Customer Reviews

An Adult Christ at Christmas: Essays on the Three Biblical Christmas Stories-Matthew 2 and Luke 2

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I read this book in this time of Christmas, 2001-2002. The content was incredibly interesting and changed my mind about the narratives of Jesus infancy. The two initial chapters of Matthew and Luke now say different things than I understood just a month ago. Recommendable only for people with a very well cemented faith. Short and very interesting and clear reading. That is the reason why I am a father Brown's fan.

This book is short (50 pages) and well written. It can form the basis of an lay class on Christmas or Advent, either led by clergy or laity. Excellent resource.
This book is an exacting and thoughtful set of essays by the most eminent bibical scholar of our time, the late Fr. Raymond Brown. It is a summation of much of what he wrote elsewhere in his volumnious work (for example, his epic "The Birth of the Messiah"). In this 50-page book he explains why the gospel writers wrote the birth stories the way they did, with differing plot twists. Brown reaches profound insights with major implications for the spirituality and theology of the Christian Church. His insights about the centrality of Mary is particularly interesting, especially for a Roman Catholic. He sees the miracle of Mary not so much as the "virgin" birth or as the theotokos (mother of God) of the early Church, but rather as the first and most loyal disciple of Jesus. And that should have implications about the role of women in the Church and priesthood.
Brown, as ever, does his homework. His scholarship is solid -- even the footnotes are worth reading.

I have learned a great deal from "an ADULT CHRIST at CHRISTMAS". Father Raymond Edward Brown, PhD, presents, yet another, work of brilliance. As with all of Father Brown's work, the scholarship is objective and thorough. He takes great pains to provide a balanced apologetic even with extremely controversial topics within his own organisation, by way of example, immaculate conception and mariology. The question posed here is, why were the infant narratives of Luke and Matthew deemed appropriate for to be included in the good news (greek: "gospels") which bear their names. The answer offered is that these narratives provide a salvific message consistent with the gospel message, in general, and the passion narratives, specifically. The writers of Matthew and Luke understood the christological significance of these early stories because, for them, the conception and birth consititute the moment when GOD revealed who the CHRIST was. That is the first important idea I learned from this short book. The second idea which was clarified for me was that the proclamation of a gospel message is met with two responses in the cannonised material. Some accept it, believe and dedicate their lives to its growth and development. Others reject it, despise it and dedicate their lives to its destruction. Each of these are equally valid individual decisions with their own respective conseqences. As those who are familiar with my comments elsewhere already know, I am in the former category of those who believe. For this reason, I have found great spiritual insight in this work by Father Brown. If you are interested in the gospel message of the first century christians, this book will be interesting to you

One of Raymond Brown's most enduring and significant works is THE BIRTH OF THE MESSIAH. It is without a doubt the most helpful work for preparing Advent and Christmas homilies as well as Bible studies based on the Advent and Christmas seasons. Though it's filled with great information, it's not quick reading by any stretch of the imagination. A quick reference guide would be more than appreciated by most readers and AN ADULT CHRIST AT CHRISTMAS and a volume that precedes it, A COMING CHRIST IN ADVENT, both published by Liturgical Press, serve this purpose.

AN ADULT CHRIST AT CHRISTMAS looks at the second chapters of Matthew and Luke's Gospels which deal with the birth of Jesus. Brown acknowledges the historical difficulties associated with these stories: Why did people not notice and record the star or Herod's massacre of the infants but doesn't allow these factors to take away from the overall message of Jesus' birth. He pays attention to the theology of the stories, namely that the Infancy Narratives for both Matthew and Luke summarize what we will discover in the Gospels themselves, specifically that upon learning of Jesus Christ some will respond and others will not. Brown further states that these stories challenge readers today in the same manner, so they're not cute stories as much as important lessons for mature believers, hence the titles.

The three essays in this book, the first of which focuses on Matthew's narrative, the second which looks at Luke's birth narrative and the Presentation in the Temple, and what Brown calls the "Third Christmas Story" or the finding of Christ in the Temple, were originally published as articles in the journal WORSHIP. They're informative and great for group discussion or homily ideas. Because it's a slender volume, it's perfect for an Advent Bible Study series or spiritual reading for people who combine scripture study and prayer. At such a busy time of the year, people want substance but often don't have time for lengthier works. This volume is perfect for that purpose. It's also great for preparing a homily, since it has major themes specifically for Advent. It also has footnotes with references for THE BIRTH OF THE MESSIAH and other works by Brown which makes it a great beginning for further research.

