Important Dates in the Lives of Jesus and Mary 

Blessed Anne Catherine's Chronology of Herod 

    The above chronology of Herod's reign, along with the conclusions of chapter 13, supports the second line 

of reasoning, the one based on historical evidence, in chapters 2 and 4 concerning the year of the Crucifixion 

and the year of the Birth of Christ. No reference to the writings of Blessed Anne Catherine is needed to reach 

the conclusions of chapters 12 and 13, nor to support this line of reasoning based on historical evidence. 

However, it is interesting and informative to next consider how her chronology of Herod's reign compares to 

the above chronology. 

    Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich states:  Herod reigned forty years in all until his death. He was, it is 

true, only a vassal king for seven years, but harassed the country grievously and committed many cruelties. He 

died about the time of Christ's sixth year. 

800

 At first glance, the 40 years of Herod's reign would appear to be 

in conflict with Josephus' statement that Herod reigned for 34 years.

801

 But Blessed Anne Catherine adds that 

Herod was a  vassal king  for 7 years, referring to Herod's earlier rule over Galilee, before he became king in 

Jerusalem. It makes sense that Blessed Anne Catherine would count the years of Herod's reign beginning with 

his earlier rule over Galilee. Many of Blessed Anne Catherine's visions refer to events which took place in 

Galilee. Also, the Virgin Mary and her parents lived in Nazareth (which is in Galilee) for much of their lives, 

and the Holy Family also lived there for many years, after returning from Egypt. 

    The chronology of Herod's reign given by Blessed Anne Catherine generally agrees with the chronology 

given by Josephus, except that her chronology differs from Josephus' by about six years. This is because 

Blessed Anne Catherine starts her count of the years of Herod's reign from his rule over Galilee, which began 

about six to seven years earlier than his rule as king over Jerusalem. If the seven years is not seven full years 

(but six years and some number of months), and the 40 years is plus a few months, then the two chronologies 

can be harmonized. We must then subtract 6 years from the number of any year of Herod's reign given by 

Blessed Anne Catherine to arrive at the same year as numbered by Josephus. For example, she states that 

Herod reigned for 40 years (including his rule over Galilee). Josephus gives the length of Herod's reign as 34 

years (not counting his rule over Galilee). If Herod reigned over Galilee for six years and some months, then 

these two statements about the length of Herod's reign agree. 

    Blessed Anne Catherine gives the year of Christ's birth with reference to Herod's reign.  Jesus must have 

been born about the thirty fourth year of Herod's reign. 

802

 The 34th year of Herod's reign in her way of 

counting would then be about the 28th year of Herod's reign by Josephus' count of the years. The 28th year of 

Herod's reign in Josephus was about the time that Cesarea Sebaste was completed, in the 192nd Olympiad 

year.

803

 This corresponds to 15 

B.C.

 in the above chronology of Herod's reign, which again agrees with the 

conclusion that Christ was born in 15 

B.C.

     Two years before the entry of Mary into the Temple, just seventeen years before the Birth of Christ, Herod 

ordered that work should be done in the Temple. 

804

    Since Blessed Anne Catherine places the Birth of Christ in the 34th year of Herod's reign, the work 

rebuilding the Temple occurred about the 17th year of Herod's reign in her way of counting the years, which 

would correspond to the 11th year by Josephus' way of counting the years. According to the conclusions of 

this book, the 11th year of Herod's reign was 32 

B.C.

, and was the very year the rebuilding of the Temple 

began. Here we see that the chronological information given by Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich is of value 

in determining the true dates of important events in the lives of Jesus and Mary. 

     Now, when Mary came to the Temple, eleven years before Christ's birth, nothing was being built in the 

Temple itself, but (as always) in the outer portions of it:  here the work never stopped. 

805

    The expression  the Temple itself  refers to the Sanctuary portion of the Temple, which only the priests 

could enter. Blessed Anne Catherine states that Christ was born during the 34th year of Herod's reign. Eleven 

years before the Birth of Christ would correspond to Herod's 23rd year in Blessed Anne Catherine's way of 

counting, and Herod's 17th year by Josephus' count. But, as stated in chapter 9, Mary actually came to the 

Temple 12 years before the Birth of Christ, which would be Herod's 16th year by Josephus' count. Blessed 

Anne Catherine tells us that work on the Temple Sanctuary had been completed by this time, but work on the 

outer parts of the temple continued. These statements further confirm the idea that work on the Temple was 

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