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There are three principal reasons why the 4 B.C. date has prevailed over 1 B.C. These reasons were articulated by Emil Schürer in A History of the Jewish People in the Time of Jesus Christ, also published in the 19th century. First, Josephus informs us that Herod died shortly before a Passover (Antiquities 17.9.3, The Jewish War 2.1.3), making a lunar eclipse in March (the time of the 4 B.C. eclipse) much more likely than one in December. Second, Josephus writes that Herod reigned for 37 years from the time of his appointment in 40 B.C. and 34 years from...

The sixteenth century Spaniard, Hernando de Soto, is remembered by historians for his exploration of the southeastern United States, which began in Florida. A former mercenary soldier in the conquest of Central and South America, he hoped to increase his notoriety and fortune by leading an expedition through parts of North America. In the end, De Soto’s army spent over four years and covered 4,000 miles in its quest for gold and new territory to colonize. Neither resulted from his efforts. With approval from the Spanish Crown, De Soto assembled his expedition. He financed the endeavor himself with the understanding...

A good and blessed Merry Christmas to the Free Republic community.

Secular Christmas poems and stories, like The Night Before Christmas or The Gift of the Magi, are remarkable in the way they enchant young people from generation to generation. But there is one Christmas story that never grows stale, that is fresh to all ages and places, to young and old, to men and women. It goes like this. In days now far, far gone, Israel was surrounded on all sides by enemies, torn by violence, and there in Israel a young girl, Mary by name, pledged to a man named Joseph, heard a voice, as she thought from...