Tuesday Favorites: The Star of Bethlehem

(from http://www.edupics.com)

What I suddenly love about Christmas are the astronomical questions the holiday raises. I've been reading through my Astronomy magazine and I've discovered that scientists have actually tried to find the Star of Bethlehem mentioned in the Gospel of Matthew. Does the following passage sound familiar?

Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him. When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And when he gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.
And they say unto him, In Bethlehem of Judea: for thus it is written by the prophet, And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel. Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also. When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding joy.
(from Matthew 2: 1-10)

Well, if that's not familiar, surely you've heard the carol Do You Hear What I Hear? It references "A star, a star, dancing in the night with a tail as big as a kite..."

Astronomers and historian have speculated as to whether or not this star existed. What could it have been? Was it just shameless propaganda? Matthew is the only gospel writer who discusses this star. Did he write about it to fulfill the prophecy mentioned in The Old Testament? In Numbers 24:17, one reads, " I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel..." Most historians seem to feel that Matthew would not have made up a star, so, astronomers have assembled a handful of contenders for the actual Star of Bethlehem.

It was once suggested that the star of Bethlehem was a comet. Some rare comets can be visible in the sky over the course of several days to several months. However, historians find the cultural context of the age substantial enough to dispute this possibility. Since ancient times, comets were perceived as omens for impending disaster. Therefor, it is doubtful that Matthew would have referred to a comet when describing the scene in which the Saviour of the World was to be born. So much for that Christmas carol... it's doubtful this star had a "tail as big as a kite."

How about a supernova? The article tells the reader of one such dying star that became visible in 1054. Stargazers were able to observe the event (which created what we now see as the Crab Nebula) for two years with the naked eye. For three weeks, during its maximum brightness, people could see this supernova during the daylight hours. Still, astronomers feel that this is also an unlikely possibility due to the fact that this celestial event is only recorded in Matthew's Gospel. They find it implausible that Eastern astrologers, particularly the Chinese, would have failed to record something as remarkable as a star bright enough to be seen during the day. The earliest recorded supernova event dates to 185 A.D. by the Chinese. A little late to refer to the birth of Christ...

...Which was when, by the way? Wouldn't that be useful in trying to dig through history for a mysterious star event? There is probably no way to know when Jesus was born, but historians have tried to narrow it down. According to Luke's Gospel, "...there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night." Such a harmless little line... but it marks a specific moment in a shepherd's work routine. December and January are rainy and cold seasons in Bethlehem and sheep are kept in corrals. No need to "watch" them. It is during the spring months, February through April, when spring lambs are born and shepherds watch their flocks during the evenings.

Are you wondering then, as a side note, why we celebrate Christmas on December 25th? I have many opinions on that matter, but, simply, Pope Julius I proclaimed the date for the commemoration of Jesus' birth in 350 A.D. It seems he based this on the once common belief that Jesus' Incarnation happened on March 25... December 25th being 9 months later. He may have had other reasons, too, since he moved it from the original January 6th date. The day he eventually choose coincides with a non-Christian festival called Sol Invictus (the sun's birthday). Perhaps trying to bring back the emphasis on the Festival of Christ...

So, back to Jesus' birthday...

Luke also mentions that Joseph and Mary were traveling to Bethlehem during tax season. Archaeologists of the early 1900s discovered tax records that may refer to this specific moment in history. This and the context surrounding Herod's lifetime suggest that Jesus was possibly born in spring or summer between 8 B.C. and 2 B.C.

This information leads us to early astrologers' records. In late May of 7 B.C., Jupiter passed Saturn, for the first time of which we can know, three times. A celestial event of this kind is referred to as a triple conjunction and it occurred in the Pisces constellation. This is intriguing information due to the superstitions of ancient people. Jupiter was seen as a royal star (since they did not realize that it was a planet simply reflecting light) and therefor named after the king of the ancient gds. Saturn also had a special significance, seen as the symbolic protector of the Mediterranean peoples. If that was not enough, unusual star movements occurring in Pisces were viewed as signals for important events occurring on earth. This event would have happened in the eastern sky, linking the location of this event to the words of Matthew's story.

There are a couple more guesses concerning the identity of "the real" star of Bethlehem that all lean toward planetary sky dances during the last several years of B.C. Evidence like this reminds me of interviews with authors and poets... learning about the little truths from their personal lives that link to the events in their written works. I find it fascinating and maybe encouraging that, whatever you believe, there's a shred of truth in many, many stories.

The picture below was taken in September of this year of Jupiter shining brighter than all the stars of a mostly clear sky. You can't miss it - it's the brightest, largest orb in the sky scene... twinkling over the Mediterranean. There's something calming and hopeful in a picture like this... you can see why it stood out to people in search of peace in tough times. May we find that peace we've been hoping for... someday.

(from http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap090907.html)