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The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah Vol 1 - Predestination

The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah Vol 1 - Predestination

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are equally insufficient. <strong>The</strong>y resolve <strong>the</strong>mselves<br />

into this: that (beyond <strong>the</strong> Gospel-narrative) we<br />

have no solid evidence that Cyrenius was at that<br />

time occupying <strong>the</strong> needful <strong>of</strong>ficial position in <strong>the</strong><br />

East, to order such a registration for Herod to<br />

carry out. But even this feeble contention is by no<br />

means historically unassailable.' At any rate, <strong>the</strong>re<br />

* <strong>The</strong> advocates <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> mythical <strong>the</strong>ory have not<br />

answered, not even faced or understood, what to<br />

ns seems, on <strong>the</strong>ir hypotbeds, an insuperable<br />

difficulty. Granting, that Jewish expectancy would<br />

suggest tiie birth <strong>of</strong> Jesos at Bethlehem, why invent<br />

such circumstances to bring Mary to Bethlehem ?<br />

Keim may be right in saying: *<strong>The</strong> beMef in <strong>the</strong><br />

birth at Bethlehem originated very simply'<br />

(Leben Jesu i. 2, p. 893); but all <strong>the</strong> more<br />

complicated <strong>and</strong> inexplicable is <strong>the</strong> origination <strong>of</strong><br />

<strong>the</strong> legend, which accounts for <strong>the</strong> journey thi<strong>the</strong>r<br />

<strong>of</strong> Mary <strong>and</strong> Joseph.<br />

* In evidence <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>se feelings, we have <strong>the</strong>

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