The First Christmas: What the Gospels Really Teach About Jesus's Birth [Paperback]

Marcus J. Borg (Author), John Dominic Crossan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 6, 2009

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.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“With meticulous scholarship and accessible language, “The first Christmas”... uncover(s) the genuine meaning of...the Birth of Jesus.” (The Progressive Christian )

About the Author

Marcus J. Borg is Canon Theologian at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Portland, Oregon. He was Hundere Chair of Religion and Culture at Oregon State University until his retirement in 2007. Borg is the author of nineteen books, including the bestselling The Heart of Christianity, Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time, Reading the Bible Again for the First Time, and the novel Putting Away Childish Things. He was an active member of the Jesus Seminar when it focused on the historical Jesus, and he has been chair of the Historical Jesus section of the Society of Biblical Literature.

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: HarperOne; 1 edition (October 6, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061430714
• ISBN-13: 978-0061430718
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (41 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #210,976 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #77 in Books > Christian Books & Bibles > Holidays > Christmas

More About the Author

Marcus J. Borg is professor emeritus in the philosophy department at Oregon State University, where he held the Hundere Chair in Religion and Culture, and author of the New York Times bestselling Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time, The Heart of Christianity, The Last Week, and Jesus. He was an active member of the Jesus Seminar when it focused on the historical Jesus and he has been chair of the historical Jesus section of the Society of Biblical Literature.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

65 of 77 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bor4g and Crossan Publish Another Winner, November 9, 2007

By 

H. Alan Elmore (Greenville,, SC USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The First Christmas: What the Gospels Really Teach About Jesus's Birth (Hardcover)

Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan are famous for taking current biblical scholarship and making it readable for the general public. The First Christmas is an excellent example. It is an easy to read version of current belief about the Birth Narratives in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. It is not a devotional book.
Few Bible academics even imagine that the Birth Narratives are historical. However, to use the word "myth" has too many connotations. Borg and Crossan use the term "parables" for these accounts. Although there is some similarity, the differences are great. Christmas combines the two accounts, and nobody is aware of it.
This book calls the Birth Narratives "parabolic overtures," meaaning that they are intentional parables, intended to tell the general approach to Jesus that is taken in each Gospel, Matthew and Luke. The comparison is excellent reading.

30 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Christmas Riches, December 28, 2007

By 

Scott Elliott "Scott Elliott" (Melbourne, FL) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The First Christmas: What the Gospels Really Teach About Jesus's Birth (Hardcover)

Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan explore Matthew and Luke's Christmas narratives in this provocative-can't-put-down book. They place the stories in historical context and then thoughtfully explore the rich symbolism and meaning of the Gospel accounts of events surrounding the birth of Jesus. The results are new and powerful meanings to the Christmas stories for the modern ear-- stories that for two-thousand years have beckoned humankind away from the pursuit of peace though violence and toward God's call to the pursuit peace though non-violence and justice for all. THIS A GREAT BOOK THAT IS WELL WORTH THE READ!

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great book for study groups!, December 30, 2007

By 

Pat MacHugh "mama rev" (Berkshires, MA, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The First Christmas: What the Gospels Really Teach About Jesus's Birth (Hardcover)

A wonderfully researched and complete look at the biblical accounts of the first Christmas stories - and their place in our faith journeys today. A bit tedious in spots, and redundant in others, but overall very informative, interesting, and enlightening. Some in our study group found the language a bit academic at times, but all found it worth reading, and discussion was lively and exciting.