Christmas Was Originally a Pagan Holiday. “The Scriptures are wholly silent as to the date of Christ’s birth. The 25th of December, the winter solstice, was not fixed as Christmas until a long time after the New Testament period. But despite serious objections, historical and otherwise, that date triumphed.’ The Julian Calendar was used during…
Who Was Caesar Augustus and Why Did A Roman Play a Large Part in the Birth of Jesus, Who Was Born in Another Land
Image Credit: Wikipedia Caesar Augustus was the first emperor of the Ancient Roman Empire, a vast region that included the Bible Lands across the Mediterranean Sea. Rome is located in the yellow boot-like shape in the above map. Julius Caesar was Caesar Augustus’s uncle, and he conquered most of the lands in the above map….
Nazareth and Galilee – Bible History and Geography
Jesus was born in Bethlehem, but Joseph and Mary had only gone to that town–the City of David–because David was Joseph’s ancestor. Mary, Joseph, and Jesus were residents of Nazareth, which is a town in Galilee. In this post, I want to tell you some of the things that are said in the Bible about…
Bethlehem – A Little Town with a Big Story – Scriptures about Bethlehem
“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From [a]everlasting.” Micah 5:2 19 So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem). Genesis 35:19 [‘In the Bible, Rachel was the wife of Jacob and…
Antioch – A Greek City in the Old Biblical Syria – Greek Settlements in Bible Lands
One of the Biblical accounts of the Birth of Jesus appears in the book of Luke. Most people believe that a physician named Luke wrote both the Biblical books of Luke and Acts. Most people think that Luke was of Greek heritage but that he was born in Antioch, which was a city in Ancient…
Looking at the Areas that Comprised Judea, Syria, and Rome at the Time When Jesus Was Born – Bible History
In Luke 2, the scripture says that the Roman Caesar Augustus ordered everyone in the area to go to the home of their ancestors to be counted for purposes of taxation. At that time, Quirinius or Cyrenius was the Governor of Sysria, but Cyrenius was also a Roman. Because of that order, Joseph and Mary…
The Seed for My Picture Book The Donkey’s Song Was Planted When I Was A Child – #Memoir – Harvest Your Past
In October of 2022 Doubleday for Young Readers [a Division of Penguin Random House] Published My Debut Picture Book The Donkey’s Song. Everything about The Donkey’s Song is a miracle. One of the greatest miracles is that when Donkey was published, I was 72. But I had been carrying that story with me all my…
God Paved the Way for the Birth of Jesus – Before Zaccheus Needed a Tree to See Jesus, God Planted the Seed
In 2024, I plan to officially begin the Advent Season on December 1. The date of the beginning of Advent varies, but in 2024, it begins on December 1. I have already talked about several things that I will do to celebrate Advent. I’ll light candles, I’ll play music, I’ll read my Bible, and I’ll…
Luke – Book in the New Testament of the Bible
John’s Birth Announced to Zacharias 5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. 7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was…
Luke the Physician and Evangelist in the Bible
Luke the Evangelist Luke was not one of the 12 Disciples of Jesus, but he was active in the early church. It is believed that Luke was Greek but that he was born in Syria. Greek traders had settled along the coast in the Bible lands. . Image Credit: History Alive Textbook 1. Identity. “Luke…