Reflections for Christmas by raymond Brown

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.


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Great, But Some Caution Advisable.

Father Brown has written some great books. While this is a good book, I would advise a touch of caution here. If you or your church believe in a 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 their 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 first thing he points out is that while Matthew and Luke present a different picture of Christ's birth, they both wrote with a hindsight of Jesus' great works, his crucifixion, and his ressurection. (Anytime we 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.) Basically, 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 was trying to emphasize that Jesus was the new Moses.) In the Old Testament, there is the slaughter of children at the time of Moses' birth. So, Matthew has the wicked Herod order the deaths of all the new born children in hopes that Jesus will be killed. Like Matthew, Luke was also trying to emphasize the greatness of Christ 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, Luke has Simeon make 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 out a major point. Obviously, Matthew and Luke included passages on Jesus' birth. But while they made their changes, they still had to stay to some extent within the earlier written Gospel According to Mark. (Mark of course does 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: "...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 child, then why as an adult was he rejected to the point where the religious authorities wanted him 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.

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Matthew and Luke wrote different things than you belive.

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 Brownęs fan.

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