This is a look into the birth of Jesus from my viewpoint.
At the time Mary was around 16 years old and serving her faith, she went to stay with her female cousin’s home for a while. Welcomed with opened arms she stays for about six months before returning home at least three months pregnant. The man she had an arrange marriage with, Joseph, find out she was pregnant and broke off their engagement. A death sentence due to the law of stoning any unwed pregnant woman.
It wasn’t until Joseph is said to of had a dream where an angel informed him that the baby would be the savior of all Israel. The next day Joseph told Mary that he would marry her. She was spared the death sentence but was labeled a whore. When the time came for Mary to give birth many things started to take place for and against her. Many prophets and sages (wise men) as well as kings of foreign lands were traveling towards Israel.
The country was controlled by the Roman Empire and not too long ago many Israelites were killed by the Romans for leading a rebellion against the occupation of their homeland. As the local Roman ruler, Herod was becoming even more jealous and angry with reports of a Jewish baby that was to be born and lead all of Israel to a rich and mighty Jewish Kingdom; he gave orders for all male children under the age of two to be killed as well as anyone who got in their way.
As with the custom of the time, high ranking people of importance would go before the leader of the country to pay their respects and/or permission to cross through their country. So as Herod is getting reports of thousands of babies being killed; Kings, wise men and other visitors who were traveling to pay tribute to him knew as well of the massacres and the dangers the messiah was facing.
As these events were unfolding, there was a census taking place. Joseph and a very pregnant Mary were journeying to his home town to be counted. After a long journey there was no place for them to stay for the night. A small town where Joseph grew up, his parents and other family members did not open their doors to Joseph and Mary. Seeing as Mary was labeled as a whore for engaging in sexual relations with Joseph before they were legally married had labeled them both the black sheep of the family.
Going to a hotel or other establishments to rest for the night was even harder. As anyone living in small towns will testify that gossip and hearsay travels very fast. To the point that the only place that would open their doors to a pregnant woman in need of rest was an underground barn the locals use to protect their animals for the night. The reason many animals were kept in cave like structures was to protect them from wild animals that roamed the area at nights. These ‘mangers’ were very small with straw spread over the floor to make it more comfortable for the animal to rest on and to make it more easy to clean up the piss and shit the animals produced during the night.
Mary, going into labor, was going to give birth in a small underground makeshift barn full of animal with all of their smells and waste spread throughout the room. Everything in this room is full of flies, maggots and other forms of insect life with germs, mold and mildew odors engulfing the woman who is to give birth to the Jewish savior. Any woman who has ever given birth will testify the near death state they have gone through and many who were very vocal due to the pain they went through as well. In this time period, there was no medicine or medical support that we have now. No records of people nearby coming to the aid of a screaming woman in agony.
After giving birth, visitors were said to have started to arrive to pay their respects. Many of these people who visited the newborn baby were those considered to be the cream of society. Famous, rich, powerful people who could have taken this family living in filth and waste to a place more proper for the son of God, the Messiah of all Jewish people to live in a more safe and protective environment. But they did not. Instead of protecting the one person they traveled over great distance to see and to proclaim a new day for the Jewish people, they left as quickly as they arrived out of fear of their own safety when faced with Herod’s desire to kill anyone who was seen as a treat to his rule.
The Wise men arrived giving gifts and words of wisdom. Everyone was in a good mood with hope of the coming Jewish Kingdom led by the newborn baby. As these highly educated people returned to their high society lifestyle of living like royalty, they left Joseph and Mary defenseless against Herod’s army. Like famous celebrities who donate a couple of hours on Thanksgiving to help out at a homeless shelter before returning to their mansion. But the Kings finally arrived with their gifts for the newborn baby.
It’s important to remember that in this time period, whenever a king visited another kingdom he always traveled in a caravan. This caravan consisted of the King, his wives, concubines, children, servants, slaves, a small army to protect them as well as animals to carry all their stuff such as camping gear, gifts, treasures as well as foods for themselves and their livestock. This caravan could number hundreds to thousands of people depending on the distance they had to travel. It’s also important to notice the countries that were around at this time. With the Roman Empire controlling the Mediterranean land area, these Kings would have to have come from the Eastern areas which were mainly Muslim territorial areas.
These traveling Kings could have easily taken Joseph, Mary and Jesus within their own family. Taking them out of Herod’s reach and protecting and educating Jesus throughout his whole life. Jesus would have been around influential people who would have followed him. Jesus would have been given a bigger and more powerful audience to bring about the Kingdom he was to have created. Instead these Kings basically said their hello’s, presented the gifts and abandoned this family to Herod’s army. There was no one now who could take Jesus and provide him with an education and for that matter a lifestyle that would have placed him closer to the people who were in power. Leaders who could have ordered all their people to hear the word of God had spoken though Jesus. All the rulers, highly educated people, leaders of modern thought had given praise to the birth of Jesus had disappeared into the night offering no real help or support.
The last ones to pay their respects were the sheppard’s. These people were considered the bottom of society. They were the cowboys of the Old Testament. Many had scars and missing limbs. They had only an old fashion slingshot, a whip with maybe a spear or dagger but mainly they would fight off wild animals with their own hands if they had too in order to protect their flock. They also had to protect their livestock from thieves and other dangers lurking around. If Herod’s army did appear, these sheppard’s would be able to offer some protection until Jesus was safely away.
Joseph, Mary and Jesus had to travel to Egypt to stay until it was safe enough for them to return back to their own home where they spent the rest of their lives living as carpenters. When Jesus began to travel around to speak the word of God, he had only the poorest of people to listen to him. All the types of people who came to his birth did not want to listen to him. In their eyes he was an unmarried poor laborer who looked more like a threat to their rule.
One of the cultural reasons he was looked down upon was simply that by the time men became adults; their parents would arrange their marriage. Jesus was nearing thirty and his parents had not yet arranged his marriage. It was a long held saying even now in the Middle East that a man is not a man until he is married to a woman. To the people around Jesus, he appeared less of a man.
History could have been greatly different if those that were sent to educate and protect Jesus had done so. Instead of being surrounded by highly educated and powerful people who could change the known world, Jesus was left with no support. Not from his family or those who abandon him to die at the cross. He died all alone with no one but thieves and murderers. Being mocked and cursed at by the very people who were foretold of his birth and the kingdom he was to have created for them.
Merry Christmas
