Three wise men, little donkey and silent night: professor names 5 classic Christmas story elements the Bible actually does not mention

Millions of believers around the world participate in nativity scenes dedicated to the birth of Jesus Christ during the Christmas holidays every year. However, there are 5 well-known story elements of the holiday that are not actually included in the Bible.

The scientist claims that there was no donkey and no wise men near the newborn son of God on the holy night. Moreover, the "silent night" is a fiction, writes DailyMail.

"Some of best-known parts of the Christmas story aren't in the Bible at all," said Chris Greenough, a Professor of Social Sciences at Edge Hill University.

Jesus was not born on a "silent night"

The Christmas story portrays Bethlehem as a "quiet town" where the son of God was born on a "silent night." However, according to Professor Greenough, Bethlehem was, on the contrary, "bustling" on the night of Jesus' birth.

According to the gospel of Luke, Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census was to be held, and everyone would have to go to their city to register.

"If it was census time, and there were no guest rooms available, it's unlikely the night of Jesus' birth was silent. The traditional silent, holy night of Christmas Eve in carols and films would more likely have been a bustling, busy night in Bethlehem," the professor emphasized.

There was no "little donkey"

In nativity scenes, Mary and Joseph are often depicted riding a donkey on the road to Bethlehem. However, the Bible does not mention this animal at all.

"Luke 2:4 says that Joseph went from Nazareth in Galilee to Bethlehem to register with Mary. The account does not tell us how they travelled – and riding a donkey while heavily pregnant would likely have been deeply uncomfortable," said Chris.

There were actually no animals at all

It is known that the nativity scene features various animals such as a sheep, an ox, and a donkey. However, the Bible does not mention animals in the Christmas story.

Meredith Warren, a lecturer in Biblical and Religious Studies at the University of Sheffield, suggests that animals may have been included in the Christmas story as a symbol of peace later.

Images of animals behaving peacefully is a frequent image in the Bible. They are meant to symbolise a time of peace, so it's no wonder our idea of the birth of the Prince of Peace includes animals," Warren said.

The inn keeper and his stable

The inn keeper is one of the characters in the nativity scene who tells Mary and Joseph that there is no place to stay in the building. However, this character does not appear in the Bible, nor does the stable.

"'Luke's gospel says only that 'there was no guest room available for them.' A stable is assumed to be Jesus' birth place because of the lack of guest rooms and because Jesus was laid in a manger, a feeding trough for animals," said Professor Greenough.

Three wise men

The Bible mentions wise men - or "magi"- who were led to Jesus by a star. However, according to Professor Greenough, the holy book does not mention a specific number of them.

"We know there were three gifts – gold, frankincense and myrrh – but the Bible doesn't give the number of magi who presented them," he added.

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