But was Luke accurately reporting a census that would have requried Joseph to travel back to Bethlehem? There is no historical record of Quirinius serving as governor of Syria at the time described by Luke, nor of any census being conducted at that time.
In his book, "The Birth of the Messiah." the late Scripture scholar Fr. Raymond Brown noted, "There is no serious reason to believe that there was a Roman census of Palestine under Quirinius during the reign of Herod the Great. (Indeed, as regards the non-biblical 'evidence,' it is doubtful anyone would have even thought about an earlier census if he were not trying to defend Lucan accuracy.)"
What's important is Luke's intent in writing his Gospel. Scholars say that he wasn't trying to write an historical account, but wanted to show that the coming of Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament's Messianic prophecies and signs.
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Publius Sulpicius Quirinius (ca. 45 BC - 21 AD) was a Roman senator, who served in various governmental posts before being named governor of Syria. When he was sent to Syria, one of his first tasks was to create a tax structure for his region, which included Judea.
- Little Blue Book, Diocese of Saginaw