Despite attempts by modern biblical scholarship to debunk the gospels account of three magi visiting the newborn Jesus in Bethlehem, the stories were “historically true” according to extensive research by author Dwight Longenecker.

In his new book, Mystery of the Magi: The Quest to Identify the Three Wise Men, Longenecker, a scholar and Catholic priest, states that an impartial study of the relevant data “shows beyond reasonable doubt” that the Magi of Matthew’s gospel were historical figures.

For many years, Longenecker writes, skeptical scholars have rejected the possibility that the infancy stories about Jesus could be historical for a number of reasons, such as the fact that they contain supernatural elements.

“The first problem with this is that the skeptic simply assumes supernatural experiences are impossible, therefore any story that contains supernatural elements must be a fanciful invention,” he notes.

“In the early twentieth century, Bible scholars began to write off the stories of Jesus’ birth—especially the story of the wise men—as pious fantasies,” he continues. “They did so without considering if the stories might, at least, be rooted in real events.”

Because of this prejudice, most scholars never did the necessary research to “sift out the historical element buried beneath levels of legend,” he says.

Moreover, the idea that there might be a historical basis to the magi story “became an academic no-go zone,” Longenecker says. “When one’s academic reputation might be at stake the motivation to challenge the academic dogma and entertain the possibility of a historical basis to the magi story becomes even more remote.”

As one Biblical scholar noted: “If you want a career in New Testament scholarship that’s somewhere you just don’t go.”

As a result, within the vast realm of Biblical scholarship there is surprisingly little research and writing on the stories of Jesus’ birth, and there is almost nothing which takes seriously the possibility that the story of the wise men is historical, he says.

Assuming that the Magi story is pious fiction, scholars have not bothered to investigate the political, historical, geographical and cultural connections that come together to show that the visit of the Magi was historical.

In this work, Father Longenecker sets out to fill this lacuna in Biblical scholarship, examining the possible identities of the three men know simply as magi, wise men, or kings.

Longenecker comes to the conclusion that the visitors from the east were historical figures, and most probable Nabataeans, who “shared an ancient ancestry and world view with the Jews.”

Herod the Great, as it turns out, was brought up by the Nabataeans, and with a Nabataean mother, was forging an alliance with the Nabataean king at exactly the time of Christ’s birth in 6 BC.

“As Herod was old and ailing, it makes perfect sense that the Nabataean wise men travelled to Jerusalem on behalf of their king to pay homage to Herod’s heir,” Longenecker suggests.

While Biblical scholars as a body give little credit to the infancy narratives of Jesus, this does not reflect the faith of common Christians.

A recent study by the Pew Research Center found that a majority of Americans still believe in the essential elements of the Nativity story surrounding the birth of Jesus Christ in Bethlehem.

A full 68 percent of Americans, in fact, say that the three wise men were guided by a star and brought gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh to the infant Jesus.

An absolute majority of American adults—57 percent—believe in the full biblical account of Jesus’ birth, with all of the elements related by Saints Luke and Matthew in their gospel narratives, Pew found.

Follow Thomas D. Williams on Twitter Follow @tdwilliamsrome

An elderly California couple were stopped this week in the middle of their journey to deliver very special packages of holiday joy to friends and relatives in Vermont.

83-year-old Patrick Jiron and his wife Barbara were pulled over in York County Nebraska for failing to signal for a turn on Interstate-80.

Deputies quickly noticed a distinctive wafting out of their Toyota Tacoma pickup truck and after conducting a search, found 60 pounds of weed having an estimated street value of $300,000.

The couple claimed that they were not planning on selling the ganja but rather were going to give it away as Christmas presents.

There’s no gift like pot for the holidays? Senior citizens headed to VT busted with 60 lbs of pot for Christmas, cops say. https://t.co/23km26CYQf #btv #vt @bfp_news http://pic.twitter.com/rzah2hDkx3

— Adam Silverman (@Wej12) December 23, 2017

Via the Burlington Free Press “Cops: Senior citizens headed to VT had 60 lbs. of pot for Christmas”:

There’s no present like pot for the holidays?

Nebraska police say that’s what a pair of seniors bound for Vermont told them they planned to do with more than 60 pounds of marijuana found in their car during a traffic stop earlier this week.

Patrick Jiron, 83, and his wife, Barbara, 70, of Clearlake Oaks, California, were apprehended following a traffic stop earlier this week on Interstate 80 in York, Nebraska, according to the York County Sheriff’s Department.

Deputies said they spotted the Jirons’ Toyota Tacoma pickup truck Tuesday swerving and failing to use a turn signal along the stretch of rural interstate highway in eastern Nebraska. Officers “detected the odor of raw marijuana coming from the vehicle,” the sheriff’s department said in a statement Friday provided to the Burlington Free Press.

Patrick Jiron, who was driving, agreed to a search of the truck, and deputies discovered the pot under a topper in the back of the pickup, police said. The marijuana was packaged in more than 25 clear plastic bags and at least one empty bulk-sized container of cheese puffs, according to a photo the sheriff’s department released.

