For Christians, Christmas time is one of the most sacred, most joyous celebrations of the year. What about for people who are thinking about it, but who aren't sure about the whole "reason for the season"? What do we really know about what happened in Judea, 2000 years ago?

We're going to try to approach this topic from a neutral standpoint, and see where that leads us.

It's well-established that Jesus existed. He was physically, historically real. There is voluminous evidence from Christian sources, of course. Jesus Christ was also mentioned in non-Christian historical documents that have survived from that period. He's referred to twice by Josephus, the Jewish historian, in his work "Antiquities of the Jews" published in 93-94 AD. Tacitus, the Roman historian, writing in around 116 AD, also refers to "Christus" being put to death by the Romans under Pontius Pilate.

Was Jesus special? Even skeptics would need to wonder why and how this man from a small village in Galilee could launch a religion which would become the biggest, most influential one for at least the next two millennia of human history.

One of the intriguing things about Jesus is that his birth and life seem to have fulfilled prophecies from the Old Testament, which date back to the time of Moses - at least 1500 years BC, and to far older stories in an oral tradition. Those prophecies existed in texts written long before the Christian Era started.

What were some of those prophecies? There are many of them! Swedenborg lists some in Doctrine of the Lord 6. In this article, we're just going to focus on a few of them.

In this very early prophecy, it's indicated that the Messiah would be born as the son of a woman:

"And Jehovah God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, cursed art thou above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life, and I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed: he shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. Genesis 3:14-15. This is confirmed in the story in Matthew 1:20.

In Micah, much later in the Bible, we read that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem, in Judea:

"But thou, Beth-lehem Ephrathah, which art little to be among the thousands of Judah, out of thee shall one come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting." Micah 5:2.

This is confirmed in the story in Matthew 2:1, and Luke 2:4-6.

In Isaiah, we read that the Messiah would be born to a virgin:

"Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." Isaiah 7:14. This is confirmed in the story in Matthew 1:22-23, and in Luke 1:26-31.

Lineage was an important factor, too. At least 5 forefathers of the promised Savior are named. First, he was prophesied to come from the line of Abraham, the progenitor of many of the peoples of the modern Middle East, including the Jews, the Arabs, the Lebanese, the Druze, and others. See Genesis 12:3, and Genesis 22:18. This prophecy is confirmed in Matthew 1:1, and Romans 9:5.

In the next generation, prophecy stated that the Savior would be descended from the line of Isaac, one of Abraham's two sons. See Genesis 17:19, and Genesis 21:12. This is confirmed in Luke 3:34.

For the third generation, the Word states that the Messiah would be a descendant of Jacob. It's prophesied in Numbers 24:17, and confirmed in Matthew 1:2.

For the fourth generation, attention focuses on the tribe of Judah, who was one of the twelve sons of Jacob (whose name was changed to Israel). See Genesis 49:10, and then Luke 3:33, and Hebrews 7:14.

Many generations later, in the second book of Samuel, and again in Isaiah, there are prophecies that the Messiah would be heir to King David's throne. Read 2 Samuel 7:12-13, and Isaiah 9:7. Then see Luke 1:32-33, and Romans 1:3.

There are many more prophecies, and we will look at more of them in a future article. But, to summarize these ones that we've just listed, what would Old Testament readers in the time of Caesar Augustus be expecting?

In Bethlehem, a virgin would bear a son. He would be descended from Abraham, through the line of Isaac, Jacob, Judah, and David. That's the way the story runs, in the Gospels.

It's clear that the Old Testament wasn't altered to suit the "facts on the ground". The prophecies are already there in pre-Christian scrolls. That leaves two possibilities:

1) Scenario A: The New Testament could have been written to twist the facts to match the old prophecies. Faithful Jews were awaiting the Messiah; they would have wanted to find matching stories. In this scenario, Jesus could have been just a regular man, but a standout leader and teacher and healer. He was so inspiring that his apostles endured hardship and death to spread what became a global religion. The stories about him were exaggerated or modified to help match the prophecies.

2) Scenario B: The Old Testament text contains deep inner meaning, and its prophecies were actually prophetic and true. The facts of Jesus' birth and life and ministry actually did match and fulfull the prophecies. In this scenario, Jesus was truly a miracle baby.

