<p>2:8 <i>And there were shepherds in the same region staying in the field and keeping watch at night over their flock</i>- It has been observed that the choice to reveal the good news of Christ to the shepherds first of all was surprising; for these too were the poorest of the poor, deprived along with tax collectors of Jewish rights. They belonged to the &quot;most despised&quot; of all social groups. See Joachim Jeremias, <i>Jerusalem In The Time Of Jesus </i>(London: S.C.M., 1969) p. 304; Richard Horsley, <i>The Liberation Of Christmas: The Infancy Narratives In Social Context</i> (New York: Crossroad, 1989) pp. 102-106.</p><p>The fact they were in the fields with their flocks shows clearly enough that the Lord's birth was not in December- for then the flocks would have been kept under cover and not in the fields.</p>