The drugs had a street value in excess of $300,000, police said.

Patrick and Barbara Jiron told deputies they were headed to Vermont and also Boston “to distribute the marijuana to family and friends as Christmas gifts.”

The Jirons received citations on suspicion of possessing marijuana with the intent to deliver. Patrick Jiron was jailed, posted bond and was released, according to the local Nebraska newspaper, the York News Times. Barbara Jiron was not jailed.

The New York Times reported that the couple were cited for:

Charges of possession of marijuana with the intent to deliver and of lacking a drug tax stamp.

A drug tax stamp is a stamp displayed on a container used to hold drugs that certifies the dealer in possession of them has paid the drug tax, which Nebraska law requires dealers to pay “immediately upon acquisition or possession of marijuana or controlled substances,” according to the Nebraska Department of Revenue.

The tax on marijuana is $10 per ounce or per portion of an ounce, which means the tax bill for the Jirons would add up to roughly $9,600.

Pot has been legalized in both Massachusetts and California although not Vermont and it isn’t clear as to whether the couple was able to continue on their journey without their gifts.

There surely will be lots of people who may be disappointed that they aren’t going to find a bag of the buds under their Christmas tree.

President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump spent their afternoon Sunday taking calls from children wanting to know Santa’s whereabouts, as they eagerly awaited his arrival on Christmas Day.

The children’s calls to NORAD’s Santa tracking program were patched through to the Trump residence in Mar-a-Lago, where the First Family is spending Christmas.

The president spoke to at least 12 children from all over the country, ranging in ages five to 12. The First Lady spoke to at least ten children, who ranged from ages seven to 12.

According to a pool of journalists covering the president, Trump asked Casper, 5, from Virginia, “What would you like more than anything?”

“Building blocks, that’s what I’ve always liked too. I always loved building blocks. … Well I predict Santa will bring you building blocks, so many you won’t be able to use them all.”

Trump also told another child, “So you want your grandma to get out of the hospital? That’s what your wish is? That’s great. That’s better than asking for some toy or something, that’s much better, right?”

“So your grandma’s gonna be good, okay, she’s gonna be good,” he told him.

The First Lady was heard asking one child: “How are you? Merry Christmas. Are you tracking Santa? Do you know where he is right now?”

She asked them if they made their lists and assured them that Santa was on his way.

“As soon as you go to sleep, Santa will be there,” she said.

NORAD noted that its mission had now reached the “highest level of government,” with the president and first lady’s involvement.

#NORADTracksSanta’s mission has reached the highest level of government. President Trump and the First Lady are working with NORAD to answer your calls. Call 1-877-HI-NORAD.

— NORAD Tracks Santa (@NoradSanta) December 24, 2017

 

North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) is the military command in charge of defending the airspace over North America. It has helped children track Santa as he makes his journey since 1958.

In 1955, a local media advertisement encouraged children to call Santa directly, but misprinted the phone number, so instead of reaching Santa, the calls went to the crew commander at the Continental Air Defense Command Operations Center, which later became NORAD. Thus began the tradition.

Helping track Santa at NORAD are the men and women serving in the New York Air National Guard from the 224th Air Defense Group, as well as a Canadian Forces detachment, Army, Navy and Coast Guard liaison officers, and federal civilians.

Residents of Baghdad have erected a 30-foot-tall Christmas tree to celebrate Christmas and to mark the end of the terror army Islamic State (ISIS), beaten back by Iraqi Security Forces.

The giant tree made international news, according to a Fox News tweet which read, “Iraqi Christians have raised a 30-ft. tall Christmas tree in Baghdad to celebrate both the holiday and the expulsion of ISIS extremists by Iraq Security Forces”:

Iraqi Christians have raised a 30-ft. tall Christmas tree in Baghdad to celebrate both the holiday and the expulsion of ISIS extremists by Iraq Security Forces. http://pic.twitter.com/e96oaR5neN

— Fox News (@FoxNews) December 23, 2017

Presidential spokesperson Sarah Huckabee Sanders also remarked on the incredible display in a December 24 tweet reading, “Thank God for the President’s leadership in fight to defeat ISIS”:

Thank God for the President’s leadership in fight to defeat ISIS https://t.co/zsewP7cIuc

— Sarah Sanders (@PressSec) December 24, 2017

This year’s display mirrors last year’s tree erected by Muslim businessman Yassi Saad who then said he hoped that the display would help bring together Christian and Muslim Iraqis in a new spirit of cooperation as his country continued to heal after being freed from Saddam Hussein’s tyranny.

In 2016, Saad said that his goal was to join “our Christian brothers in their holiday celebrations and helping Iraqis forget their anguish.”

The businessman also noted that the 33-foot-diameter, 85-foot-tall tree cost him around $24,000 to build last year. This year’s tree erected at the same location and with similar measurements is likely also similar in costs.

It wasn’t clear if Mr. Saad was involved in this year’s decoration.

Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.