Which scenario is right? In both, there's a recognition that the teachings of Jesus contained wisdom, and that there is great value in them. In New Christian thought, the choice is for Scenario B -- that Jesus really was the Christ, the long-awaited Messiah, or Savior.

This of course requires some level of belief in miracles - prophecy, fulfillment, the virgin birth, angels bearing tidings, healings, feeding the multitudes. Can miracles really happen? Is it scientifically possible? Maybe they can... maybe as science advances, we will begin to understand those boundaries better.

At some level, don't most of us believe in miracles -- in the miracle of the very existence of the universe, and of living organisms that can reproduce, and of human life, and of love?

How to end this article? The whole subject of miracles needs more thought. And, here it is, December 22, and... instead of getting more analytical, I find that right now I just want to "be" in the holy days of Christmas.

If you're feeling skeptical, have a look at Arcana Coelestia 2568, and Arcana Coelestia 2588. They offer an interesting perspective!

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One source for this article was "100 Prophecies Fulfilled by Jesus: Messianic Prophecies Made Before the Birth of Christ", by Rose Publishing.

(References: Teachings about the Lord 6)

852. Having the name of His Father written on their foreheads, signifies such truths according to the acknowledgment of His Divine from love. This is evident from the signification of "the name of His Father," as being the Divine of the Lord (of which presently), also from the signification of "written on the foreheads," as being full acknowledgment. "The name of the Father written on the forehead" means the full acknowledgment of the Divine of the Lord, because the Lord turns towards Himself all who acknowledge His Divine, and looks at them in the forehead, while they on the other hand look at the Lord with the eyes; and this for the reason that the "forehead" signifies love, and the "eye" the understanding of truth; therefore to be looked at by the Lord in the forehead signifies to be looked at by the Lord from the good of love; and on the other hand their looking at the Lord with the eyes signifies to look from truths from that good, consequently from the understanding of truth. (That all who are in the heavens are turned to the Lord, and look with the face towards Him as a Sun, see above, n. 646; and in the work on Heaven and Hell 17, 123, 142, 272; also that the Lord sees angels in the forehead, and on the other hand angels see the Lord with the eyes, because the forehead corresponds to the good of love, and the eyes correspond to the understanding of truth, see in the work on Heaven and Hell 145, 251; and that the forehead corresponds to the good of love see above, n. 427.)

[2] One who does not know what the Word is in the sense of the letter might think that when "God and the Lamb" are mentioned, and here "the Lamb and the Father," two are meant, and yet the Lord alone is meant by the two. It is the same in the Word of the Old Testament, where mention is made of "Jehovah," "the Lord Jehovih," "Jehovah of Hosts," "Lord," "Jehovah God," "God" in the plural and in the singular, "the God of Israel," "the Holy one of Israel," "the King of Israel," "Creator," "Savior," "Redeemer," "Shaddai," "Rock," and so on; and yet by all these names only one is meant, and not many; for the Lord is named variously according to His Divine attributes. So again, in the Word of the New Testament, where "Father," "Son," and "Holy Spirit," are mentioned as three; and yet by these three names one only is meant; for "Father" means the Lord as to the Divine Itself which He had as the soul from the Father; "the Son" means the Divine Human; and "the Holy Spirit" the Divine proceeding; thus the three are one, the same as "the Lamb" and "the Father" are here.

[3] That when the Lord mentioned the Father He meant the Divine in Himself, and thus Himself, can be seen from many passages in the Word of both Testaments; but I will here quote a few from the Word of the Gospels, from which it can be seen that by "the Father" the Lord meant the Divine in Himself, which was in Him as the soul is in the body; and that when He mentioned the Father and Himself as two He meant Himself by both, for the soul and the body are one, the soul belonging to its body, and the body to its soul. That the Divine which is called "the Father" was the Divine Itself of the Lord from which His Human existed, and from which it was made Divine, is clearly evident from His conception from the Divine Itself. In Matthew:

The angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, Fear not to take unto thee Mary thy bride, for that which is begotten in her is of the Holy Spirit. And Joseph knew her not until she had brought forth her firstborn Son (Matthew 1:20, 25).

