the magi and “stopped over the place where the child was”: (seems to be pure romantic literature, as one critic puts it, as no scientific contortions will deal with the behavior of this star except if one is willing to believe in retrograde planetary motion). There they found Jesus and gave him gifts of gold.
The Qur’an says that after his birth Mary (sws) carried Jesus (sws) in her arms, and returned back to her own people. According to Qur’an:
They said: O Mary! Indeed, you have brought a thing that is mighty unheard of. O sister of Aaron, your father was not a man who used to commit adultery nor your mother was an unchaste woman. Then she pointed to him. They said how could we talk to one who is child in cradle. He (Jesus) said: Verily I am a slave of Allah, He has given me the scriptures and made me a prophet. And He made me blessed where so ever I be, and has enjoined on me prayer, and charity as long as I live. (19:27-31)
Source: http://shiastudies.com/en
