Was Jesus Really Born in Bethlehem?

Around 170 CE, a Syrian Christian named Tatian noticed what a lot of readers have noticed since: the four Gospels don't always agree. So he fixed it. Tatian wove all four into a single, seamless account of Jesus' life. And for roughly two hundred years, in the Syriac-speaking chu ...  Show more

Most Christians are used to reading four Gospels. But why are there four? Why not one? Or twelve? The early Church thinker Irenaeus fought hard to keep Christians reading all four gospels, but it wasn't a foregone conclusion. In this episode, Bart unpacks how a four gospel new te ...  Show more

The story of Uriah's wife does not exactly scream Christmas cheer. Yet, as we reflect on the Mothers of Jesus, we cannot overlook that just as Jesus was born in Bethlehem, Matthew traces his lineage back to the town of David. Though sentimentality is absent from Bathsheba's story ...  Show more

Luke 1-2. Matthew 1 Jesus, God with us, was born in a manger. He grew as a man and knew what it was like to experience what we experience. No other false god in history could boast such an accomplishment. To come as a man, to live and dwell among us, make Him the most … 

Did you know that every detail matters in the Biblical account of Jesus’ birth? Sometimes, we take this Biblical story for granted because we have heard it so many times. However, the details of this story have so much meaning. Dr. Edward Sri shares some of that deeper meaning so ...  Show more

In this Christmas special of Within Reason, New Testament scholar Bart Ehrman explores the history and narrative of Jesus' birthday, and demonstrates where the accounts seem to contradict.

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