// BEGIN editorial data var i = 0; var dateline_birthofjesus = new Array(); dateline_birthofjesus.ID = "dateline_birthofjesus"; dateline_birthofjesus.ID_WB = 9969150; dateline_birthofjesus.vote = "dateline_birthofjesus_vote"; dateline_birthofjesus.navsectionID = "" dateline_birthofjesus.sPubDate = "11/12/2005 2:14:52 AM GMT"; dateline_birthofjesus.quiztype = 1; dateline_birthofjesus.appFmt = 0; dateline_birthofjesus.bDispQNums = 1; dateline_birthofjesus.appWidth = 460; dateline_birthofjesus.appDeck = new Array("It’s a Bible story we think we all know, lovingly recreated every Christmas by children of the faithful. This December, more than a billion Christians will commemorate their Lord's birth. Amid carols and Christmas plays, the old tale will once again be told: Of Angel Gabriel's visitation, Mary's virgin conception, the journey to Bethlehem, the arrival of the baby in a manger, the glorious announcement to the shepherds in the night, and the mission of the Three Kings. Of all the stories ever told, the birth of Jesus Christ is one of the most celebrated.

In a special edition of 'Dateline NBC,' Keith Morrison asked, \"What if everything you thought you knew wasn’t the whole story?\" In an attempt to answer this profound question, Morrison takes viewers on a remarkable journey -- back in time -- to unravel the mystery.

Take the quiz below to test your knowledge of the Nativity story. ","You answered of questions correctly. Scroll down to see answers for each question.

How do your answers match up with modern-day pop culture celebrations of Christmas? Was the story literal, historic, symbolic -- or just a question of faith? And how revolutionary was the message brought by this baby boy?

An extraordinary hour about a birth that changed the world... \"The Birth of Jesus\" on Dateline airs Friday, Nov. 11, 8 p.m./7 C."); dateline_birthofjesus.headHeight = 40; dateline_birthofjesus.copyMargin = 9; dateline_birthofjesus.copyBorder = 0; dateline_birthofjesus[1] = new Array(); dateline_birthofjesus[1][0] = new Array("True or false: All religious scholars agree the Nativity narrative is historical.
"); dateline_birthofjesus[1].answer = "The correct answer: False.
As with so many other elements of faith, the Nativity narratives are the subject of ongoing debate over their historical accuracy and their theological meaning.

For the “Dateline” special on the Birth of Jesus on Friday, Nov. 11, “Dateline” assembled a group of Bible scholars and authors – from those who see it as based on history and those who don’t. "; dateline_birthofjesus[1][1] = new Array("True",'',0); dateline_birthofjesus[1][2] = new Array("False",'',1); dateline_birthofjesus[2] = new Array(); dateline_birthofjesus[2][0] = new Array("Which two Gospels in the Bible tell the narrative of Jesus’ birth?"); dateline_birthofjesus[2].answer = "The correct answer: Luke and Matthew.
The story of the Birth of Jesus is based on two brief, quite different, and sometimes apparently conflicting New Testament accounts."; dateline_birthofjesus[2][1] = new Array("Matthew and Mark",'',0); dateline_birthofjesus[2][2] = new Array("Luke and Matthew",'',1); dateline_birthofjesus[2][3] = new Array("Mark and John",'',0); dateline_birthofjesus[2][4] = new Array("Luke and John ",'',0); dateline_birthofjesus[3] = new Array(); dateline_birthofjesus[3][0] = new Array("What age do many scholars think Mary was when her son was conceived?"); dateline_birthofjesus[3].answer = "The correct answer: Around 11-16 years old.
Religious scholars say that in those days, young women were usually engaged to be married at an early age.

