Monday, December 14, 2009

Christmas

1. 10 Basic Quizzes on Christmas:

a. ___________ was the home of Mary and Joseph. Luke 2:4

b. ___________ announced Jesus' birth to Mary. Lk 1:26-27

c. ___________ was the town where Jesus was born. Lk. 2:4-7

d. ___________ was the place where Jesus was wrapped in cloths and laid. Lk. 2:7

e. ___________ were told about a sign, that a Savior has been born to you, he is Christ the Lord. Lk. 2:8-12

Answers:

a. Nazareth; b. Gabriel; c. Bethlehem; d. Manger; e. Shepherds
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f. ___________ treasured up all in her heart what shepherds spread the word concerning the child. Lk. 2:19

g. ___________ guided the Magi to Jerusalem and then to Jesus. Mt 2:2

h. ___________ in where the Magi found Jesus. Mt. 2:11

i. ___________ warned the Magi about Herod's trick. Mt. 2:12

j. __________ of the Lord told Joseph in a dream to escape to Egypt with Jesus and Mary. Mt. 2:13

Answers:

f. Mary; g. A Star; h. A house; i. A dream(God); j. An angel
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2. What is Christmas, and the reason for the season?

Answer:
CHRISTMAS is the anniversary of the birth of Christ and its observance. The date of the birth of Christ is not known. In fact, early traditions differ about the time of year in which Jesus was born. Celebrated by most Protestants and by Roman Catholics on December 25, by Eastern Orthodox churches on January 6, and by the Armenian church on January 19.

The word Christmas is formed of Christ + Mass, meaning a religious service in commemoration of the birth of Christ. It is not clear whether the early Christians observed Christmas, but once introduced, the observance spread rapidly throughout Christendom.

The first mention of its observance on December 25 is in the time of Constantine about A.D. 330s, when this date was chosen to replace a Roman celebration commemorating the Sun's climb following the winter solstice.
(Solstice = either of the times when the Sun is farthest from the equator, on or about June 21 or December 21. The summer solstice falls in June in the northern hemisphere but in December in the southern hemisphere, and vice versa for the winter solstice).

The arrival of the Messiah on the human scene was not unexpected. Hundreds of Old Testament prophecies could be cited that were clearly fulfilled by Jesus Christ. But with prophecy, we often don’t know what it means until we know what it meant. Many of these predictions pertained specifically to the circumstances surrounding Jesus’ birth. A careful reading of the Old Testament, written hundreds of years before the birth of Christ, shows us where He will be born, when He will be born, how He will be born, and who, specifically, He will be. And with surprising accuracy, too!

Some Christian groups disapprove of the festival, probably because it is not a command of Jesus or Apostles. The Christian celebration on December 25th is about Jesus, not about whether he was actually born on that day.

A major point to consider in Christmas season is in Mt 7:12. So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
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3.What is God's purpose in sending His Son, according to Gospels?

Answer:
a)Mt 1:21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.

b)Jn 3;16-20 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son.

19This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.

c)Ro 5:12-19 Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned— 13for before the law was given, sin was in the world. But sin is not taken into account when there is no law. 14Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who was a pattern of the one to come.

15But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God's grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! 16Again, the gift of God is not like the result of the one man's sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. 17For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God's abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ.

18Consequently, just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men. 19For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.

d)Jn 14:6-10 Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
7If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him." 8Philip said, "Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us."
9Jesus answered: "Don't you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the Father'? 10Don't you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me?

e)Lk 19:10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost."

f)Jn 6:35-40 Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty. 36But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. 37All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away.

38For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. 39And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. 40For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day."

g)Jn 17:1-3 After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: "Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. 2For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. 3Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.

h)Mt 11:25-27 At that time Jesus said, "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. 26Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure.

