Ian Paul, "Jesus Really Wasn't Born in a Stable", Psephizo.com

It may be disappointing for those who like to cling to the traditional stable scene, but the first Christmas might not have looked quite the way most of us (in the West) have been brought up to imagine. I must get a copy of Kenneth E. Bailey's Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes, which the blogger recommends and which I've been promising myself for the last three years! (Don't suppose anyone fancies sending a belated Christmas present? Just kidding...)