Pope claims Jesus was born years earlier than considered

In his book 'Jesus of Nazareth: The Infancy
Narratives', published on Wednesday, Pope Benedict XVI claims that a 'mistake' was made by the sixth-century
monk Dionysius.


"The calculation of the beginning of our calendar – based on the birth
of Jesus – was made by Dionysius Exiguus, who made a mistake in his
calculations by several years.The actual date of Jesus's birth was
several years before," the Telegraph cites the book.

The assertion that the Christian calendar is based on a false premise
is not new – many historians believe that Christ was born sometime
between 7BC and 2BC.