27"All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.

i)Jn 5:21 For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom he is pleased to give it.

j)Jn 10:14-16 I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— 15just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.

k)2 Th 2:13 But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God chose you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth.
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4. Harmonize the chronological sequence of Jesus' Birth and Infancy?
Mark and John say nothing about the birth of Jesus. Matthew and Luke record different incidents. Therefore, exact sequence is not easy. A probable and approximate dates are given below:

TIMELINE OF EVENTS:

6 or 5 BC ......... John's Birth announced to Zachariah .... Lk.1:5-25

6 months later .... Jesus' birth announced to Mary ........ Lk.1:26-38
................... Mary visits Elizabeth ................. Lk.1:39-56

3 months later .... Mary returns to Nazareth ............ .... Lk.1:56
................... Announcement to Joseph ................ Mt.1:18-24
....................Birth of John the Baptist ............. Lk.1:57-80
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5 BC .............. Birth of Jesus ................. Mt.1:25, Lk.2:1-7

................... Announcement to Shepherds .............. Lk.2:8-20

8 days later ...... Jesus' circumcision ...................... Lk.2:21

32 days later ..... Jesus' presentation ....................Lk.2:22-38
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4 BC .............. Visit of the Wise Men ...................Mt.2:1-12

................... Flight to Egypt ....................... Mt.2:13-15

....... Murder(massacre) of Bethlehem's Boys <2............ Mt 2:16-18
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3 BC ..............Return to Nazareth .............Mt 2:19-23, Lk 2:39
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5. Name the incidents associated with the birth of Jesus recorded in the Gospels?

Answer:
a) Matthew:
1:1-17 .....Genealogy thru Joseph
1:18-25 ... Joseph took Mary home as his wife
2:1-23 .... King's(Magi) visit

b) Mark:
1:1 ........Beginning of the Gospel about Jesus

c) Luke:
1:1-4 ..... Introduction
1:5-80 .....Announcements & Births of the forerunner & Messiah
2:1-38 .....Jesus' Birth
2:39-52 ....Family in Nazareth
3:23-28 ....Genealogy thru Mary

d) John:
1:1-18 .....The Word
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6. Where did the word Messiah come from?

An English word that represents:
Mashiah in Hebrew, Mashiha in Aramaic, Messias in Greek. The basic meaning of the word is, "anointed one". Christ is the English form of the Greek 'Christos' which also means 'anointed'.
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7. Highlight some Messianic Prophecies related to Christmas?
(=NT Quotes from Old Testament Prophetic predictions fulfilled in Jesus)


Answers:
(1=OT Prophecy, 2=NT Quotes fulfilled in Jesus)

a) The woman's seed would bruise Satan's head:
1=Gen 3:15; And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel."

2= Gal 4:4, 4But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law.
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b)Of Abraham's seed:
1= Gen 17:7; I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you.

2= Gal 3:16 The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say "and to seeds," meaning many people, but "and to your seed," meaning one person, who is Christ.
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c)Of the house of David:
1= 2 Sam 7:12-13 When your days are over and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, who will come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.

2=Acts 13:32 "We tell you the good news: What God promised our fathers 33he has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus.
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d)Preceded by a messenger:
1=Mal 3:1 "See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come," says the LORD Almighty.

2=Lk 1:17 And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."
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e) Born of a virgin & Called Immanuel:
1= Isa 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.

2=Mt 1:22-23 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23"The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"—which means, "God with us."
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f)Born in Bethlehem:
1=Mic 5:2 "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times."

2=Mt 2:1 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem 2and asked, "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him."
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g)The Shepherd:
1=Isa 40:11 He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young.

2=Jn 10:11-16 "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep (11).......
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h)The king:
1=Zech 9:9 Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

2=Jn 18:33,37. 33Pilate then went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked him, "Are you the king of the Jews?" 37"You are a king, then!" said Pilate. Jesus answered, "You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth.
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i)Live in Nazareth
1=Isa 11:1 A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.

2=Mt 2:23 and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was said through the prophets: "He will be called a Nazarene."
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j)Stay in Egypt:
1=Hos 11:1 "When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son.

2=Mt 2:15 where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet: "Out of Egypt I called my son."
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8. How come "Christmas" sometimes is called "Xmas"?

In Greek, the letter Χ (chi), is the first letter of Christ, or, the similar Roman letter X, has been used as an abbreviation for Christ since the mid-16th century. Hence, "Xmas" is sometimes used as an abbreviation for "Christmas".

Although some people highlight that Christ is taken out of Christmas with this 'Xmas' usage, however it may certainly be not the intention. Many believers may be unhappy for commercializing the spirit of the season.

Although many Christmas celebrations do not emphasize Christ, wise men still seek him. In Jn 3:30 John the Baptist says, "He must become greater; I must become less". If similar themes become the focus of the celebration, Christmas will make a wonderful celebration.
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9. True or False.

