much as i am interested in the life of Jesus, i believe that knowledge is only secondary to the true meaning of his coming to earth.  Let's face it he had a pretty dredful time here, people were really horrible to him and tried to kill him when he was only a few days old ('feast of the holy innocents' 28-12) ... right up to his death... and how did he react? he said 'forgive them, they know not what they do'....  i think that is his greatest message, that no matter how difficult life gets, how much we suffer (even if self-inflicted as with addiction) ... once we truly fall to our knees and ask God to help us, he will, we are forgiven = isn't that a miracle?  so we have faith in him not because life is easy, but because he showed us how to continue loving despite  how misguided they can be... love your enemy - that is the key for me. God bless you all in this new year.....  c