Science Offers New Theories on Star of Bethlehem

Authors argue that the Magi observed astrological portents involving the
planet Jupiter

In the Gospel of St. Matthew, it's the apparition that

heralds the birth of Jesus. Today, it features in
Christmas trappings from tree toppers to carols to cards.
No children's Nativity play is complete without its tinfoil
likeness above the storied stable.

But what was the Star of Bethlehem?

Suggestions have included a comet, a supernova,
meteors, bright-shining planets--even a UFO. The truth may be more subtle.

Using reconstruction software and the historical record, astronomers increasingly

have come to believe that the three wise men "following yonder star" may have been
interpreting astrological omens so esoteric that only the learned would have noticed
anything unusual in the night skies.

While scientists disagree on the particulars, "one thing is absolutely certain," said
Mark Kidger, an astronomer with the Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias in Spain's
Canary Islands. "Whatever the Star of Bethlehem was, it was not an extraordinarily
spectacular object."

King Herod hadn't seen the sign that drew the Magi to Judea. Even the meticulous
astronomical observations of the Chinese show nothing truly spectacular in the years
around Jesus' probable birth date.

In fact, this "star" may not have been visible at all. Michael R. Molnar proposes that
the heavenly sign was an eclipse of the planet Jupiter that took place in the
constellation Aries, among other regal portents, on April 17 of the year 6 B.C.

That morning, just before dawn, Jupiter, a planet associated with kings, emerged
from behind the sun to rise in the east, appearing as a morning star. Later that day,
the moon moved in front of--or occulted--Jupiter.

While such events can be dramatic, this one was invisible, lost in the glare of the
noonday sun. Even so, the Magi would have predicted it, argues Molnar, a retired
Rutgers University astronomer who lives in Warren, N.J.

"It was something very subtle, only something an astrologer would have seen as
important," he said.

The occultation happened in Aries, which ancient astrologers thought ruled the fate
of several Near East kingdoms--including Judea, which was struggling under the yoke
of Roman rule. Hence, Molnar concludes, the wise men would have read the birth of
a new Jewish ruler, perhaps even the long-prophesied Messiah, in this configuration
of heavenly bodies.

Kidger, author of "The Star of Bethlehem: An Astronomer's View," disagrees.

Occultations aren't rare and so wouldn't have excited seasoned skywatchers, he said.
He noted that the moon occulted various planets almost 200 times between 20 B.C.
and 1 B.C.

Kidger argues that what the Magi observed was a series of astrological portents,
each of which has been individually suggested as the star. Together, they led up to a
not particularly brilliant, but long-lived nova--a distant, exploding star--recorded by
the Chinese in 5 B.C.

Three times in a few months during 7 B.C., Jupiter and Saturn came close together,
or were in conjunction, in Pisces. In 6 B.C. Kidger notes both a massing of planets in
Leo and Molnar's occultation in Aries.

To the Magi, "any single event wouldn't have been special enough," Kidger said.
Instead, "They saw something that made them sit up and pay attention and cast
their horoscopes and wait."

As sign followed sign, culminating in the appearance of a "new star," they struck out
for Jerusalem, site of Herod's court.

According to Chinese records, the 5 B.C. nova appeared low in the eastern sky in the
constellation Aquila and lasted 70 days. If the Magi arrived in Jerusalem two months
after they set out, Kidger said, the new position of the Earth would have made the
nova appear to hover in the south over Bethlehem--where Herod directed them.

Molnar begs to differ.

Tying a rational explanation of the star to pagan superstitions can make scientists
uneasy, so they often start by searching for a unique astronomical event and then
attempt to tie it into the astrology of the time--as Kidger has done, Molnar said. But,
he argues, Hellenistic astrology was the high science of its day and surely the lens
through which the Magi would have viewed the world.

Astrologers' associations of Pisces or Leo with Judea date to the 15th century or even
later--long after the time of Jesus, Molnar said. Likewise, he sees no reason for
ancient astrologers to associate a nova, even one lasting 70 days, with Jesus' birth,
since new stars were ignored in Hellenistic astrology.

But in the case of the 6 B.C. occultation of Jupiter, he argues, there were many
impressive portents in play.

