The First Christmas - by Marcus J Borg & John Dominic Crossan (Paperback)

About the Book

The follow-up to "The Last Week," this is Borg and Crossan's account of the two nativity narratives in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. Focusing on the meaning of the Christmas story, the authors hope that readers will see the nativity story anew and appreciate the Gospels' powerful message.

Book Synopsis

"Who could argue with the message the authors draw from the Bible's Christmas stories? Light in the darkest time of the year, hope in a period of creeping despair--these are powerful and universal themes that can give everyone a stake in Christmas."
--USA Today

In The First Christmas Marcus J. Borg and John Dominic Crossan--top Jesus scholars and authors of The Last Week--help us see the real Christmas story buried in the familiar Bible accounts. Basing their interpretations on the two nativity narratives in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, Borg and Crossan focus on the literal story--the inner truth rather than the historical facts--to offer a clear and uplifting message of hope and peace. With The First Christmas readers get a fresh, deep, and new understanding of the nativity story, enabling us to better appreciate the powerful message of the Gospels.

From the Back Cover

In The First Christmas, two of today's top Jesus scholars, Marcus J. Borg and John Dominic Crossan, join forces to show how history has biased our reading of the nativity story as it appears in the gospels of Matthew and Luke. As they did for Easter in their previous book, The Last Week, here they explore the beginning of the life of Christ, peeling away the sentimentalism that has built up over the last two thousand years around this most well known of all stories to reveal the truth of what the gospels actually say. Borg and Crossan help us to see this well-known narrative afresh by answering the question, "What do these stories mean?" in the context of both the first century and the twenty-first century. They successfully show that the Christmas story, read in its original context, is far richer and more challenging than people imagine.

Review Quotes

"The First Christmas enriches our understanding of Jesus in desperately needed ways. Readers will find here profound and convincing insights into the meaning of Jesus's birth--and life--for the early church and will be challenged to discern their meaning for the world today." - Brian McLaren, author of A New Kind of Christian and Everything Must Change
"Finding in the Nativity Stories not only poetry and piety but also parable and politics, Borg and Crossan recover the challenge of Christmas for the first century and the twenty-first." - Amy-Jill Levine, author of The Misunderstood Jew
"Borg and Crossan are evangelists of a modern reinterpretation of the Christian message. . . . The birth narratives in the gospels of Luke and Matthew are 'overtures' to the principal theme of the story of Jesus: 'Do we think that peace on earth comes from Caesar or Christ?' This juxtaposition of 'peace through military victory' (the empire) or 'peace through justice' (the kingdom of God) summarizes, for them, both the original gospel message and its relevance for us today. . . . Well-written and interesting." - Dallas Morning News
"With meticulous scholarship and accessible language, "The first Christmas"... uncover(s) the genuine meaning of...the Birth of Jesus." - The Progressive Christian
"Extremely erudite, clearly written and densely packed with historical and literary material. Readers who make the effort to follow the authors' explication will find the results quite impressive." - Biblical Archaeology Review
"Borg and Crossan re-examine the nativity stories through the lens of historical context, with a particularly close eye on the oppression of Jews by the Roman Empire of Caesar and King Herod. The thrust of the Gospels' Christmas message, Borg and Crossan write, is the possibility heralded by Jesus of a world in which power and violence no longer reign, in which peace and compassion finally prevail. . . . Who could argue with the message the authors draw from the Bible's Christmas stories? Light in the darkest time of the year, hope in a period of creeping despair--these are powerful and universal themes that can give everyone a stake in Christmas." - USA Today