Baker Academic

Friday, December 27, 2013

The First Christmas (according to 2nd-century Christians)

Got those post-Christmas blues? Turn that frown upside-down! Why not celebrate the birth of Jesus on the date(s) that the early Christians did?

Here is an excerpt of this article from Bible History Daily:
Clement writes: “There are those who have determined not only the year of our Lord’s birth, but also the day; and they say that it took place in the 28th year of Augustus, and in the 25th day of [the Egyptian month] Pachon [May 20 in our calendar] … Further, others say that He was born on the 24th or 25th of Pharmuthi [April 20 or 21].”  
fn. Clement, Stromateis 1.21.145.
Get a head start on your greed and gluttony and start planning for mid-April!

-anthony

1 comment:

  1. I could be wrong, but I think «Φαρμουθὶ κδʹ ἢ κεʹ» in the 28th year of Augustus was April 19th-20th (Julian).

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