Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez says Jesus was a 'refugee' in Christmas tweet
(FOX NEWS) - U.S. Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., wished her Twitter followers a Merry Christmas Tuesday by referring to the newborn Jesus as a "refugee."
"Joy to the World!" Ocasio-Cortez wrote. "Merry Christmas everyone - here’s to a holiday filled with happiness, family, and love for all people. (Including refugee babies in mangers + their parents.)"
Mary and Joseph are not depicted as refugees in the Nativity story. According to the Gospel of Luke, Joseph brings the pregnant Mary to Bethlehem so that he may enroll in a census ordered by the Roman emperor Augustus. The couple are forced to take shelter in the stable where Jesus is born due to a lack of room at the inn.
However, in the Gospel of Matthew, Mary and Joseph flee into Egypt with the infant Jesus after King Herod of Judea orders the murder of every boy aged two and under in Bethlehem after the Magi ask him where to find the newborn "King of the Jews." The Holy Family escape the slaughter and are told by an angel to return to Israel once Herod is dead.