A Christmas True or False Quiz

ByDr. John Ingram Walker
  1. Both King David and Jesus were born in Bethlehem.
  2. The wise men were three kings from the orient.
  3. The little drummer boy was the last visitor to the manger.
  4. No brilliantly bright star appeared above the manger.
  5. The prophet, Micah, declared Jesus would be born in Bethlehem.
  6. Immanuel means “God with us.”
  7. Mary rode a donkey from Nazareth to Bethlehem.
  8. Joseph and Mary went to Bethlehem because of a decree by Caesar Augustus.
  9. According to Luke, there were cows and sheep in the stable where Jesus was born.
  10. The wise men were late for the birth of Jesus.
  11. Three of the gospels describe the events surrounding Jesus’ birth.
  12. Elizabeth, a relative of Mary, gave birth to a child who later baptized Jesus.
  13. Mary and Joseph lived in Nazareth before marriage and during Jesus’ childhood.
  14. The appearance of the angel of the Lord filled the shepherds with joy.
  15. Simeon became mute after the angel, Gabriel, spoke to him.
  16. The Magi outwitted Herod.
  17. A yarmulke is a gentle breed of camel often used in Christmas pageants.
  18. Ockham’s razor is a favorite stocking stuffer for Dad.
  19. Hanukkah overlaps the Christmas season.
  20. A shofar is a man who drives a big car that take people to Christmas parties.
  21. Moslems fast during the Christmas season.
  22. Reincarnation occurs when actors return Christmas pageant crowns to the storage room.
  23. Santa Claus calls a loosely attached bicycle tire a prayer wheel.
  24. Reserving a room at a ski lodge during the Christmas season is called predestination.
  25. Yom Kippur, a salted and smoked herring, compliments the traditional Christmas dinner.
  26. Yin and yang, like Cheech and Chong, have nothing to do with Christmas.
  27. According to legend, the Gordian knot is used by Elves to tie Christmas ribbons.
  28. Handel, a German-born composer of the baroque era, wrote the oratorio, Messiah.
  29. Epiphany, the feast on January 6, commemorates the showing of Jesus to the nations.
  30. Black Friday occurs when the Christmas turkey is scorched on Dad’s new basting grill.
  31. December 25 was observed in pagan Rome as the festival, Natalis Invicti Solis (“Birth of
    the Unconquered Sun”).
     

Here are the answers:

  1. T 1 Samuel 17:21; Micah 5:2-5: Luke 2:10-12
  2. F The Bible fails to give the number of wise men. No evidence indicates they were kings.
  3. F The Bible makes no mention a little drummer boy. The lyrics of the song tell the
    apocryphal story of a young boy who, unable to afford a gift for the infant Jesus, plays
    his drum for the newborn. The music and lyrics, written In 1958, have become a holiday
    classic.
  4. T The star appeared above the house where Joseph’s family was living (Matthew 2:9-11).
  5. T Micah 5: 2-5.
  6. T Matthew 1:23.
  7. F A donkey does not appear anywhere in the Biblical account. Mary probably walked.
  8. T Luke 2:1-5.
  9. F There is no mention of cows and sheep in the Biblical account of Jesus’ birth.
  10. T The wise men arrived a few years after Jesus was born. (Matthew 2:1). Jesus may
    have been about two-years old when the Magi arrived. (Matthew 2:7, 11, 16).
  11. F Only Matthew and Luke mention the birth of Jesus.
  12. T Elizabeth, a relative of Mary, gave birth to John the Baptist. Luke 1: 59—63.
  13. T Luke 1:26 & 2:39
  14. F The shepherds were terrified. Luke 2:9
  15. F Zechariah became mute when he doubted Gabriel’s prediction that Elizabeth would
    become pregnant. Luke 1:20-22.
  16. T They refused to tell Herod they had found Jesus as he requested. Matthew 2:13.
  17. F A yarmulke is a skullcap worn by Jewish men as a sign of reverence when praying to God.
  18. F The principle that explanations should be kept as simple as possible is known as
    Ockham’s razor after William of Ockham, a fourteenth century English philosopher.
  19. T Hanukkah, a festival in Judaism that occurs each December, commemorates the Jewish
    victory over the Syrians in the second century BC. Observers of Hanukkah light a
    candleholder called a menorah each night for a week in memory of a legend that, when
    the Temple was rededicated, its lamps burned, without enough oil, miraculously for a
    week.
  20. F In Judaism, a shofar is a ceremonial trumpent made from a ram’s horn, used on Rosh
    Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year occurring in the
    early fall) begins the ten days of penitence that end on Yom Kippur, the Day of
    Atonement.
  21. F Moslems are obliged to fast in the daytime during the holy month of Ramadan that
    comes in the spring.
  22. F Reincarnation is a belief in Hinduism that the human spirit returns to earth in different
    forms repeatedly as it strives for perfection.
  23. F In Buddhism, worshippers turn a prayer wheel, a cylinder with prayers written on it.
  24. F In theology, predestination is the doctrine that all events have been willed by God.
  25. F In Judaism, Yom Kippur, a day of fasting to atone for sins, comes in autumn.
  26. T In Chinese theory, yin and yang are two forces in the universe. Yin is the passive,
    negative force; and yang, the active, positive force. According to Chinese tradition, wise
    people will detect these forces in their lives and will regulate their activity accordingly.
    Cheech and Chong were two hippie comedians famous for their marijuana smoking
    antics in the 1960s. According to Christmas tradition, you would not want to find your
    daughter under the mistletoe with them.
  27. F A Greek king tied the Gordian knot. According to legend, whoever loosed it would rule
    all Asia. Alexander the Great undid the Gordian knot by cutting it with his sword.
  28. T Handle spent most of his career in England although he was German-born. At the
    conclusion of the first performance of the Messiah, the audience, transported, stood
    together with King George II, establishing a Christmas tradition. Cynics believe that the
    King stood because he wanted to stretch his legs, relieve his gout or go to the bathroom.
    Mystics know he stood because the music reflects that, as Handle explained, “God is the
    master of us all.”
  29. T Originally, Epiphany was the feast of the birth of Jesus. Later, James Joyce coined the
    phrase “epiphany” for the sudden revelation of the essential nature of a situation.
  30. F The name, “Black Friday,” originated from the heavy shopping day after Thanksgiving
    when many retailers become profitable for the first time all year. Businesses once
    recorded losses in red ink and gains in black, hence the name.
  31. T The Roman Church established December 25 as Christmas Day in 336 AD.