A Jewish Christmas Story

About the Book

In the first two chapters of his Gospel Matthew writes about the birth of the Messiah. Did he intend for the narrative just to be used for children’s pagents and to provide ideas for lawn decorations? Surely he had more serious purposes in mind, but sadly this beginning part of his Gospel has been often trivialized down through the centuries. What important information was he conveying? What issues facing his readers did he confront? Could Jesus of Nazareth, a place thought to produce no good thing, really be the Messiah? Hadn’t his birth actually been a scandal? Why would “wise men” bring him gifts? How many wise men were there anyway? And that part about the star; maybe it wasn’t actually a star. “A Jewish Christmas Story” is a study guide which brings new insights to a story with which many are familiar but one whose real meaning is seldom considered seriously.

About the Author

Frank Straight is a retired chemical engineer having worked in the construction engineering business for most of his career. He has been a teacher of adult Sunday School classes for most of his adult life and has used the Matthew account of the birth of Jesus in many of these classes. He and his wife Janice live in Surprise, Arizona. They are members of the Sun City West Christian Church where Frank has served as an Elder as well as teacher and is currently Missions Ministry chairman.