From the very beginning of his ministry, the Pharisees showed themselves bitter and persistent enemies of Jesus. They could not bear his doctrines, and they sought by every means to destroy his influence among the people.
The Sadduces
A politico-religious sect of the Jews during the late post-Exile and New Testament period. The old origin of the name from tsaddiqim, i.e. the righteous; with assumed reference to the devotion of the Sadducees to the letter of the Law as opposed to the attention to the superadded "traditions of the elders", is now generally questioned mainly on certain grounds and the term is associated with the proper name "Sadoc", Sadducee being equivalent to Sadokite. They became the dominant priestly party during the Greek and Roman period of Jewish history, and the name, whether bestowed seriously or in irony, originated doubtless.
The Zealots
There has not been a lot of information preserved regarding the Zealots. The Zealots were a political party who were ‘zealous’ for a cause. The Zealots only became a recognizable, party just before the Jewish War began.
In the time of Jesus, the individual who was king was a man called King Herod. King Herod (73-4 BCE) was the pro-Roman king of the small Jewish state in the last decades before the Common Era. He started his career as a general, but the Roman statesman Mark Antony recognized him as the Jewish national leader. During a war against the Parthians, Herod was removed from the scene, but the Roman Senate made him king and gave him soldiers to seize the the throne. As 'friend and ally of the Romans' he was not a truly independent king; however, Rome allowed him a domestic policy of his own. Although Herod tried to respect the pious feeling of his subjects, many of them were not content with his rule, which ended in terror. His sons succeeded him.
Cartoon Picture of King Herod
This all is a lot of information, but how do we know where all this information comes from? We do have many resources to help us find out all of these things. We have the Internet, we have the Gospels from the Bible, we have books etc. There are many resources, all you have to do is try your hardest to find the best resource.
The source of all of Christianity as we know it is Jesus, therefore Jesus’ birth is a very significant day for Christians. However, in the Holy Bible, there are two different accounts (gospels) on the story of the Birth of Jesus.The names of the two gospels which tell us the birth story of Jesus are Matthew and Luke. These two stories have many differences and similarities.
Matthew and Luke both tell Jesus’ birth story in different ways. Here are the two stories as they are written in the Bible: -
Matthew (Chapters 1:18 – 2:23)
*Joseph is engaged to Mary, and finds that she is pregnant. He is about to dismiss her when an angel visits him in a dream and tells him that she is a virgin. He is to call the child Jesus
*Wise men come from the East, following the star. They visit King Herod and ask advice. They learn that the scriptures say that Messiah will be born in Bethlehem.
*The angel warns Joseph to escape to Egypt. Meanwhile, Herod has all the children, two years old and younger killed.
*Joseph and his family return from Egypt when Herod dies. He is afraid to return to Judea, and they settle in Nazareth
Luke (1:26 – 38, 2:1 – 20)
*The angel in Gabriel appears to Mary to tell her that she has been specially chosen and she will give birth to Jesus, even though she is a virgin. This greeting is known as the Annunciation, from the Latin word that gives us ‘announce’.
*Joseph and family travel to Bethlehem because of a census ordered by Emperor Augustus. Mary gave birth in a stable.
*The shepherds hear the message of the angels and come to worship the newborn child.
The gospels portray Jesus’ birth in many different ways. Here is a table of differences in telling the story of Jesus’ birth between the two gospels of Matthew and Luke: -
Matthew Luke
Angel appeared to Joseph Angel appeared to Mary
No mention of 3 Shepherds Names angel (Gabriel)
Three Kings? Gifts? No mention of 3 kings
Portrayed as a Messiah/King No mention of King Herod
More Detailed Three Shepherds
Talks about prophecy Portrayed as a savior
Draws upon Jewish Tradition Simpler Version
Stresses a miracle birth Caesar Augustus and Census
No mention of Stable Birth Stable Birth
There are many differences in the birth story of Jesus. Let us look to some extent more into these differences: -
Appearance of Angel
In Matthew, the Angel appears to Joseph whereas in Luke, the angel appeared to Mary. Also in Luke, the angel had a name (Gabriel). The angel’s appearance was always in a dream and this is the similarity between both these gospels.
Stable Birth
In Luke, the stable birth of Jesus is mentioned however, in Matthew, there is absolutely no indication of where the birth of Jesus took place. Indeed, every Christian would like to know where Jesus’ birth took place nevertheless it is uncertain.
Details of Gospel
In Matthew, the birth of Jesus is put in writing in a little bit more detail whereas in Luke, it is in less detail. Today, we would like the gospels to be in as much detail as possible due to the fact that we haven’t got enough information about Jesus’ birth as it is.
In these couple examples, I have highlighted the majority of differences in the gospels of Matthew and Luke. Just remember, this is only the tip of the iceberg.
But why? Why does their have to be so many differences between the two gospels? Can’t they just tell the whole truth, the entire truth and nothing but the truth? Well, they both are true but we do not know which one to believe. The reason for this is that in Jesus’ time, many people spread many ‘rumours’ about Jesus’ birth story and believing whatever they heard to be true, the writer’s of Matthew and Luke wrote the gospels on what they heard.
We celebrate Christmas as the birth of Jesus. Then again, December 25th is not the actual day that Jesus was born. The Romans just picked this day because they wanted to celebrate Jesus’ birth and they didn’t know when he was born so they picked a random day. The Christmas holiday is very important to a very few Christians today. Most Christians today especially in England just see Christmas as an excuse to celebrate. More or less, it is becoming more of a commercial event than a religious festival .
By Nehal Chudasama 9.3SV
Claremont High School Nehal Chudasama - 9.3SV Ms Choo