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The
Star of Bethlehem's Forerunner
by John P.
Pratt
While
the exact nature of the Star of Bethlehem still eludes astronomers,
the sign in the heavens of the conception of the Savior has now
apparently been discovered.
Throughout
the centuries, astronomers have puzzled over just what the Star
of Bethlehem might have been. The story of wise men following a
star which finally "stood over where the young child was" has evoked
all manner of theories to explain it, including a nova or supernova,
planetary conjunctions, a comet, flying saucer, angelic messengers
or simply a special miracle. One of the best proposals for the Star
of Bethlehem now appears much more likely to have been a sign of
the conception of Jesus Christ, and to have been mentioned in the
Book of Mormon.
The traditional
way for astronomers to hunt for the Star of Bethlehem has been first
to determine the date of the Savior's birth and then to search what
is known about the heavens at that time in order to find a plausible
"star." The Bible gives several clues about the time of the Savior's
birth, but most of them have escaped detection in secular sources.
For example, the slaughter of the infants by King Herod, a taxation
which would require Mary and Joseph to visit Bethlehem, and the
Star of Bethlehem itself have not been unequivocally identified.
Almost entirely bereft of facts, historians have been forced to
base the method for determining the Savior's birth on only one explicitly
stated date by only one historian: the death date of King Herod
the Great.
Both Matthew
and Luke make it clear that Herod the Great was alive at the time
of Jesus's birth and also for sometime afterward, when he had the
infant boys killed. The Jewish historian Josephus gives a precise
year for the beginning of Herod's actual reign, being the year now
called 37 B.C. He later states that he reigned for 34 years from
that date, stating that it was also 37 years from the time he was
named king in 40 B.C. Both of those statements would put his death
in 3 B.C. To the delight of astronomers and historians, Josephus
also mentions that Herod died shortly after a lunar eclipse, and
sure enough, one occurred in March of 4 B.C. Thus, Herod's death
is placed in 4 B.C. The Savior's birth is then deduced to be in
about 5-6 B.C. because Herod had infants killed from two years and
younger from two years old and under, "according to the time which
he had diligently enquired of the wise men" (Mat. 2:16).
When astronomers
have searched the 6 B.C. skies, aided by computers which can calculate
planetary positions for any date, they have found a conjunction
of Jupiter and Saturn which looked like a promising possibility.
Actually, the astronomer Johannes Kepler suggested that possibility,
coupled with a "nova" or exploding star, centuries before computers
were available. That suggestion has been the traditional story since
Kepler, although it has also been noted that there was a comet in
5 B.C. which might better fulfill the description that "the star,
which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood
over where the young child was" (Mat. 2:9). There has not really
been any celestial event proposed which has been compelling, so
astronomers (including this author) usually admit that they simply
do not know what the star was.
The Book of
Mormon adds the data to the Biblical account that in the Western
Hemisphere a new star appeared at that time, such as they had never
beheld (3 Nep 1:21, Hel. 14:5). That phrase is generally taken to
mean a bright, new star, which sounds like a nova or supernova.
The Biblical account alone is usually interpreted that it was not
a bright star because otherwise Herod's astrologers would have seen
it. That argument seems invalid because it is more likely they did
see it, but failed to grasp its significance, because "when Herod
the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem
with him" (Mat. 2:3). Moreover, several other extra-Biblical sources
specifically state that the star was very bright. If the star seen
by the Nephites was the same as that seen in Jerusalem,then most
likely the Star of Bethlehem really was a star rather than merely
a conjunction of planets. When astronomers have checked the records,
such as those of China, for an observation of a new star at that
time, they have been disappointed.
A novel way
of finding the star was proposed over thirty years ago which had
remarkable results. It was acknowledged that the date of Christ's
birth is so uncertain that it might be better to search that whole
decade for the best possible planetary conjunction to be the Star
of Bethlehem. One conjunction stood out as truly remarkable, which
left all its competitors far behind. Accordingly the author proposed
that the conjunction of Venus and Jupiter in June, 2 B.C. might
have been the Star of Bethlehem, notwithstanding Herod's usually
accepted death date.[1] Since then this conjunction has gained many
supporters and Christmas planetarium shows often include it as a
leading possibility to have been the Star of Bethlehem.
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Jupiter-Venus
conjunction in June, 2 B.C.
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Let's look at
just what is so spectacular about this proposed conjunction. First,
it occurred in Leo the Lion, which is the constellation associated
with the tribe of Judah. That association is based on the blessing
given to Judah that he was compared to a "lion's whelp," while others
of the twelve tribes are compared to others of the twelve zodiac
constellations such as Reuben to water and Dan to a serpent (Gen.
49: 9,4, 17). The connection of Judah to a lion is confirmed in
the Book of Revelation which refers to the Lamb of God as "the lion
of the tribe Judah" (Rev. 5:5-7). The Lion was known as the "king
of beasts" and Judah was the royal line of the twelve tribes.
Secondly, the
conjunction occurred near Regulus, the brightest star in Leo, and
the most important of the four bright "royal stars" of zodiac. Regulus
means "The Prince" and is one of the many bright stars which was
apparently symbolized Christ anciently. This star seems to emphasize
his role as the Prince of Peace and King of Kings.