Another controversial point of discussion? The virgin birth: miracle or an allegory? Find out on Dateline what different scholars have to say."; dateline_birthofjesus[3][1] = new Array("11-16 years old",'',1); dateline_birthofjesus[3][2] = new Array("20-23 years old",'',0); dateline_birthofjesus[3][3] = new Array("25-28 years old",'',0); dateline_birthofjesus[3][4] = new Array("35-40",'',0); dateline_birthofjesus[4] = new Array(); dateline_birthofjesus[4][0] = new Array("Where was Jesus born according to the Gospels?"); dateline_birthofjesus[4].answer = "The correct answer: Bethlehem.
According to the Biblical accounts, Jesus was born in Bethlehem. Today, the Church of Nativity stands in Bethlehem, erected over the grotto said to be the very place Mary and Joseph arrived in that night. The spot was determined by the mother of Constantine, the first Christian Roman emperor, over 300 years later."; dateline_birthofjesus[4][1] = new Array("Egypt",'',0); dateline_birthofjesus[4][2] = new Array("Nazareth",'',0); dateline_birthofjesus[4][3] = new Array("Bethlehem",'',1); dateline_birthofjesus[5] = new Array(); dateline_birthofjesus[5][0] = new Array("True of false: December 25 Year 0 is the historical date of Jesus’ birth."); dateline_birthofjesus[5].answer = "The correct answer: False.
The date of celebration was determined by Constantine, after the birthday of the sun god Sol Invictus, the god Constantine worshipped before he became a Christian. Some scholars believe Jesus was actually born in April, and almost no scholar believes Jesus was born in the 'year zero.'"; dateline_birthofjesus[5][1] = new Array("True",'',0); dateline_birthofjesus[5][2] = new Array("False",'',1); dateline_birthofjesus[6] = new Array(); dateline_birthofjesus[6][0] = new Array("True or false: Gospel scholars identified the kinds of animals in Jesus’ manger.
"); dateline_birthofjesus[6].answer = "The correct answer: False.
Nowhere in the Gospels do they claim that animals were present -– no camel, sheep, cow; or that the manger was a barn or a stable. The world translated as “manger,” say some historians, could easily have been a spare room in the inn-keepers house, if there were such an inn. "; dateline_birthofjesus[6][1] = new Array("True",'',0); dateline_birthofjesus[6][2] = new Array("False",'',1); dateline_birthofjesus[7] = new Array(); dateline_birthofjesus[7][0] = new Array("True or false: \"The Three Kings\" weren’t really kings.
"); dateline_birthofjesus[7].answer = "The correct answer: True.
Matthew's Greek word is usually translated “wise men,” or “maji.” Scholars think the men may have been astronomers, physicists, or messengers from one king to another. Matthew didn't imply they were kings.
In the Gospel, Matthew also never says how many. The identity of the visitors might not have been the point: Instead, many scholars contend, their presence in the story was a deeply charged political statement by the Gospel writer Matthew -– as was the star that led them to the manger."; dateline_birthofjesus[7][1] = new Array("True",'',1); dateline_birthofjesus[7][2] = new Array("False",'',0); dateline_birthofjesus[8] = new Array(); dateline_birthofjesus[8][0] = new Array("What were the presents said to be offered to the baby Jesus? "); dateline_birthofjesus[8].answer = "The correct answer: Gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
According to one scholar interviewed on ‘Dateline,’ the gifts offered by the maji have deeper symbolism. Says Amy Jill-Levine, professor of New Testament Studies at Vanderbilt University: “My favorite one suggests that gold is there because anybody who's just had a child needs additional money. The myrrh is there for medicinal purposes. And the frankincense is there for the diapers.”"; dateline_birthofjesus[8][1] = new Array("Bread and wine ",'',0); dateline_birthofjesus[8][2] = new Array("Gold, frankincense, and myrrh",'',1); dateline_birthofjesus[8][3] = new Array("A wooden toy and a blanket",'',0); dateline_birthofjesus[8][4] = new Array("Mistletoe, stockings, and a reindeer",'',0); dateline_birthofjesus.profiles = new Array();var i=0; dateline_birthofjesus.profiles[i++]= new Array(0,20,"
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