First, we have no idea who wrote these stories and where they got their information. No other bible authors tell a story of Jesus's birth, not even Paul, who was the most prolific writer before the gospel accounts came along. There is no historical corroboration, except for the existence of Herod and Quirinius with his census, but they were ten years apart. We can see that Matthew and Luke have two very different stories with different casts of characters. In Matthew, Mary has a very minor role, merely birthing Jesus. In Luke, she takes a significant part in the story with dialogue. There she becomes "blessed."
Naturally, a virgin conception of a male child appears to be an impossibility to us today. In that time, the microscopic mechanics of reproduction were not known. It was believed that the male "planted the seed" that would become a child. The woman's womb was the fertile, or barren, ground in which the seed grew. God was responsible for making the woman fertile or barren. If she was barren, she was in disgrace. Ultimately, the child belonged to the father, not the mother. Supposedly, the Holy Spirit was Jesus's father.
That a child should be concieved by a male God with a human mother was not a surprising thing in the first century. We can recall our school literature classes where we learned about ancient mythology and abundance of male gods who impregnated beautiful young women and had "special" children. Zeus alone was notorious. Here are some links to peruse:
Son of God
Demigod
List of demigods
Zeus's offspring
To read a fuller critique of Jesus and his life as recorded in the bible, I recommend The Christ by John E. Remsberg, found here.
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