This chapter examines several distinct strands in the New Testament’s reflection on Jesus’ Nativity: from the mystery surrounding his origins in the earliest Gospel, Mark, to the respective infancy narratives of Matthew and Luke, to John’s mystical language of the Word’s origins, and non-narrative conceptions of Jesus’ coming into the world in Paul, other letter-writers, and Revelation. It argues that the slender ancient accounts of ‘Jesus becoming Jesus’ nonetheless offer a rich tapestry of insights on the Incarnation at the heart of Christmas. Brief engagement with the early reception of these texts in theology and apologetics, literary production and art, devotion and liturgy, lend significant support to this conclusion.
Luke, and not least in the infancy narratives, introduces parallels, which, featuring similarities and differences, enrich the story and theological meaning. In a parallel not fully appreciated by Bovon, Tannehill, and other commentators, Luke links Mary and Simeon through the themes of ‘slave’, ‘word’, and in other ways. This article explores seven links that the evangelist makes between Mary and Simeon.
Christ, Jesus, 02: Birth and Infancy Narratives