Film Review: The Nativity Story

S and I went to see The Nativity Story yesterday. Aside from a few Scriptural inaccuracies in the timelines presented, it was a beautifully made film.

Positive reactions
The locations (in Italy, near where The Passion of the Christ was shot) were breathtaking. The hard lifestyle these people had to endure was portrayed quite realistically. The cast itself was quite diverse - a young New Zealander playing Mary, a Guatemalen playing Joseph, an Irishman playing Herod the Great, an Iranian playing Elizabeth, a Sudanese playing the Angel Gabriel, and an Israeli (from Nazareth!) playing Mary's mother! The musical score was also outstanding; you can hear motifs from familiar Christmas songs (including Silent Night in Latin at the end) throughout the movie, but it doesn't scream Christmas either.

Constructive feedback
As I stated, there were some inaccuracies with the timeline when compared to the Bible story of the Nativity, which unfortunately serves to perpetuate some of the myths we have regarding the birth of Jesus.

The Timeline as Presented in the Film
King Herod, acting the part of the paranoid ruler, is well aware of the prophesies regarding the Messiah and is troubled by them. Meanwhile, the three magi (wise men) determine that the King of the Jews will be born in Judea and his arrival will be signaled by a star. They also determine that three planets will be in conjunction and set out for Judea in time for the conjunction - a time when the three planets will appear to be one star. On the way to Bethlehem they pass through Jerusalem and they meet with King Herod; he, too, is looking for the Messiah. The king sends them on their way and requests that they send word of the Christ's location so he can worship him, too (of course, he has no intention to worship him, but to destroy him). The magi arrive in Bethlehem and follow the star right to the manger as if they knew right where to go; they arrive shortly after Jesus' birth and the shepherds who came to worship also.
In the film, we see the magi make a stop and then head on to Bethlehem as if they knew exactly where they were going, and arriving at the manger shortly after Jesus is born and the shepherds arrive. Meanwhile Herod sends a detachment of troops to Bethlehem to destroy the Christ Child. But Joseph has his dream warning him to take Mary and Jesus to Egypt, and they get out of Bethlehem in the nick of time before the soldiers begin killing all the baby boys. Later we see the wise men approaching Jerusalem and thinking perhaps they shouldn't return to Herod.

The Timeline as Presented in Scripture
From Matthew 2:1-18:

• The magi arrived in Jerusalem after Jesus was born (v. 1).
• The magi had no clue where the king of the Jews was born - they had to ask around (v. 2). All they knew was that it was in Judea; it's only natural that they travelled to Jerusalem, the capital of Judea. This got Herod's attention, so he asked the chief priests and the scribes about the prophecy. Quoting from Micah 5:2, they in turn replied: Bethlehem. (v. 3-6)
• When Herod met with the magi, he inquired of them as to when the star had first appeared (v. 7) and sent them on to Bethlehem. This indicates that the magi had already seen the star rather than anticipate its arrival.
• When the magi set out for Bethlehem, the star they had seen went ahead of them and stopped over where the Christ was (v. 9-10). This implies that their guiding star had disapeared, only to reappear when they started out for Bethlehem. Also, this star didn't obey the laws of physics - it didn't move across the sky with the rotation of the earth.
• The magi arrived at a house, not a stable (v. 11). Remember, the manger was a momentary necessity, but living in a stable was not.
• The magi were warned in a dream not to return to Herod and chose to return to homeland by another route (v. 12). This dream occurred before they left Bethlehem.
• Herod realized he was outwitted by the magi and ordered the killing of all the boys in Bethlehem under the age of two, based on the time given by the magi for the appearance of the star (v. 16). How long did it take for Herod to realize the magi had gone AWOL? I don't know, but it think it would have been plenty of time for Joseph, Mary, and Jesus to get a head start. It also implies that Jesus could have been nearly two years old at this point.

From Luke 2:21-38:

• Jesus was circumcised when he was eight days old (v. 21)
• Joseph and Mary took Jesus to Jerusalem to present him in the Temple when the time of their purification was completed (v. 22). According to Jewish Law, a woman who has given birth to a son is considered unclean for 33 days after the circumcision, and may not enter the Temple until she is purified (Leviticus 12:3-4). This would place the family in Jerusalem 41 days after Jesus' birth.
• The Holy Spirit had revealed to a man named Simeon that he would not die until he saw the Messiah. (v. 25-33) He was led to the Temple by the Holy Spirit and was present when Joseph and Mary arrived with Jesus - and he recognized the Messiah.
• Anna, a prophetess in the Temple, also recognized the Messiah as such (v. 36-38)

In the above timeline, the young family was able to travel to Jerusalem and back unnoticed by Herod. And even if they immediately returned to Bethlehem, this timeline runs at least 42 days (six weeks). The magi could not have possibly arrived in Bethlehem before Jesus was six weeks old.

So no quick, dramatic getaway from Bethlehem.

Other Considerations
The Bible does not say that there were three magi; there were three gifts. We also don't know their names. We do know there were at least two magi - the Bible refers to them in the plural. If there had been a fourth magi, he'd probably have felt stupid for not bringing a gift. Legend assumes three magi because of the three gifts - and it makes the most sense. Works for me.

There is no Biblical prophecy regarding a star signaling the birth of the Messiah. There is only the reference that the magi were guided by this star. We don't really know how they figured out the meaning of the star - I would chalk it up to the Holy Spirit's leading these men to the Messiah - both physically and spiritually. God works that way, you know.

So that's my take on The Nativity Story. Just go in knowing what the Scripture says. But it is a wonderful movie, nonetheless.