Not only was Jupiter occulted by the moon, which greatly increased its power and
influence, but the planet had just emerged from behind the sun and was stationed in
the east--two more factors pointing to a regal birth. In addition, the sun, moon,
Jupiter and Saturn all were massed in Aries, characteristics of the horoscope of a
"divine and immortal person," as one prominent Roman astrologer wrote.

Was the Nativity star a comet or a nova - or sign from astrology?

A brilliant star shining against a black night is an enduring symbol of Christmas.

It's also one straight from Scripture. The gospel writer Matthew is specific: A star
guided "wise men from the east" to the King of the Jews born in Judea.

Astronomers and Bible scholars have pondered that "star of wonder," as a hymn
writer described it.

A planetarium show presented at the University of North Alabama earlier this month,
" 'Tis the Season," covers a spectrum of explanations, such as the star actually being
a comet.

A comet could have been a glorious sign and could have remained visible long
enough for the wise men to follow, said the show's writers. But they conclude that
none was recorded in the time span many scholars today give for Jesus' birth, 3 B.C.
to 1 B.C.

Also, comets were usually regarded as evil omens, the researchers said.

Nova, supernova

The program also dispels novas and supernovas as possibilities. Nova means "new
star" and it can flare up thousands of times brighter than normal. Supernovae are old
stars that blow up in explosions, which temporarily increase their brilliance millions of
times.

Either could have lasted for months and would have been dramatic to sky watchers,
according to the presentation.

However, no one recorded any in that time period, and Herod, the king of Judea,
and his court would have known of such an appearance, not just the wise men, the
show's researchers concluded.

Star struck

So, what was the Star of Bethlehem?

"Actually, Scripture implies it was only the wise men who found something significant
in the sky. Could the star's important feature have been not brightness, but the
meaning the wise men gave it?" asked the researchers.

The presentation says that the wise men of Matthew were Magi, learned priests of
the Persian religion Zoroastrianism. The followers of that religion expected a
Messiah, as did the Jews. The Magi became linked to Babylonian culture and its love
of astrology. They watched the skies constantly and believed that the movements of
the planets in relation to the stars ruled men's fates.

According to the show from Loch Ness Productions, on Aug. 12, 3 B.C., a close
conjunction of Venus and Jupiter occurred in the eastern sky. The planets were in
the constellation of Leo the Lion, near the bright star Regulus. Both Jupiter and
Regulus are associated with kingship, and the lion is a symbol for the Jews, from
whom prophets said a Messiah was to come.

"Some scholars think the Magi could have interpreted this event as announcing a
royal birth in Judea," said the writers.

While Venus left, Jupiter stayed in Leo, passing Regulus three times in the winter
months, as if to emphasize the importance of the sign. Then, in the spring, Venus
moved closer and closer to Jupiter, repeating its earlier alignment.

"Finally, on the evening of June 17, the two planets were again in conjunction in
Leo ... The two planets were so close together they seemed to merge, blending their
light to form a blazing beacon in the western sky."

The wise men could have viewed the sight as a "shining confirmation of their quest,"
according to the show's writers, mainly Jim Manning, director of a planetarium in
Montana.

Rick Larson, an attorney and law professor at Texas A&M University, also makes the
case for astrology. He says on a Web site that the "conjunction was so close and so
bright that it is today displayed in hundreds of planetaria around the world by
scientists who know nothing of Messiah."

Larson notes that Matthew records Herod having to ask when the star appeared.
That is a powerful clue, Larson says, indicating that the celestial alignments were
striking only when explained by the Magi astrologers, he writes at
starofbethlehem.com. Larson does multimedia that The STAR Project shows.

More interpretations

Others who find explanations for the star in astrology differ in their conclusions.
Astronomer Michael Molnar said he thinks the sign in the skies was an eclipse of
Jupiter. That eclipse took place in the constellation Aires, which some thought ruled
the Near East, including Judea.