There is no evidence in Scripture that the early church celebrated the birth of Christ.

Answer: True.
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10. What was the role of Egypt during Jesus' infancy?

Answer:
Matt 2:13-23. Jesus, Mary, and Joseph had escaped into Egypt. Demon powers through Herod centered his attack against God's plans in Christ for the earth. Thus Egypt, once was a great enslavement of Israel during Moses' time, now she became the refuge of Baby Jesus, Israel's future deliverer and the world's redeemer.
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11. Where do you find the pre-incarnation existence of Jesus in the Gospels?

Answer:
The Word Became Flesh. John 1:1-3.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2He was with God in the beginning. 3Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.
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12. What does the Bible say all about Mary, the Mother of Jesus?

Answer:
After the birth of Jesus and His visit to Jerusalem at the age of 12, very little is said about Mary. She gave birth to at least 6 children besides Jesus. At her suggestion, Jesus turned water into wine at Cana, His first miracle (Jn 2:1-11). Later she tried to get Him in the crowd but Jesus' words indicate that her family relation to Him gave her no special advantage to meet Him (Mt 12:46, Mk 3:31, Lk 8:19). She was present at the crucifixion and there she was committed by Jesus to the care of John(Jn 19:25-27). Though there is no record of Jesus appearing to her after His resurrection does not mean that it did not happen. The last mention of Mary is in Acts 1:14, where she was with the disciples in prayer. However, Mary is a blessed woman.
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13. What does the Bible say all about Joseph, the legal or foster-father of God's own son, Jesus?

Answer:
Very little is told of Joseph. He was a descendant of David. He went with Mary to Bethlehem and was with her when Jesus was born (Lk 2:4, 16). He was with Mary when Jesus was presented in the temple(Lk 2:33) and thus he shared in the naming, circumcision, and dedication of the child (Luke 2:8-33). He took them to Egypt and brought them back to Nazareth(Mt 2:13, 19-23). He also took the 12 year old Jesus to Jerusalem(Lk 2:43, 51). As a dedicated father, he was anxious with Mary at the disappearance of Jesus (Luke 2:41-48). The only other reference about him is that he was a carpenter and the head of the family of at least 6 children besides Jesus(Mt 13:55-56). He raised Jesus as his own and taught Jesus his own trade(Mt 13:55).

Joseph is one of Scripture's quiet men. Nothing he said is quoted anywhere else. He is a man of faith and righteousness demonstrated by simple obedience to God's commands, especially by marrying pregnant Mary, despite the certainty of whispered accusations.

"Isn't this the carpenter's son?(Mt 13:55), and They said, "Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know?(Jn 6:42). The language of these 2 verses imply that he was alive after the ministry of Jesus had well begun, but as we do not hear of him in connection with the Crucifixion, and as Jesus commited the care of his mother to John(Jn 19:26-27), or in the Upper Room(Acts 1:14), it may be inferred(reasoned) that he had died prior to these events.
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14. When was Jesus presented in the Temple(dedication)?

Answer:
Lk 2:22-24 21On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise him, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he had been conceived.
22When the time of their purification according to the Law of Moses had been completed, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23(as it is written in the Law of the Lord, "Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord"), 24and to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord: "a pair of doves or two young pigeons."
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15. Why the town of Bethlehem is called "the city of David"?

Answer:
David was anointed king by Samuel in Bethlehem(1 Sam 16:13,15) and therefore it was known as "the city of David" (Lk 2:4,11).
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16. Fill up the missing names:

a) Acts 2:29 "Brothers, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch _________ died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. 30But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne.

b) Rom 1:1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God— 2the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures 3regarding his Son, who as to his human nature was a descendant of __________, 4and who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.

Answers:
a)David b)David
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17. Although Joseph had the throne-rights of the house of David, he could never have occupied the throne. Why?

Answer:
God's word barred the way of Joseph. There had been a curse on this royal line since the days of Jeconiah. In Jeremiah 22:30 we read,
This is what the LORD says: "Record this man as if childless, a man who will not prosper in his lifetime, for none of his offspring will prosper, none will sit on the throne of David or rule anymore in Judah."
Joseph was in the line of this curse. Hence, if Christ had been Joseph's son, He could not have sat on David's throne.

But we find the genealogy of Mary's line back to David in Lk 3 through Nathan, and not Jeconiah(Lk 3:31). There was no curse on this line.
Lk 1:30-33: But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. 31You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. 32He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end."
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18. What is Magnificat?

