Canterbury tales--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: December 24, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern
Rowan Williams, archbishop of Canterbury
The archbishop of Canterbury, the titular head of the Anglican Church, says there is very little evidence the wise men of the Nativity ever existed.
He told a BBC audience the only reference to the wise men from the East came in the Gospel of Matthew and details were vague.
"Matthew's gospel says they are astrologers, wise men, priests from somewhere outside the Roman Empire," explained Rowan Williams. "That's all we're really told. It works quite well as legend."
Well, let me say this about that.
Since the wise men are mentioned in the Bible, that's all the evidence I need to know they were real and played a significant role in the story of Jesus' birth.
In fact, on the basis of the biblical record, I am more certain the wise men were real than I am that the archbishop of Canterbury is. For all I know, he could be part of the Canterbury tales.
What possesses Christian leaders to attack the biblical record, the authenticity of God's Word, the divinity of the Scriptures?
After all, if the Bible is not true and accurate, what authority do Christian leaders have? Why are they participating in a charade? What is the basis of their faith?
Williams' comments about the wise men came in the context of an effort to explain that the traditional and artistic renderings of the Nativity, in which the wise men and shepherds and barn animals are often portrayed as surrounding the babe in the manger, are misleading.
And, indeed, they are. Those images and legends are not biblical. But the appearance of the wise men most assuredly is.
While it is true they did not likely visit Jesus until He was perhaps 2 years old, the fact they are mentioned in the gospel and played a significant role in protecting the baby from Herod cannot and should not be understated.
By the way, Williams, too, speculates himself when he claims the gospel account refers to the wise men as astrologers or priests. They may well have been, but all we know from the Bible is that they followed a star to Bethlehem and brought gifts for Jesus and worshipped him as messiah.
Williams goes on to explain that Dec. 25 is an unlikely day for the birth of Jesus, which most every biblically literate Christian understands. He explains Christmas cards and works of art depicting snow in Bethlehem are far-fetched.
But then he goes on to question whether shepherds actually surrounded the baby Jesus, Joseph and Mary.
Again, this is a matter of biblical record.
Here's what the Gospel of Luke 2:8-20 has to say about the role of the shepherds, who, by the way, came to meet their Savior before He was 8 days old:
"And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
"And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
"And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
"For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
"And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
"And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
"And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us.
"And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.
"And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child.
"And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds.
"But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.
"And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them."
The archbishop of Canterbury says he wants to clear up confusion and clarify aspects of the Nativity story and separate fact from myth. He's not doing a very good job. In fact, he is doing a disservice to the Christian faith and the authority of God's Word when he suggests the wise men were no more than a legend and questions whether the shepherds actually went to see the baby Jesus.
Christian leaders should take a lot more care in what they say about events as monumental as the birth of Christ.