The eclipse was not visible because of the sun's glare, but the Magi would have
predicted it, Molnar said. The eclipse in 6 B.C. was one of several astrological
conditions pointing to a king's birth, according to Molnar, author of "Star of
Bethlehem: Legacy of the Magi."
Astronomy and physics professor William Keel of The University of Alabama is
familiar with Molnar's ideas and other astrological explanations.

"I suspect that astrology may play a role in why whatever (the star) was, it didn't
jump out at people," Keel said.

He said it would be a great irony of history if what got the attention of the Wise Men
bordered on occultic practices.

Does it matter?

Many who believe in the Bethlehem Star as fact do not even think it was part of the
workings of the Universe. Followers of the Raelean sect identify it as an alien
spacecraft. Seventh-Day Adventism founder Ellen White called the star "a distant
company of shining angels."

Does it make any difference if the star was natural or supernatural, or even if
Matthew invented it for his account of Jesus' birth?

Responding to an e-mail query, Larson said it matters in a sense.

"Instead of the star being a myth that tends to prove the Bible is unreliable, it is a
fact that tends to prove the Bible is accurate."

Larson contends that the star is part of a celestial "poem" that speaks of the
Messiah's life and death.

Keel said the Gospel writer would have had no reason to fabricate something that
could have been verified. But Keel said that he's not sure it matters what the star
really was. The important thing is that something drew the wise men onto the scene,
"representing worldly knowledge and power, contrasted to the smelly shepherds," he
said.

All of the nativity story points to the importance of Advent, even a cosmic
significance, said the UA professor.

Symbolic

The planetarium show concludes that viewing the Star of Bethlehem as a conjunction
of planets is an intriguing theory, but involves too much speculation to offer a
definitive answer. The program said it is perhaps more important to see it for what it
symbolizes, "a light to banish the darkness, a hope for peace on Earth."

"'Tis the Season" is the most recent UNA show to feature the Star of Bethlehem.
Tony Blose, planetarium director and chairman of the Physics and Earth Sciences
Department, said the original director started offering biblical presentations at
Christmas years ago.
Astronomy or astrology?

Star of Bethlehem may not have been spectacular sight

Magi, perhaps, were interpreting esoteric omens

In the Gospel of St. Matthew, it's the apparition that heralds the birth of Jesus.
Today, it features in Christmas trappings from tree toppers to carols to cards. No
children's Nativity play is complete without its tinfoil likeness above the storied
stable.

But what was the Star of Bethlehem? Suggestions have included a comet, a
supernova, meteors, bright-shining planets — even a UFO. The truth may be more
subtle.

Using reconstruction software and the historical record, astronomers increasingly

have come to believe that the three wise men "following yonder star" may have been
interpreting astrological omens so esoteric that only the learned would have noticed
anything unusual in the night skies.

While scientists disagree on the particulars, "one thing is absolutely certain," said
Mark Kidger, an astronomer with the Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias in the
Canary Islands. "Whatever the Star of Bethlehem was, it was not an extraordinarily
spectacular object."

King Herod hadn't seen the sign that drew the Magi to Judea. Even the meticulous
astronomical observations of the Chinese show nothing truly spectacular in the years
around Jesus' probable birth date.

In fact, this "star" may not have been visible at all.

Michael Molnar, a retired Rutgers University astronomer, proposes that the heavenly
sign was an eclipse of the planet Jupiter that took place in the constellation Aries,
among other regal portents, on April 17 of the year 6 B.C.

That morning, just before dawn, Jupiter, a planet associated with kings, emerged
from behind the sun to rise in the east, appearing as a morning star. Later that day,
the moon moved in front of — or occulted — Jupiter.

While such events can be dramatic, this one was invisible, lost in the glare of the
noonday sun. Even so, the Magi would have predicted it, argues Molnar.

"It was something very subtle, only something an astrologer would have seen as
important," he said.
The occultation happened in Aries, which ancient astrologers thought ruled the fate
of several Near East kingdoms — including Judea, which was struggling under the
yoke of Roman rule. Hence, Molnar concludes, the wise men would have read the
birth of a new Jewish ruler, perhaps even the long-prophesied Messiah, in this
configuration of heavenly bodies.

Kidger, author of The Star Of Bethlehem: An Astronomer's View, disagrees.

