When the Christmas season begins, you can always count on at least one major media company to publish a story debunking the myths of Christmas. The effect, if not the intent, of such stories is to question the historical value of the New Testament. From a Christian perspective, that's not a good thing.

But the reality is that there are Christmas myths that need to be debunked. Some of those are popular myths that conflate details of birth stories in the Gospels. Other popular myths are based on holiday traditions.

There are scholarly myths that need to be debunked too, however, such as the belief that the Gospel birth stories are contradictory or historically unreliable.

In this episode of the Influence Podcast, I talk to Amy Flattery about the facts and the fictions of Jesus' birth. I'm George P. Wood, executive editor of Influence magazine and your host.

Amy Flattery is co-founder and director of the Assemblies of God Center for Holy Lands Studies and an ordained Assemblies of God minister. She has taught at Continental Theological Seminary in Brussels, Belgium, and led scores of tours to the Holy Lands.

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This episode of the Influence Podcast is brought to you by The General Council of the Assemblies of God.

General Council is the AG's premier conference. It occurs every two years the first week in August and incorporates spiritual inspiration, practical leadership training, and denominational business. The theme of the 2023 General Council is "Our Church, Our Family." The conference will take place July 31–August 4 in Columbus, Ohio.

Visit GeneralCouncil.AG.org for more information and to register.