And in Luke:

The angel said to Mary, Behold, thou shalt conceive in the womb and bring forth a Son, and shalt call His name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Most High. But Mary said unto the angel, How shall this be, since I know not a man? And the angel answered and said, The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the Most High shall overshadow thee; therefore that Holy Thing that shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God (Luke 1:31, 32, 34, 35).

From this it is evident that the Lord from conception is Jehovah God; and to be Jehovah God from conception is to be so as to the life itself, which is called the soul from the Father, from which the body has life. From this it is clearly evident that it is the Lord's Human that is called the Son of God, for it is said "the Holy Thing that shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God."

[4] That it is the Lord's Human that is called "the Son of God" can be seen further from the Word of both the Old and New Testaments in many passages. But this subject, God willing, shall be particularly discussed elsewhere; here only such passages will be quoted as testify that by "the Father" the Lord meant the Divine in Himself, thus Himself, as follows. In John:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and God was the Word. All things were made by Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, the glory as of the only-begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth (John 1:1, 2, 14).

Evidently "the Word" means the Lord as to the Divine Human, for it is said that "the Word became flesh, and we saw His glory, the glory as of the only-begotten of the Father." It is also evident that the Lord is God even as to the Human, that is, that the Lord's Human is also Divine, for it is said, "the Word was with God, and God was the Word;" and this Word became flesh. "The Word" means the Lord as to Divine truth.

[5] In the same:

My Father worketh even until now, therefore also I work. But the Jews sought to kill Him, because He said that God was His own Father, making Himself equal with God. But Jesus answered and said, The Son can do nothing of Himself except what He seeth the Father doing; for whatever things He doeth these also the Son doeth in like manner. As the Father raiseth up the dead and quickeneth them, even so the Son quickeneth whom He will. He that honoreth not the Son honoreth not the Father which sent Him. Verily, verily, I say unto you that the hour is coming when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God; and they that hear shall live. As the Father hath life in Himself so also gave He to the Son to have life in Himself (John 5:17-27).

That "the Father" means here the Divine in the Lord, which was His life, as the soul of the father is in every man, and that "the Son" means the Human, which lived from the Divine Itself which was in Him, and thus became Divine, consequently that Father and Son are one, is evident from these words of the Lord, namely, that "the Son doeth like things as the Father," that the Son like the Father "raiseth up the dead and quickeneth them," that the Son like the Father "hath life in Himself," and that "they that hear the voice of the Son shall live;" from all which it is clearly evident that the Father and the Son are one as soul and body are; as well as from the fact that "the Jews sought to kill Him because He said that God was His own Father, making Himself equal with God."

[6] In the same:

All that which the Father giveth to Me shall come unto Me. Everyone that hath heard from the Father and hath learned, cometh unto Me. Not that anyone hath seen the Father save He who is with the Father, He seeth the Father. I am the living bread which came down out of heaven. As the living Father hath sent Me I also live by the Father (John 6:37, seq .).

Here the Lord says of His Human that it came down out of heaven, and that everyone has life through Him, because the Father and He are one; and that the life of the Father is in Him, as the soul from a father is in the son.

[7] In the same:

To my sheep I give eternal life, and they shall never perish, neither shall anyone pluck them out of My Father's hand. I and the Father are one. And the Jews were indignant that He made Himself God. He said, Say ye of Him whom the Father hath sanctified and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest, because I said I am the Son of God? If I do not the works of My Father believe Me not; but if I do, believe the works, that ye may know and believe that the Father is in Me and I in the Father (John 10:28-38).

Here the Lord speaks of the Father as of another, saying, "No one shall pluck the sheep out of my Father's hand," also, "If I do not the works of My Father believe Me not, but if I do, believe the works;" and yet that they might not believe that the Father and He were two He saith, "The Father and I are one;" and that they might not believe that they were one merely by love, He adds, "that ye may know and believe that the Father is in Me and I in the Father." From this it is clear that by "the Father" the Lord meant Himself, or the Divine in Himself from conception; and that by "the Son whom the Father sent" He meant His Human, for this was sent into the world by being conceived of God the Father and born of a virgin.

