We all tend to take the story of Christ's birth for granted, and on top of that, our cultural depictions of the nativity have caused us to have an askew perception of what it all actually would have looked like. Due to this, many of us have lost (or perhaps never fully gained) an appreciation for the night of Jesus' birth and the hardship of those involved. Hardship, You wonder? But what about a "Silent Night"?
Imagine it. You're required by your governing authorities to travel roughly 89 miles - without the use of modern vehicles. According to Google Maps, this would take around 30 hours under normal circumstances, but your wife is so pregnant she could pop at any time and likely has to travel slower. Once you get into town, all the boarding houses (which at the time would generally be large shared rooms without actual beds) are stuffed to the gills - you have nowhere else to turn, so you are forced to take up the innkeeper's offer to stay with the animals.
If you've ever been in a barn, you know they are full of dirt, flies, manure, noise, and a general stench. That's a modern barn, with running water available to hose it out every now and then. The stables of that day would have been smaller, lacking any running water, and most in that day were small caves or cut-outs in stone. Top it all off by helping your young wife give birth to her first child in there- on the ground, with no anesthetic or sanitary precautions. Oh, and that cute wooden manger artists depict? Try a stone trough, full of old animal food, drool, possibly flies, and who-knows-what-all-else, to lay your newborn infant in.
A lot to take in, is it not? Miraculous? Absolutely. Wonderful? Entirely. Silent and peaceful? Probably not. Nothing in scripture seems to warrant such an assumption, and really, why should it? Despite being the Son of God, Jesus Christ faced hardship at every turn throughout His life and death as a human on earth. Why would His birth be any different?
All this, however, is not to detract from the glory of it all. It IS a glorious occasion, and it shows the incredible humility of our Lord, to forego a dramatic kingly entrance (of which He absolutely deserves and could command!) and instead be born in this fashion. Remember these things as you celebrate throughout the Christmas season this year. Glorify Him, and don't get too caught up in the pageantry.
"In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. And all went to be registered, each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed [that is, his fiancée], who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn." - Luke 2:1-7
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