Answer:
MAGNIFICAT is the name given to the hymn of Mary(a Song of Praise) in Lk 1:46-55, commencing "My soul glorifies the Lord."

Mary's Song

Mary said:
"My soul glorifies the Lord
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has been mindful
of the humble state of his servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed,
for the Mighty One has done great things for me—
holy is his name.
His mercy extends to those who fear him,
from generation to generation.
He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
He has brought down rulers from their thrones
but has lifted up the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things
but has sent the rich away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,
remembering to be merciful
to Abraham and his descendants forever,
even as he said to our fathers." _______________________________________________________

19. Is there any birthday celebrated with or without feasts, in the Bible?

Answer:
a)Gen 40:20Now the third day was Pharaoh's birthday, and he gave a feast for all his officials.

b)Mt 14:6On Herod's birthday the daughter of Herodias danced for them and pleased Herod so much 7that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she asked.

c)ceremonies were observed at child birth;
Lev 12; Lk 2:24
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20. What is Epiphany?

Answer:
a) January 6, a Christian festival (holy day) which, in the Western church, celebrates the visit of the three magi (= Wise Men) to see the baby Jesus Christ, and in the Eastern church, the baptism of Christ.

b) A Christian feast celebrating the manifestation of the divine nature of Jesus to the Gentiles as represented by the Magi. Twelfth day after Christmas(= January 6).
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21. Who invented the number zero?

It was invented by a Hindu mathematician Aryabhatta in India before 400 BC on the basis of a vedik chant as below-

पूर्णमदः पूर्णमिदं पूर्णात् पूर्णमुदच्यते।
पूर्णस्य पूर्णमादाय पूर्णमेवावशिष्यते॥

If you look at the Roman Numerals, you can see there is no "Zero" in that numbering system. Although the Zero was invented in India long before, it probably was never popular or never paid attention by the Romans.

The absence or the lack of usage of the number "Zero" have contributed for the error of the BC-AD calendar system.

Roman Numerals:
I=1, V=5, X=10, L=50, C=100, D=500, M=1000. An overline drawn above the numeral will make it multiple of 1000.
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22. Stories about Christmas Story:

There are several concepts about the time of Jesus' birth. It is worthwhile to understand the science of determining the dates of the historical events mentioned about the Jesus' birth story and hence some are given below for a clear understanding of the stories.

1. The Christian era, now used for civil chronology, was introduced at Rome by Abbot Dionysius Exiguus in the sixth century. It is now generally agreed that the beginning of the era should have been fixed at least four years later.
According to the Gospels, Jesus was born some time before the death of Herod the Great. Josephus, the Jewish historian who was born A.D. 37, affirms that Herod died shortly after an eclipse of the moon, which is astronomically fixed at March 12-13, 4 B.C. His death occurred shortly before Passover, which that year fell on April 4. Jesus was born at least some months before Herod's death. Christ's presentation in the temple after he was 40 days old (Lev 12:1-8; Luke 2:22-24) means that the wise men came at least six weeks after his birth. The time spent in Egypt is uncertain, perhaps several months. Thus, the birth of Jesus should be placed in the latter part of the year 5 B.C.

2. Of the major Christian festivals, Christmas is the most recent in origin. The name, a contraction of the term "Christ's mass", did not come into use until the Middle Ages. The word Christmas originated as a compound meaning "Christ's Mass". It is derived from the Middle English Christemasse and Old English Cristes mæsse, a phrase first recorded in 1038. "Cristes" is from Greek Christos and "mæsse" is from Latin missa (the holy mass).

In the early part of the 4th century, Christians in Rome began to celebrate the birth of Christ. The practice spread widely and rapidly, so that most parts of the Christian world observed the new festival by the end of the century.

No evidence remains about the exact date of the birth of Christ. The December 25 date was chosen as much for practical reasons as for theological ones. Throughout the Roman Empire, various festivals were held in connection with the winter solstice. In Rome, the feast of the Unconquerable Sun celebrated the beginning of the return of the Sun. When Christianity became the religion of the Empire, the church either had to suppress the other festivals or transform them. The winter solstice seemed an appropriate time to celebrate Christ's birth.
Thus the festivals of the sun became the festival of the Son, the light of the world.
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23. How could Jesus have been born 5 years into B.C.(Before Christ), the new Calendar System?