[8] In the same:

Jesus cried out and said, He that believeth in Me believeth not in Me but in Him that sent Me, and He that seeth Me seeth Him that sent Me. I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth in Me may not abide in darkness (John 12:44-46).

From this also it is clear that by "the Father" the Lord meant Himself, and by "the Son whom the Father sent" His Divine Human, for He says, "He that seeth Me seeth Him that sent Me," also "he that believeth in Me believeth not in Me but in Him that sent Me;" and yet He says that they are to believe in Him (verse John 12:34, and elsewhere [John 12:36, John 12:44-46].

[9] In the same:

Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He came forth from God and returned to God, said, He that receiveth Me receiveth Him that sent Me (John 13:3, 20).

As the Father and He were one, and the Lord's Human was Divine from the Divine in Himself, therefore all things of the Father were His, which is meant by "the Father had given all things into His hands;" and because they were one He says, "He that receiveth Me receiveth Him that sent Me;" "Coming forth from the Father and returning to the Father" means to be conceived and thus to exist from Him, and to be united to Him like the soul to the body.

[10] In the same:

I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one cometh to the Father but through Me. If ye have known Me ye have known My Father also; and henceforth ye have known Him and have seen Him. Philip saith unto Him, Lord, show us the Father. Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you and thou dost not know Me, Philip? He that seeth Me seeth the Father; how sayest thou then, Show us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the Father and the Father in Me? The Father that abideth in Me, He doeth the works. Believe Me, that I am in the Father and the Father in Me (John 14:6-11).

Here it is plainly declared that the Father and He are one, and that the union is like the union of soul and body; thus that it is such a union that he who seeth Him seeth the Father. This union is further confirmed in this chapter. And as the union was such, and as no one can approach the soul of man but only the man himself, the Lord says:

That they should go to Him and should ask the Father in His name, and that He would give to them (John 16:23, 24).

[11] This union is also meant by:

He went forth from the Father and came into the world, and again He leaves the world and goeth to the Father (John 16:5, 10, 16, 17, 28.)

As the Father and He were one He also says:

All things whatsoever the Father hath are Mine, and therefore the Paraclete, which is the Holy Spirit, was to receive from the Lord what He should speak (John 16:13-15).

And elsewhere:

Father, Thou hast given Me authority over all flesh, that to everyone whom Thou hast given Me I may give eternal life. This is life eternal, that they may know Thee the only God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent. All Mine are Thine, and Thine are Mine (John 17:2, 3, 10).

Here, too, it is plainly declared that all things of the Father are the Lord's, as all things of the soul are man's; for man and the soul are one, as life and the subject of life are one. That even as to the Human the Lord is God is evident from these words of the Lord, "that they may know Thee the only God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent."

[12] As "the Father" and "the Son of God" are one, the Lord says that:

When He cometh to judgment He will come in the glory of His Father (Mark 8:38; Luke 9:26);

And in His own glory (Matthew 25:31);

And that He hath all authority in the heavens and on the earth (Matthew 28:18).

[13] That "the Son of God" means the Lord's Divine Human is also made manifest in other passages in the Word; also in passages in the Old Testament. As in Isaiah:

Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given, upon whose shoulder is the government; and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, God, Mighty, the Father of Eternity, Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6).

And in the same:

A virgin shall conceive and shall bear a Son, and His name shall be called God-with-us (Isaiah 7:14).

Evidently "a Child born" and "a Son given" here mean the Lord as to the Divine Human. And that the Lord is God also as to it, thus that His Human is Divine, is clearly said, for it is said that "His name shall be called God," "God-with-us," "the Father of Eternity."

[14] Many other passages besides these might be quoted to prove, that by "the Father" in the Word the Lord meant His Divine which was the life or soul of His Human, and not another separate from Himself. Nor indeed could He have meant any other. Thus the Divine and the Human in the Lord, according to the doctrine of the Christian world, are not two but one person, altogether like soul and body; as is declared in clear terms in the Athanasian Creed. And as God and Man in the Lord are not two but one Person, and thus are united like soul and body, it follows that the Divine which the Lord had from conception was what He called "the Father," and the Divine Human was what He called "the Son;" consequently that they were both Himself. From these things it can now be seen that "the name of the Father written on their foreheads" means the Lord as to His Divine.