The birth of historical Jesus as basis of Anno Domini

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During this time of the year, the most wonderful time of the year, sometimes I wonder why the entire world is getting excited about Christmas. Is it because Jesus was born one holy night in a little town called Bethlehem? Is this historical?

Approximately 99.9 percent of the citizens of Saudi Arabia are strict Muslims, and only about a million or two are Christians who need to constantly hide their faith. One hundred percent of all Catholics in this oil-rich nation are Filipinos.

Though Christmas and its meaning remain unfamiliar to its population, Christmas in Saudi Arabia is changing. Its capital Riyadh and other cities are starting to embrace some aspects of this holiday season, which for them signifies hope, universal brotherhood and joy.

“We don’t have a clear idea of Christmas in our culture, but we’re open to learning,” says Khalid Alshahrani, a 26-year-old Riyadh resident (Condé Nast Traveler).

Although a 94 percent Islamic nation, Syria is more religiously tolerant, and the spirit of Christmas this year fills the air, which gives hope after 14 years of civil war. More shops, cafes, streets and homes in Damascus are decked with Christmas cribs, lights and decorations.

As always, Filipinos and foreigners pack churches in Dubai and Abu Dhabi (UAE) for Simbang Gabi. St. Mary’s Catholic Church (SMCC) in Oud Metha, Dubai, draws tens of thousands nightly for prayer and hope amid Pinoy tradition. And it’s religiously contagious.

Christmas appears to be a global festivity and, for many people, an event that signifies hope and joy. Is it because the historical Jesus, the Savior of humankind, is born?

Gospel narratives of the birth of Jesus

That Christmas is associated with the debates regarding the historical Jesus is always a presupposition. Was there a historical Jesus, the God who became one like us? The Holy Book says yes!

To appreciate Christmas better, it might be good to go back to the gospel stories.

Luke 2:8-21 narrates the story of an angel telling the shepherds that a Savior has been born in Bethlehem and that they will find the baby in a manger.

Matthew 1:18–25 talks about an angel telling Joseph that Mary is with a child from the Holy Spirit and that the child will be named Jesus.

John 1:14 goes more theological: “And the Word was made flesh and dwelt amongst us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son.”

Early Church tradition

It is said that the debates regarding the historical Jesus came about in the late 100 A.D., when some Christians, who were influenced by Gnosticism and Docetism, erroneously claimed that Jesus did not have a human birth and therefore was not really human. When the historicity of Jesus was a hot-button issue, the early Church formulated its creed, proclaiming that Jesus is indeed true God and true man.

In 390, the Council of Milan sent a letter addressed to Pope Siricius, with the earliest known words of the Apostles Creed or Symbolum Apostolorum attached to it (Migne, P.L., XVI, 1213). In 451 A.D., the Council of Chalcedon adopted a creed that officially states that Jesus is simultaneously both fully God and fully man, “born of a woman” (Galatians 4:4).

In 525, Pope John I commissioned Ukrainian monk and scholar Dionysius Exiguus, or “Dennis the Short,” to calculate the date of Jesus’ birth.

The gospels of Matthew and Luke speak of Jesus being born when Herod the Great was king of Judea [Herod died in 1 B.C.]. Accordingly, based on the gospel narratives, Dionysius calculated that Jesus was born in the 753^rd year of the old Roman calendar, plus or minus. By his calculation, Jesus was probably born sometime between December of 3 B.C. and February of 2 B.C.

From the old Roman calendar, which was previously employed, Dionysius created a new calendar based on the birth of Jesus, saying: “We are unwilling to connect our cycle with the name of an impious persecutor (i.e., Diocletian), but have chosen rather to note the years from the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

He introduced the use of the Christian Era, hence the term Anno Domini  (A.D.), or “In the Year of our Lord.”

Christo-centric human history

Prehistory ended around 3000 BCE in Egypt, which is the common consensus among paleontologists, archaeologists and historians, although the chronology of prehistory varies according to various civilized recordings.

Open any historical book and discover that every recorded history implicitly points to Christ as its time reference. For instance, 384 ACN as the birthdate of the Greek philosopher Aristotle, or 36 BCE as the year of the Battle of Zhizhi in Chinese history, or 2013 as the year when Benedict XVI resigned. It means those dates are records of history in reference to the Year of the Lord, Anno Domini.

The BCE that you see is the acronym for “Before the Common Era.” After BCE, there is CE or the “Current Era.” The BCE and CE that you find in history books are alternatives to B.C. and A.D.

So, when you read that “prehistory ended around 3000 BCE in Egypt,” the point of reference is the birth of the historical Jesus, that is, 3,000 years Before Christ (B.C.).

Human history indeed is Christo-centric. Christo-centric history signifies that Jesus “so deeply marked and redeemed human history” that the chronology of recorded history is defined by His historical birth, the first Christmas.

The undeniable landmark of human history is the acronym B.C. and A.D. or its variants BCE and CE. Notice how, in all official business-or-personal-or-political encounters among the Muslims of Saudi Arabia, the Shintoists of Japan, the Hindu scholars of India, the Buddhists of Bhutan, scientists of Germany, and even among atheists, whether they like it or not, the modern man acknowledges history dates with unmistakable reference to the earthly and historical existence of Jesus Christ—by using B.C. and A.D.

Christmas is what we Christians believe and proclaim

Christo-centric history also presupposes that the odyssey of humankind went on and on, cruising its normal course until such time, such “favorable time,” when the Eternal Word, the Logos—according to Divine Revelation and Christian tradition—entered human history. The Logos became one of us “and dwelt among us” (John 1:14).

The First Christmas and the events surrounding it (hence, associated with the Catholic liturgical celebrations of the Immaculate Conception, Holy Family, Mater Dei and Epiphany) were historical events, which are therefore neither legends nor myths.

“God becoming Man,” or the Incarnation of the Son of God, is a historical event with a fixed time and place, when Herod I was the great ruler of Judaea. Lest we forget, this singular event, the birth of the historical Christ, changed human history in a most dramatic fashion.

Far from being legendary or mythical, this Christ-Event, the beginning of the Anno Domini, is the most recorded and documented, the most critically examined and analyzed records alongside the non-religious historical and biblical annals. Its spoken narratives are abundantly retold, from age to age and its written chronicles are copiously translated. The ancient artifacts connected to it, the manuscripts in numerous languages, and the arts related to Christ’s birth are the most archived and most secured.

“Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14).

Merry Christmas, one and all!

José Mario Bautista Maximiano is the lead convenor of the Love Our Pope Movement (LOPM) and author of the book “Church Reforms 3: The Synodal Legacy of Pope Francis” (Claretian, 2025). “Church Reforms 1” and “Church Reforms 2” are available in Lazada and Shopee. Email: [email protected]