"An Adult Christ at Christmas" is the late Catholic biblical scholar Raymond E. Brown's own précis of his 600-page "The Birth of the Messiah" (1977). Brown calls critical reflection on the beloved nativity narratives "the last frontier" of serious biblical study, helping the reader understand that the Christmas stories (and the gospels themselves) are not literal and biographical accounts of the life of Jesus, but rather the early church's articulation of the mystery of God present in Jesus of Nazareth. Seeing them as such, Brown helps the reader understand the Christmas stories not as history, but as vehicles of the story of salvation, the gospel in miniature.

An excellent and thought provoking work by a modern theologian. Fr. Brown does a great job of pointing out the many layered meanings and symbolism of the infancy narratives - from the Annunciation to the Birth, Presentation and Finding in the Temple. He discusses the Christology and Theology of the stories, as well as the Mosaic parallels emphasized in Matthew and the discrepancies between the Lucan and Matthian accounts. If you are into Christian symbolism and understand that these accounts have a far deeper meaning than the literal one, this book is a must read.

This is a great book to begin a journey in learning more about the Bible. A journey that goes beyond what you've learned in elementary school, but without getting too far ahead of you. A book you might read first is the 'Bible Blueprint' to give you a better understanding of the Bible in general. AFter you read these two books, the next step would be to read 'The Churches the Apostles Left Behind' by Raymond Brown. You might get lost reading this one if you don't have a basic understanding of the New Testament.

Excellent, clearly written exposition of familiar texts from a perceptive point of view. I especially liked the comparison of Herod's interrogation of the Magi with the trial of Christ--something I hadn't been pointed to before.The author's mighty scholarship is presented in such an unassuming manner. I'm sorry I never met him.

In this brief text, Fr. Brown masterfully distills his biblical exegesis into a form which is digestible by those who do not have a predisposition for exegesis. In this collection of essays based on his larger work "The Birth of the Messiah," Fr. Brown discusses specific motifs from each of the infancy narratives, looking for their significance not only intra-textually but also inter-testamentally. While much of the exegesis remains brief, it is enlightening for each narrative and serves as a "spring board" to further studies as needed and desired. Nonetheless, for its brevity, the content is dense enough to truly give one something upon which to reflect during Advent and Christmas.

Father brown has written some great books. While this is a good book, i would advise some caution here. If you or your church believe in strict literal interpretation of the Bible, this book may not be good for you. That said, this book is an interesting study. Father Brown points out that both Matthew and Luke have passages in the Gospels that tell of Jesus' birth. However, neither Matthew or Luke were present at the birth of Christ. There is a theory that Mother Mary (who was obviously present at the birth of Christ) talked to Matthew and Luke about the birth of Christ. (Father Brown does not seem to believe this.) But even if we accept this theory as true, it does not disprove the important facts that Father Brown points out.

The 1st thing he points out is that while Matthew and Luke give a different picture of Jesus' birth, they both wrote with hindsight of Jesus' great works, his crucifixion, and his resurrection. (Anytime you are writing something with hindsight, we can color the previous events to our liking. Moreso if the way we color it helps lead up to the ending.) Matthew wanted to emphasize Jesus' greatness, so he includes the star that lead the 3 wise men to Jesus. Matthew also wrote for the Jewish populations. He wanted to emphasize that Jesus was the new Moses. In the OT, there is the slaughter of children at the time of the birth of Moses. So, Matthew has Herod order the deaths of the children 2 and under.

Luke was also trying to emphasize the greatness of Jesus even at his birth. So, Luke adds the beautiful story of the wise Simeon who pronounces Jesus' greatness: "Lord, now lettest thy servant depart in peace according to thy word: For mine eyes have seen thy salvation which thou hast prepared before the face of all people" ("Luke" 2:29-31). Also, with hindsight, Simeon makes a reference to the crucifixion: "Yea, a sword, shall pierce through thy own soul also" ("Luke" 2:35).

Father Brown's point is emphasized further when he points this out. Obviously, Matthew and Luke included passages on Jesus' birth. But while they made some changes, they had to some extent stay within the patterns of the earlier written Gospel According to Mark. (Mark did not include a birth chapter.) Well, obviously Mark presented Jesus' conflict with the Jewish authorities. Well, the Jewish authorities were fascinated by the 12 year old Christ in Luke's Gospel: "...all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers" ("Luke" 2:47). So, if the religious authorities were so fascinated by Christ as a 12 year old, then why as an adult was he rejected to the point where he was crucified?

Don't get me wrong. This is a GREAT book as well as an important study. but it is my opinion that the content of it could be disturbing to some.