Jesus Christ is the perfect model and safe reference for other people to be inspired and reflect on their own actions. It is certainly one of God's great mercies to send this sublime heavenly messenger for the good of humanity. However, when was Jesus Christ born on Earth? A simple question can involve profound questions when it is given due value and attention. But this is not just any question, nor is it one to explore without any use. The questioning is done to present the abductive reasoning used in investigations and research and which can help us make better use of the Master's lessons, as well as test our faith. Not blind or mystifying faith, but reasoned faith. With abduction there is a search for the best explanation through both the exploration of new clues and imagination, intuition, and creativity.

For example, for Léon Denis (2019) the birth of Christ was not an act carried out without opposition from those who dominated the world and who wanted to maintain control until then as it was. The coming of the lamb of God, initially planned to take place in Celtic lands, had to be changed to Judea due to obstacles thrown up by opponents of the light.

However, if we adopt December 25th as the date of birth, it is necessary to note that Israel is in the northern hemisphere and therefore, it is winter and rainy during this period. Being born in a stable in an inhospitable climate does not seem to fit best with the collective imagination, nor with some representations of the holy book. But why choose such a date? Were there official records of the birth of Christ or a date selected for a certain worldly purpose?

In the holy book of the Bible, there is no specific date, just a description of the context. For example, according to the evangelist Matthew: “And when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the time of King Herod, behold, wise men came from the East to Jerusalem” (Matthew 2:1). Already in Luke: “And she gave birth to her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. Now there were in that same region shepherds who were in the field and kept watch over their flock during the night watches” (Luke 2:7,8). It is expected that new lambs will be born in spring, which occurs between the months of April and June, with pleasant weather. This would be in line with the first initial markings of the birth of Christ made by Clement of Alexandria, the philosopher who lived between the 2nd and 3rd centuries. Second excerpt from Clement of Alexandria, cited by McGowan (2023):

There are those who have determined not only the year of our Lord's birth, but also the day; they say it happened in the 28th year of the reign of Augustus and on the 25th of Pachon (May 20)[…]. And dealing with his Passion, with great precision, some say that it took place in the 16th year of the reign of Tiberius, on the 25th of Paremhat (March 21); others on 25th Pharmuthi (21st April) […]. Later, others said that He was born on the 24th or 25th of Pharmuthi (20th or 21st April).

And in the Gospels of Mark and John, there is no description of the birth of Christ, only his emergence to be baptized by his cousin, John the Baptist. John was the son of Elizabeth, cousin of Mary, and Zechariah. According to Luke: “a priest named Zechariah, of the order of Abijah, whose wife was one of the daughters of Aaron; and her name was Isabel”. Then, the cousin-uncle of Jesus Christ was a priest and with mediumistic conditions so that the following event could happen: “the angel said to him: Zechariah, do not be afraid, for your prayer has been heard, and Elizabeth, your wife, will give birth a son, and you shall call his name John” (Luke 1:13). Another noteworthy fact is that the angel Gabriel who spoke to Zechariah is the same one who made the annunciation to Mary (Luke 1:31). The age difference between Jesus and his cousin John the Baptist would be about six months (Luke 1:36). Furthermore, due to the proximity of the cousins, there was most likely close contact between the children. And both were alone in the desert to strengthen themselves. Luke reports the case of John the Baptist: “And the child grew and became strong in spirit. And he was in the deserts until the day that he should show himself to Israel” (Luke 1:80). In another passage, the evangelist also observes in detail the case of Christ: “And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness; and for forty days he was tempted by the devil, and in those days, he ate nothing; and when they had finished, he was hungry” (Luke 4: 1,2).

There are many similarities between the cousins. However, none of them have their birthdays properly expressed in the Bible. Another doubtful point is whether the birth of Christ would have taken place in Bethlehem in Judea or Bethlehem in Galilee. Although the Bible presents the first (Matthew 2:1), Bethlehem in Judea is 150 kilometers from the village of Nazareth, while Bethlehem in Galilee is only 7 kilometers (Chagas, 2011). Which seems to be more believable given the conditions of the time.