Third, the
conjunction was between the two brightest planets, Jupiter and Venus.
Jupiter or Zeus represented the Father of Gods (perhaps a pagan
version of "Heavenly Father") and Venus or Isis represented the
virgin mother of the infant god Horus who would come to reign, which
sounds a lot like the virgin Mary.
Fourth, the
conjunction was so incredibly close that the two planets actually
appeared to touch each other. Moreover, both planets were are a
very bright part of their cycles. Such a conjunction is extremely
rare. Computer calculations indicate that there has never been a
closer, brighter conjunction of Jupiter and Venus in the 2,000 years
before and after the birth of Christ.[2]
Finally, from
Jerusalem, the two planets appeared to descend to the earth after
sunset as they touched:
"As
the sky darkened this brilliant 'double star' sank lower, the planets
drawing nearer and nearer. At last, just above the horizon, they
fused into one, gleaming like a great beacon over Judea to the west."[1]
Once discovered by computer calculations, this conjunction was so
remarkable that it led the researcher to conclude that it was probably
the Star of Bethlehem, implying that Josephus's date for the death
of Herod must somehow be wrong. Subsequent research has pointed out
several problems with the 4 B.C. death date for Herod. It now appears
that Josephus was confused about Herod's death date because Herod's
sons antedated the beginning of their reigns to be in 4 B.C. Most
likely the source Josephus used said that Herod had a 37 year reign,
which would put his death in A.D. 1, which now appears to be correct.
Trying to force Herod's death to be earlier, Josephus apparently decided
that the 37 year reign must have been counted from when Herod was
named king in 40 B.C., rather than in 37 B.C. when he actually began
to reign.
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Dec.
1 B.C. eclipse preceding Herod's death
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Modern revelation
has cleared up the confusion concerning date of the Savior's birth,
one of the most important dates in history. Modern prophets, such
as Harold B. Lee, Spencer W. Kimball, and Gordon B. Hinckley have
affirmed that the L.D.S. traditional birthday of the Savior, April
6, 1 B.C., as implied by D.&C. 20:1, truly was the day of his birth.
That date fits well with the proposal that King Herod actually died
in the following year in A.D. 1 (there was no year 0 B.C. or A.D.).
There was also a lunar eclipse at the end of 1 B.C. which fits the
circumstances of Herod's death much better than that of 4 B.C. because
it would have been widely observed and given enough time for recorded
historical events to have occurred.[2]
The implications
of an April 6, 1 B.C. birth for Christ for this spectacular sign
in the heavens make it even more impressive and its meaning clear.
If Jesus was born in April, 1 B.C., then the conjunction of Jupiter
and Venus occurred at what would have been about the time of his
conception in June of 2 B.C. Associating that conjunction
with the time of the conception of Christ also dovetails with two
ancient traditions mentioned by the fourth century Christian father
Epiphanius. First, he held that the conception of Christ occurred
on June 20, which is very close to the June 17 conjunction (Julian
Calendar). Secondly, he also noted a tradition that Mary's pregnancy
lasted ten months,[3] which is a perfect fit because the conjunction
occurred ten lunar months before April 6, 1 B.C.
Thus, in the
light of modern revelation of the precise day of Jesus's birth,
it appears that the Jupiter-Venus conjunction of 2 B.C. was not
the Star of Bethlehem, but was really the sign of the conception
of Jesus Christ. Viewed in that context, the conjunction makes
even more sense, with the Father planet and the Virgin Mother planet
fusing into one as they descend to the earth. What more could be
asked of a perfectly designed planetary sign to represent the conception
of Jesus Christ? The Lord told Moses that the planets were designed
for "signs" (Gen. 1:14) and this had to be one of the most impressive.
Thus, this
conjunction, when interpreted in the framework of the symbolism
of the ancients, becomes a witness to the time of the Savior's conception
and indirectly of the Savior's birth date ten months later. The
Book of Mormon adds its testimony also. Samuel the Lamanite prophesied
that not only would a new star appear at the Savior's birth, but
that "there shall be many signs and wonders in heaven" (Hel. 14:6).
It then testifies that in the year or so before the Savior's birth,
there were great signs and wonders observed: "it came to pass in
the ninetieth year of the reign of the judges, there were great
signs given unto the people, and wonders; and the words of the prophets
began to be fulfilled" (Hel. 16:13). Exactly what would have been
interpreted as a great sign in the heavens? It seems that this very
rare conjunction would certainly qualify.
Thus, the heavens
bear yet another wonderful record of the timing of one of the most
important events in the history of the earth, the birth of the Savior
Jesus Christ. Truly, "the heavens declare the glory of God; and
the firmament sheweth his handywork" (Psalms 19:1).
Notes
1. Sinnott, Roger,
"Thoughts on the Star of Bethlehem", Sky and Telescope 36
(Dec. 1968), pp. 384-6. The first illustration is adapted from this
article.
2. Pratt, John
P., "Yet Another
Eclipse for Herod", The Planetarian, vol.19, no. 4, Dec.
1990, pp. 8-14. This source has extensive footnotes concerning the
date of Herod's death.
3. Finegan,
Jack, Handbook of Biblical Chronology, Princeton: Princeton
U. Press, 1964, pp. 253-4; Wisdom of Solomon 7:2.
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