Simeon ben Anaiah, a revered elder of his people who awaited the consolation of Israel, was famed for proclaiming that "every baby's birth is the birth of hope." But when a young couple from Nazareth presents their newborn son at the temple, Simeon realizes his prophecy has been more than fulfilled, for the birth of this child truly is the birth of hope for the whole world. Yet this tale begins before the birth of the child named Jesus. The...