Doubts and lack of complete information do not allow the data to be adopted as absolute truth, but only temporary truth until it is put to the test. Furthermore, you can triangulate information with different sources and also go back and forth in investigations, just as a detective does so that you can, under the scrutiny of intelligence, logic, and common sense, separate what becomes viable and feasible from what becomes irrelevant.

Abductive reasoning is the one practiced, for example, by detective Sherlock Holmes and his assistant Watson. Through abduction, new “clues” are explored, as well as the mental possibility of changing directions with the arrival of new information. For Pierce (1998, p.227): “The abductive suggestion comes to us like a flash. It is an act of insight, albeit of an extremely fallible kind. It is true that the different elements of the hypothesis were in our minds before; but what drives the new suggestion before our contemplation is the idea of bringing together what we never dreamed of bringing together.”

This seems to be appropriate with the emergence of new information about the Bible and about Christ, such as the different apocryphal gospels, as well as mediumistic works on details of Jesus' period on Earth, such as the books Boa Nova by Humberto de Campos or Primícias do Reino e Vivendo com Jesus, by Amélia Rodrigues. In the case of Christ, ancient clues can also influence the issue, as is the case in the passage: "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, although you are small among the clans of Judah, from you will come to me one who will be ruler over Israel. Its origins are in the distant past, in ancient times" (Micah 5:2).

In observing the specialized literature (McGowan, 2023), it is clear that the date of December 25th was chosen by the church institution as a way to combat the popularity of the pagan rite of Saturnalia, which is older than the birth of Christ himself. Saturnalia is the celebration of Saturn and takes place during the winter solstice (around December 21st). The event honors the main pagan god and is characterized by the relaxation of social orders and debauchery. In the same period, the birth of the undefeated sun (Natalis Solis Invicti) was also celebrated, which was a pagan festival with tributes to the star-king. Thus, celebrating the birth of Christ can be seen either from the point of view of accommodating a date with others already established, such as Easter, or even a way of overshadowing and Christianizing the initial festivities. One can't be sure.

However, with the use of the abductive method, a better investigation of the truth can be carried out, even though a certain temporary answer may be assumed, either due to the absence of superior evidence or due to the complexity of the question. However, one cannot have blind faith that relaxes reasoning, nor can one stop pursuing the greater truth for good and general progress. The rigidity and restriction of the source would be to sacrifice the greater truth.

Due to the importance of Christ, it is essential that spiritists masterfully use the abductive method, or any other method in science and philosophy, to seek to consolidate reasoned faith, as well as to investigate in depth, questioning and seeking information, so that the pieces of truth always come decisively and faithfully to the facts. The truth puzzle always benefits from being on the right track.

Just as in relation to Spirits a name is just a name, a place is just a place, the same can be said about the date. However, the greater truth must find its place in the sun. Let us not fail to pay tribute to Our Lord Jesus Christ, every day of the year, with our minds, hearts and hands focused on charity, edifying study and love.

It is essential that we keep our vigilance high, as “darkness loves to hide behind the light”. Or in the immortal words of the Nazarene master: “I am sending you like sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore, be as crafty as serpents and as guileless as doves” (Matthew 10:16)(1) 

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(1) Written in honor of my parents, Paulo Hayashi and Ioko Ikefuti Hayashi, who are already in the Spiritual Homeland.

References:

Chagas, T. (2011). Arqueólogo afirma que Jesus nasceu em uma Belém diferente da que a Bíblia conta. LINK-1

Denis, L. (2019). O Gênio Céltico e o Mundo Invisível. Versão digitalizada. LINK-2

McGowan, A. (2023). How December 25 became Christmas. Bible History Daily. LINK-3

PEIRCE, Charles S. (1998). The essential Peirce: Selected philosophical writings 2. Indianapolis: Indiana University Press.