Margaret Barker 
Christmas, The Original Story [EPUB ebook] 

Preface ix
Introduction xi
1 The setting 1
The world of the temple 2
Telling the stories 16
The politics 23
2 Other voices 31
Adam 36
The Lady 39
The hidden descent 44
3 Luke 50
The first annunciation: the birth of John 53
The second annunciation: the birth of Jesus 59
The meeting of Elizabeth and Mary 65
The birth of John 70
The birth of Jesus 74
The annunciation to the shepherds 78
The Lordin his temple 82
4 Matthew 93
The genealogy 97
The Virgin birth 100
The star 108
The magi 115
The flight into Egypt 123
5 The Infancy Gospel of Jamesand translation
of the text 128
The story 133
Mary 136
The veil 142
The resting-place 144
The cave 145
The Infancy Gospel of James 151
6 The Qur’an and translation ofselected passages 162
Primary sources 175
Index of primary sources 177
Index of persons, places and subjects 187

Margaret Barker is a well-known and high-selling author and former president of the Society for Old Testament study. She is a member of the ecumenical Patriarch’s Symposium on Religion, Science and the Environment and a Methodist Local Preacher. She is the author of major and influential works such as The Great High Priest (2003), The Revelation of Jesus Christ (2000) and The Risen Lord (1996). Her Temple Theology (2004) was short listed for the Michael Ramsey Prize, and she was awarded the honour of a Lambeth degree in 2008.