Daniels, I sometime get some flak for this answer, but this is verifyable both Historically and Scripturally and just takes a little research to VERIFY these facts. Don't just take my word for it - Do the research and studies YOURSELF.
The verifyable date of Christ's Birth can be found in appendix 179 in The Companion Bible. I'll provide a link below for those who do not already own a Companion Bible.
Just to recap, we can verify that the husband of Mary's cousin Elizabeth, was named Zechariah and was a Temple priest. All the priests worked a certain 'shift' at the Temple and Zechariah's assignment in the Temple fell in the mid-summer. These shifts were called 'courses' and Zechariah's 'course' was The Course of Abia, which ended in what we today would call the end of June as transliterated and verified from the Hebrew Calendar. Zechariah went home and 'knew' his wife, Elizabeth. She became pregnant in that last week of June. What happened then, is fully recapped in the Book of
Luke 1:1-80 (KJV). Look especially at
Luke 1:25-27 (KJV) for the time frame of Christ's conception... six months AFTER Elizabeth became pregnant with little John the Baptist. That would put the conception of Christ, within Mary, on or around December 25th as transliterated from the Hebrew Calendar. Nine months later, Christ was born during the time of the Census being taken in Bethlehem - the birth took place in the overnight hours of what we would today call September 28-29.
The December 25th date as the BIRTH of Christ was a man-made artificial date as dictated by the ancient Roman Church in the 4th century AD. This was a compromise contrived by the administrators of the church to draw in pagans to the church and which coincided with a pagan festival at about the same time of the year. That date has been falsely taught as the Birthdate of Christ ever since.
Our Chapel and our members worldwide celebrate Christmas as the CONCEPTION date of Christ - NOT his birth. Remember, the Hebrew word
Emmanuel means, '
God With Us'. And at the Conception of Christ on December 25th, He most certainly was with us.
May God bless you in your studies...
Companion Bible Appendix 179 can be found here. PLEASE, go over all three main sections of Appendix 179:
http://www.levendwater.org/companion...companion.html