John Valentine Haidt, “Christ Before Herod,” 1762 (photo: Public Domain) John Grondelski Blogs April 9, 2022. Palm Sunday is perhaps the only day when the liturgy has two Gospels.

Most scholars place Jesus Christ’s birth year somewhere between 7 B.C.E. and 1 B.C.E. And some narrow the range down to 6 B.C.E. and 4 B.C.E. due to a Biblical story about King Herod the Great.

The Jewish historian Flavius Josephus provides details about Herod's death, which occurred shortly after a lunar eclipse. Based on astronomical data, scholars identify four possible dates for this ...

Herod calls religious leaders to get further information about this new King. But they seem unenthusiastic. Perhaps the Magi even thought about abandoning their search.

Desert stronghold Since its construction a few years before the birth of Christ, ... had rebelled against the Greek-speaking Seleucid empire the century before. In 63 B.C., when Herod was about ...