Who’s Who in The Nativity Story

The characters and events portrayed in The Nativity Story are drawn from two distinct accounts of Jesus’ birth, one in the Gospel of Luke and the other from the Gospel of Matthew. The Gospel of Luke presents the visits of the angel Gabriel to Mary and to her cousins, Elizabeth and Zechariah; the journey of Mary and her husband Joseph to Bethlehem for the Roman census, where they find there are no rooms available in the town packed by travelers; the announcement of Jesus’ birth by an angel to shepherds and their coming in the night to find the baby Jesus, lying in a manger.

The Gospel of Matthew introduces Joseph’s questions about Mary’s pregnancy and an angel’s reassuring appearance in a dream. It also relates the story of the Magi from the East, who follow a star in search of the highly anticipated King of the Jews. Herod the Great considers this promised child a threat to his reign and orders the slaughter of innocent children in Bethlehem.  Against this dramatic backdrop, the faith and commitment of Mary and Joseph is tested. The Gospel closes with Jesus arriving in a season in desperate need of ‘peace on earth.’

Below is a short description of the main characters in the events leading up to the birth of Jesus. The characters are listed in alphabetical order.

Elizabeth
Elizabeth was Mary’s cousin and a descendent of Aaron, from the priestly class. The Gospel of Luke describes Elizabeth and her husband Zechariah as “upright in the sight of God, observing all the Lord's commandments and regulations blamelessly.” However, the elderly couple’s social standing was undermined by Elizabeth’s barrenness, which she saw as a “disgrace among the people.” Her surprise pregnancy, foretold by the angel Gabriel to Zechariah, sets the stage for a second announcement, to Mary, mother of Jesus. Not long after, Mary travels to the hill country of Judea to stay with Elizabeth and Zechariah during the early stages of her pregnancy. Mary’s arrival provokes a joyous kick from within Elizabeth’s womb and Elizabeth’s words at their greeting would inspires the poetic song referred to in sacred music as “The Magnificat.” Elizabeth’s son, John the Baptist, will serve as a forerunner for Jesus throughout their parallel lives.

Gabriel
Gabriel means “God is my hero” or “God’s mighty man.” He is one of only two angels identified by name in the Bible and appears in the Jewish, Christian and Muslim traditions. Angels are messengers of God, and it is the angel Gabriel who brings miraculous birth announcements to both Zechariah and Mary. His presence invokes both fear and awe, although his messages from God are celebratory in nature.

Herod
Herod is the name of a long line of kings that appears throughout Jewish history (like the name Louis in France). Herod the Great was installed by the Roman Empire as the local governor in Palestine and reigned from 37 to 4 B.C. He is known for his ambitious but taxing building projects and consolidation of power through a combination of ruthless subjugation of his subjects and the extermination of any threats to his throne, including the slaying of his own sons. In the Gospel of Matthew, Herod’s jealousy is aroused by the arrival of the Magi, who seek “the newborn king of the Jews.” In a rage, Herod orders the death of all the boys in Bethlehem younger than two years of age. This shameful “slaughter of the innocents” stands in stark contrast to the peace on earth associated with the birth of Jesus

Jesus
He was longed for, prayed for, sought out, and prophesied. Yet all the anticipation in the world could scarcely prepare the world for a savior born in a manger. The Gospel of Matthew traces his heritage back through Solomon and David to the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, though his family tree ranges from the high born to the low. Jesus came into a fragmented society, rocked by competing political factions, and his life was in grave danger from the very beginning. While many awaited a mighty warrior, raised up to deliver God’s people, it was the modest shepherds from the Judean foothills who caught a glimpse of the breakthrough long prayed for. From a modest stable arose a life and a teaching that has inspired an unparalleled religious following and continues to inspire millions of people across the planet.

