Hidden Christmas

The Surprising Truth Behind the Birth of Christ

By: Timothy Keller

Narrated by: Sean Pratt

From pastor and New York Times bestselling author Timothy Keller comes the perfect gift for the Christmas holiday—a profoundly moving and intellectually provocative examination of the nativity story

Even people who are not practicing Christians think they are familiar with the story of the nativity. Every Christmas displays of Baby Jesus resting in a manger decorate lawns and churchyards, and songs about shepherds and angels fill the air. Yet despite the abundance of these Christian references in popular culture, how many of us have examined the hard edges of this biblical story?

In his new book Timothy Keller takes readers on an illuminating journey into the surprising background of the nativity. By understanding the message of hope and salvation within the Bible’s account of Jesus’ birth, readers will experience the redeeming power of God’s grace in a deeper and more meaningful way.

Critic reviews

“[A] great gift book . . . Keller achieves his pastoral goal of teaching Christmas’ most important message—‘God alone has the life, truth, and joy that we lack and cannot generate ourselves’—and in doing so, provides solace for those who seek it.”
—Publishers Weekly

Praise for Timothy Keller and his other books:

“Superb . . . we should be grateful to Keller for his wisdom, scholarship, and humility.”
—The Gospel Coalition

“Tim Keller’s ministry in New York City is leading a generation of seekers and skeptics toward belief in God. I thank God for him.”
—Billy Graham

“Unlike most suburban megachurches, much of Redeemer is remarkably traditional. What is not traditional is Dr. Keller’s skill in speaking the language of his urbane audience. . . . Observing Dr. Keller’s professorial pose on stage, it is easy to understand his appeal.”
—The New York Times

“Fifty years from now, if evangelical Christians are widely known for their love of cities, their commitment to mercy and justice, and their love of their neighbors, Tim Keller will be remembered as a pioneer of the new urban Christians.”
—Christianity Today

hmmm...

I really liked the content of the book, but I struggled with the reader. His inflection, the words he chose to accent made it difficult to "hear." I listen to lots of books and this has been the most difficult for me to get through. it was almost like an off tempo song. I'm going to have to buy and read the book, and I'm worried because I bought a few others with this reader. I'm sure others have not had the issues I had and felt it was well done, but it bothered me so much I felt I had to write this and I never leave comments.

return to the meaning of Christmas

So deep, so real, so True. The wonder of God's gift to humanity revealed, explained, celebrated!

The Thoroughness of Christmas

I listened to this book while driving up to college with my dad, who is not a practicing Christian. I was initially skeptical about listening to the audio with him on this 12+ hour drive, but I was thrilled with how the book presented important themes of Christianity and offered relevant examples that my father could follow and relate to. I especially loved the inclusion of Joseph’s story, which truly resonated with both me and my father. This is a 10/10 book recommendation. If possible, I highly recommend reading (or listening to) this book before Christmas Eve. Thank you, Mr. Keller, for such an amazing book!

Making Christmas real

Hidden Christmas is a great book for sinking your teeth into the wonderful richness of all that God is in the stories surrounding Christ's birth. Keller makes the characters real and opens the reader's mind to feel the depths of God's love through the beautiful and meaningful arrival of Emmanuel.

Think you've heard everything about Christmas?

An excellent book and an excellent narrator. Before you become jaded about what you think you know about Christmas read this book! The insights and understandings will blow you away. Once I started, I did not want to stop until I was done.