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b"According to the Targums, we know that the prophecy that a ''young\\nwoman'' or ''virgin'' would bear a son was translated by the\\nAlexandrian scholars as meaning ''virgin,'' and that there was an\\nimplication that this was an unusual sign, as high as Heaven or as low\\nas Sheol. A young woman having a son would not be such a significant\\nsign.
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\\nThe fact that the sign appears as a star to pagans tells us that God\\nwants to give his message to those who are seeking Him out. The fact\\nthat the Christ comes from Bethlehem is a fulfillment of the prophecy\\nof Micah that Bethlehem is 'not the least, for from you shall come a\\nruler who will govern my people.' There is similarly a notion in John\\nthat the Christ must come from Bethlehem.
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\\nMary was going into labor and so the Holy Family sought out any shelter\\nthey could. Finding a stable in which she could give birth, shortly\\nthereafter they sought out family in Bethlehem and stayed in that\\nhouse. This is where the Magi find Christ. This event surely must have\\ncome after the Presentation in the Temple, since it would have been\\ndifficult to journey to Egypt and back in secrecy within the short span\\nof 40 days.
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\\nLike Pharaoh of old, Herod sought to kill the entire male population,\\nand the similarities to Pharaoh are very strong.\\xa0 There is a prophecy\\nabout Rachel, who died looking to Bethlehem, and Jeremiah delivered a\\nprophecy about a cry going up from Ramah, Rachel weeping for her\\nchildren, which is fulfilled by Herod's slaughter of children in that\\nsame city. The prophecy that ''He shall be called a Nazarene'' seems to\\nbe a fulfillment of Isaiah 11:1, as there is a similarity between the\\nroot of the words ''branch'' and ''Nazareth.''
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\\nThe closing theme is Gerard Satamian's Chansons Sans Paroles Op. 2 Pastorale, from the album Dry Fig Trees. www.magnatune.com"