Was this the Star of Bethlehem?
With the rare conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn--that is being dubbed the "Christmas Star"--set to occur tomorrow night December 21, 2020 on the Winter Solstice, I decided to check up on what I've missed when it comes to the latest theories on the Star of Bethlehem.
Unlike the crucifixion of Jesus for which the possible dates are more firm (Friday, April 3, 33 AD--coinciding with a lunar eclipse the same night--being one of two most likely dates; the other in 31 AD); the date of Jesus' birth has been far less certain.
With regard to the Star of Bethlehem and what it could have been there have been more than a dozen different theories from meteors to comets to supernovae to triple conjunctions of Jupiter, Saturn and Venus, and more. However, all of these theories encounter one or more problems.
Difficulties also arise with the account itself in the gospel of Matthew. Why, for example, do the Magi say they've seen his star in the east, and then travel west? Why is Herod and his entourage in Jerusalem surprised by the Magi's report? Could they not see the star for themselves? How did the star then lead the Magi to Bethlehem (it "went before" them), and then come to stop ("stood over") the place where Jesus was? No celestial object behaves this way.
This has led some people to say the star is a legendary addition to the birth narratives of Jesus, or an outright miracle not associated with any natural phenomenon at all.
With all the different theories I've heard over the years (and you probably have too), I quit pursuing the topic long ago, chalking it up to one of those things we'll never know the answer to.
Little did I know (until today) that there has been a steadily growing consensus over the past decade on what the Star of Bethlehem was--a consensus that also convincingly answers the nagging questions with Matthew's account. Astronomer Michael Molnar is the one to credit for this based on the novel natal horoscope theory he proposed in 1999. It is also yet another example of the importance of knowing the original, intended meaning of a text in its historical context in order to properly interpret and understand.
Here's the breakdown:
(1) The Magi were astrologers (most likely from Persia), so instead of starting our quest by looking to the sky, we should look to history to learn more about ancient astrologers.
(2) It turns out that all the things we consider "Wow!" events like triple conjunctions and supernovae, ancient astrologers had little to no interest in, and things like comets (and eclipses)--well those were just bad omens.
(3) The birth of kings were very important in antiquity and to ancient astrologers in particular, who used "natal horoscopes" to mark and predict such events. The natal horoscope of 17 April 6 BC accords with Matthew's account.
(4) According to the gospel of Matthew, the Star of Bethlehem indicated the time, place, character and significance of the birth of Jesus. This is the same information that a natal horoscope provides.
(5) The Magi's statement in Matthew that they have seen "his star in the east" was a technical phrase in ancient astrology that is equivalent to our "heliacal rising." A "heliacal rising" or simply "rising star" is a star that rises above the eastern horizon at dawn just before the sun rises.
(6) On 17 April 6 BC, there was a heliacal rising of Jupiter in the constellation Aries. The constellation Aires was associated with Judea at this time, Jupiter was the regal star associated with royalty, and thus, the heliacal rising of Jupiter on this day would be taken by ancient astrologers as a portent of the birth and rise of a king in Judea.
(7) In fact, archaeologists have discovered ancient coins minted around 10 AD that depict this heliacal rising of the Star of Bethlehem (i.e., Jupiter) in the constellation Aries. This is also an event that wouldn't standout--like a comet or eclipse--except to astrologers trained in the observation of such phenomena.
Aires the Ram looking back at star
(8) Jupiter would appear to gradually shift eastward until August when it would seem to stop and then "went before" westward across the constellation Aries until 19 December 6 BC, when Jupiter would appear to stop and be stationary ("stood over")--and then change direction and move eastward again across the constellation Aries. In fact, "stood over" is also an ancient astrological term that refers to a "star" (in this case, Jupiter) that stops and then reverses direction from westward to eastward.
(9) On top of this, the east "star rising" of Jupiter in the constellation Aries on 17 April 6 BC was accompanied by additional signs that together comprised the most "Regal/Divine" set of signs possible in ancient astrology (see below); the occurrence of which is so rare that it only occurs once every 12,000 years or more, meaning this was effectively a one time occurrence in the history of human civilization.
(10) Molnar also notes that "there is confirmation from a Roman astrologer that the conditions of April 17, 6 BC were believed to herald the birth of a divine, immortal, and omnipotent person born under the sign of the Jews, which we now know was Aries the Ram. Furthermore, the coins of Antioch and ancient astrological documents show that there was indeed a Star of Bethlehem as reported in the biblical account of Matthew."
Here's a couple sites with more info, including a non-technical website Molnar made for the public:
https://www.michaelmolnar.com/
https://www.redorbit.com/news/space/1113304946/astronomical-explanations-for-the-biblical-star-of-bethlehem-122414/
Here's one of several formal, professional peer-reviewed articles on the subject:
"Astronomical and Historical Evaluation of Molnar's Solution for the Star of Bethlehem"
https://arxiv.org/abs/1612.07642
From the Abstract: "In 1999, Michael Molnar put forth a completely new solution, where the Star originated as a report of a natal horoscope for 17 April 6 BC. This natal horoscope shows very impressive regal portents and points to Judea. It is very improbable that such a very rare planet configuration (averaging only once per millennium or longer) would coincide with the very restricted day of Jesus' birth (springtime in a year shortly before Herod's death in 4 BC), unless there is some causal connection."