Occultations aren't rare and so wouldn't have excited seasoned skywatchers, he said.
He noted that the moon occulted various planets almost 200 times between 20 B.C.
and 1 B.C.

Kidger argues that what the Magi observed was a series of astrological portents,
each of which has been individually suggested as the star. Together, they led up to a
not particularly brilliant, but long-lived nova — a distant, exploding star — recorded
by the Chinese in 5 B.C.

Three times in a few months during 7 B.C., Jupiter and Saturn came close together,
or were in conjunction, in Pisces. In 6 B.C. Kidger notes both a massing of planets in
Leo and Molnar's occultation in Aries.

To the Magi, "any single event wouldn't have been special enough," Kidger said.
Instead, "they saw something that made them sit up and pay attention and cast their
horoscopes and wait."

As sign followed sign, culminating in the appearance of a "new star," they struck out
for Jerusalem, site of Herod's court.

According to Chinese records, the 5 B.C. nova appeared low in the eastern sky in the
constellation Aquila and lasted 70 days. If the Magi arrived in Jerusalem two months
after they set out, Kidger said, the new position of the Earth would have made the
nova appear to hover in the south over Bethlehem — where Herod directed them.

Molnar begs to differ.

Tying a rational explanation of the star to pagan superstitions can make scientists
uneasy, so they often start by searching for a unique astronomical event and then
attempt to tie it into the astrology of the time — as Kidger has done, Molnar said.
But, he argues, Hellenistic astrology was the high science of its day and surely the
lens through which the Magi would have viewed the world.

Astrologers' associations of Pisces or Leo with Judea date to the 15th century or even
later — long after the time of Jesus, Molnar said. Likewise, he sees no reason for
ancient astrologers to associate a nova, even one lasting 70 days, with Jesus' birth,
since new stars were ignored in Hellenistic astrology.

But in the case of the 6 B.C. occultation of Jupiter, he argues, there were many
impressive portents in play.
Not only was Jupiter occulted by the moon, which greatly increased its power and
influence, but the planet had just emerged from behind the sun and was stationed in
the east — two more factors pointing to a regal birth. In addition, the sun, moon,
Jupiter and Saturn all were massed in Aries, characteristics of the horoscope of a
"divine and immortal person," as one prominent Roman astrologer wrote.

Molnar's theory uses the astrology of the day to explain several aspects of the star
story that have defied logic for years.

When they arrived in Jerusalem seeking a future Jewish king, the wise men said they
had "seen his star in the east." Yet they were travelling westward to reach Judea,
probably from Persia or Babylon. And when they left Jerusalem, the star "went
before them" on their southward journey, then "stood over" Bethlehem.

"If you're going to take the Gospels literally, then you'd better go for the miracle
explanation, because no star acts that way," said David Dearborn, an astronomer
with California's Livermore National Laboratory and co-editor of Archaeoastronomy:
The Journal Of Astronomy In Culture.

Molnar, however, said the wise men were using common Greek astrological jargon to
describe Jupiter's movements.

In modern terms, what they noted "in the east" was Jupiter's re-emergence from
behind the sun and its appearance as a morning star on April 17, the day it was
occulted by the moon.

Then, on Aug. 23, the planet appeared to change its direction of movement across
the sky because Earth overtook Jupiter as each travelled along its orbital path. It's
the same optical illusion a car or train rider experiences when an overtaken vehicle
appears to stop, then move backward. Astronomers call it retrograde motion today,
but the Magi saw the planets "move before" the stars — travel in the same direction
across the sky — as they made their way south to Bethlehem.

Finally, on Dec. 19, Jupiter seemed to stand still in the skies, or to "stand above," for
a number of days before it changed directions once again. Called stationing, this is
what planets appear to do just as the Earth overtakes them.

All this, of course, presumes the story of the star wasn't made up or culled from a
later event, Dearborn said.

"People of the time did think that important circumstances on Earth would have a
sign in the stars," he said. "If you were an early Christian and wanted to promote the
origins of your sect, you'd want there to be some celestial sign associated with the
chief icon in your sect, in this case Jesus. You would indeed look for something
whether or not it occurred.