Happy Birthday Jesus?

For those who don't know, some scholars have argued that Jesus was born Sept. 11, 3 BCE. For myself, I'm not fully convinced the theory is true. But ever since I found out about it a while back, I've found the theory VERY VERY VERY intriguing. The following is a link to Dr. Michael Heiser's article on the topic.

http://drmsh.com/september-11-happy-birthday-to-jesus/

Michael Heiser's article also links to a video where he describes the theory using visual graphics. I've embedded the video below.

https://youtu.be/KQt9pBSYY5Y

or at the following links

https://youtu.be/O44nNzRa81Q

https://youtu.be/ddZ90HcNahg

What Day Was Jesus Born ? - Dr. Michael Heiser
https://youtu.be/Dz1ZFkz1QtA



Here's a Naked Bible podcast with Michael Heiser on the topic
http://www.nakedbiblepodcast.com/naked-bible-138-what-day-was-jesus-born/

Dr. Heiser makes reference to Ernest L. Martin's book:
The Star of Bethlehem:The Star that Astonished the World

The book is freely available online here:
http://www.askelm.com/star/index.asp

See especially CHAPTER FIVE where the theory is discussed:
http://www.askelm.com/star/star006.htm

Michael Heiser lists some recent scholarly reasons why Herod may have died 1 BCE in an article here:  http://drmsh.com/september-11-happy-birthday-to-jesus/

Heiser's two main sources in defense of a 1 BCE death of Herod are:

1. Herodian Chronology by Ormond Edwards,
from the Palestine Exploration Quarterly, volume 114, 1982 - Issue 1

2. When Did Herod the Great Reign? by Andrew E. Steinmann,
from Novum Testamentum 51 (2009) 1-29

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There are also defenses for the traditional date. For example:

How December 25 Became Christmas  by Andrew McGowan



Yes, Christ Was Really Born on December 25: Here’s a Defense of the Traditional Date for Christmas by Taylor Marshall [Marshall's Catholic bias shows. Nevertheless, his arguments have some force].