Joseph
The Gospel accounts of Joseph are rather limited in scope, although both Matthew and Luke trace Joseph’s lineage back to Israel’s celebrated King David. Joseph’s faith in God and in Mary is tested when Mary becomes pregnant during the period of their betrothal. At that time, betrothal marked the first step in a marriage, where the couple would be declared husband and wife, to be followed some months later by the husband's taking his wife into his home and their living together and consummation of the marriage. “A righteous man,” according to the Gospel of Matthew, Joseph faces an intense crisis – to accuse Mary of adultery would condemn her under law to death by stoning. But Joseph is “unwilling to expose her to shame.” After an angel appears in his dream, Joseph chooses to take Mary as his wife and endure the social rejection and hardships sure to follow.

Magi
Perhaps more legend and speculation surrounds the Magi than other figures in the nativity story.   The Gospel of Matthew does not call them ‘three kings’ or ‘wise men,’ but just “Magi from the East.” The word Magi is associated with wisdom and secret knowledge, thus there has been speculation that they included alchemists, philosophers, educators, physicians or astronomers.
Many have linked the Magi with the royal court of the king of Persia, where they may have served as priests for an early form of the Zoroastrian religion. While the Bible attaches no names or numbers to the Magi, the three gifts they present to Jesus have resulted in traditional artistic renderings of three Magi named Melchior, Gaspar, and Balthasar. The first gift of gold is commonly connected to Christ’s kingship. The second gift of frankincense was utilized in religious ceremonies and therefore associated with Jesus’ rabbinical priesthood. The third gift of myrrh accompanied burial rites, suggesting that Jesus’ would suffer a sacrificial death.

Mary
Mary, the Mother of Jesus, is amongst the most celebrated women in human history. The Orthodox tradition refers to her as “Theotokos” – the God bearer – and Catholic and Protestant believers honor her for her courage, virtue, and faith. For such a towering figure, the biblical accounts of Mary are comparatively modest.  She is introduced as a teenager, belonging to the same priestly line as Elizabeth. Yet, her betrothal to Joseph suggests rather modest means for Mary and her family. Mary’s enduring fame rests in her faithful response to an imposing announcement in the Gospel of Luke.  As the angel Gabriel declares, “You will conceive and give birth to a son and you will call his name Jesus.” Mary acquiesces, “Let it be done to me according to your word.” This inconceivable experience is followed by the trials of having to explain her miraculous pregnancy to her family and her betrothed husband Joseph, where she bravely faces the very real threat of death by stoning for adultery. Mary’s pregnancy is then further complicated by an unplanned trek during her final trimester. A Roman census decreed by Caesar Augustus forces Joseph and Mary to trek the roughly 100 miles of mostly desert from Nazareth to Bethlehem. The ‘Silent Night’ of the birth of the baby Jesus commemorated in song and story arrives amidst considerable hardship and both personal and social upheaval.

Shepherds
The agrarian life of a shepherd may be celebrated in painting and literature, but the realities in biblical times would have been quite challenging. The nomadic lifestyle of sheepherders and the difficulties they faced would have made strict religious ritual observance nearly impossible and engendered significant disdain in the ancient world. Consequently, the Gospel of Luke’s inclusion of shepherds at the nativity scene inverts social expectations. The newborn king Jesus does not appear before nobles in a royal court, instead, an angel announces Jesus’ birth to lowly shepherds.

Zechariah
Zechariah is introduced in the Gospel of Luke as the husband of Elizabeth and a priest of Judea. On an occasion when his priestly order is on duty in the Temple in Jerusalem, Zechariah is called upon “by lot” for the rare honor of offering prayers and burning incense. Alone inside the Temple, Zechariah is visited by the angel Gabriel, who extends surprising news to the elderly priest: “Your wife will bear you a son and you are to give him the name John.” In fear and doubt, after a long lifetime of marriage without children, Zechariah questions the angel and emerges from the Holy of Holies in the Temple mute. Like Joseph, Zechariah comes to embrace God’s gift, and he agrees that his child’s name and mission are indeed God-given. With the naming of his son John, Zechariah ends his time as a mute with a song of praise to the Lord, God of Israel (in Luke 1:67-79).