Answer:
This error is not the result of any critical scholarship that tried to undermine the reliability of the Bible. Rather, it is the result of a mathematical error made by a monk some 1500 years ago.

Jesus was born when the Jewish nation was part of the Roman Empire. At this time, in the empire, years were counted from the founding of the city of Rome and there was no BC counting. But when the Roman Empire fell and Christianity became the universal religion in the regions once had been Roman Empire, a monk named Dionysius Exiguus, at the request of Emperor Justinian, made a new calendar in AD 526. This calendar replaced the Roman calendar, and it counted years from the birth of Christ. (Different views on "Bible & World History Timeline" or "Fall of Roman Empire" written by many are available on the net for detailed study).

The new calendar divided history into two parts:
1. the years before Christ as B.C. and
2. the years after the birth of Christ as A.D., which stands for Anno Domini meaning, "in the year of (our) Lord").

However, long after the Christian Calendar had replaced the Roman Calendar, it was discovered that Dionysius had made a mistake. He had placed the birth of Jesus in 753 AUC (Ab Urbe Condita, meaning "From the founding of the city of Rome"). He should have placed it a few yeas earlier, in about 748 AUC or so.
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24. Which is the official national calendar of United States

The legal code of the United States does not specify an official national calendar. Use of the Gregorian calendar in the United States is a result of an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom in 1751, which specified use of the Gregorian calendar in England and its colonies. However, its adoption in the United Kingdom and other countries was fraught with confusion, controversy, and even violence. It also had a deeper cultural impact through the disruption of traditional festivals and calendrical practices.
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25. What does the Rockefeller Center, New York City "Christmas Tree" do for Christmas?

Answer:
a) Each year the world's most famous tree is lit the week following Thanksgiving, and in 2009 the tree was lit on Wednesday, December 2, 2009 and remained lit until January 7, 2010. The Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting festivities began around 6pm, and the actual lighting took place at 8:55pm sharp. Mayor Mike Bloomberg and Tishman Speyer CEO Jerry Speyer flipped the switch on the 75-foot Norway Spruce.

The Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree is typically illuminated from 5:30 a.m. until 11:30 p.m. daily, except on Christmas and New Year's Eve. On Christmas, the tree is illuminated for 24 hours and on New Year's Eve the lights are turned off at 9:00 p.m.

b) Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony:
The 77th Annual Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony takes place on December 2, 2009 from 7-9 p.m. The annual event is televised and features musical performances from a variety of popular artists. Typically, the Radio City Rockettes perform and there are also ice skaters performing in the Rockefeller Ice Rink.

c) About the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree:
The Christmas tree that adorns Rockefeller Center is typically a Norway Spruce. The minimum requirement is that the tree be 65 feet tall and 35 feet wide, however manager of Rockefeller Center gardens prefers the tree be between 75 and 90 feet tall and proportionally wide. Norway Spruce that grow in forests don't typically reach these proportions, so the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree tends to be one that was ornamentally planted in someone's front or back yard. There is no compensation offered in exchange for the tree, other than the pride of having donated the tree that appears in Rockefeller Center.

Over five miles of lights are used to decorate the tree every year. Only the lights and the star decorate the tree. The tree is recycled and the 3 tons of mulch are donated to the Boy Scouts. The largest portion of the trunk is donated to the U.S. Equestrian team in New Jersey to use as an obstacle jump.

d) Tickets/Cost:
The tree lighting ceremony is free and no tickets are needed. However it is advised you arrive early to secure a prime viewing spot for the 2 hour lighting ceremony.

e) Weather:
The average high in December in New York City is 44 degree Fahrenheit (6.66 Celsius) and average low is 32 degree Fahrenheit (0 Celsius). The average precipitation is 3.56 inches. Rain or snow can happen anytime in December in New York City. Dress accordingly for weather conditions.(The term "Celsius" of the Metric temperature scale is usually preferred to "centigrade," especially in technical contexts).

PS:
On 2009 Christmas eve at 8pm, me and my family went to see this tree. The tree which was bright, colorful and gently swaying in the breeze, looked extremely beautiful. It was a very cold night but there was no rain. The whole area was filled by tourists and New Yorkers. Basically visiting the tree is an entertainment, fun and an experience for all especially children.