Merry Christmas. If you have not yet planned your Christmas, how about visit the home of Jesus.

Yes, the house where Jesus lived, has been found in Nazareth.

Israeli archaeologists on Monday unveiled what they said were the remains of the first dwelling in Nazareth that could date back to the time of Jesus. The finding could shed new light on what the hamlet was like during the period the New Testament says Jesus lived there as a boy.

The dwelling and older discoveries of nearby tombs in burial caves suggest that Nazareth was an out-of-theway hamlet of around 50 houses on a four-acre land. It was evidently populated by Jews of modest means who kept camouflaged grottos to hide from Roman invaders, said archaeologist Yardena Alexandre, excavations chief at the Israel Antiquities Authority.

Based on the clay and chalk shards found at the site, the dwelling appeared to house a simple Jewish family , Alexandre added, as workers carefully chipped away at mud with pickaxes to reveal stone walls.

Nazareth is the town where, Christian tradition says, Jesus grew up and where an angel told Mary she would bear the child of God. This may well have been a place that Jesus and his contemporaries were familiar with, Alexandre said. A young Jesus may have played around the house with his cousins and friends. Its a logical suggestion.

The discovery so close to Christmas has pleased local Christians. They say if the people do not speak, the stones will, said Rev Jack Karam of the Basilica of the Annunciation, the site where Christian tradition says Mary received the angels word.

The team found the remains of a wall, a hideout, a courtyard and a water system that appeared to collect water from the roof and supply it to the home. Archaeologists have also found clay and chalk vessels which may have been used by Galilean Jews of the time. The scientists concluded that a Jewish family lived there because of the chalk, which was used by Jews at the time to ensure the purity of the food and water kept in the vessels.

The discovery at this time, this period, is very interesting, especially as a Christian , Karam said. For me, it is a great gift.

(as reported in the press)