Category Archives: Star of Bethlehem

#12 Summary of Star of Bethlehem Article

It is known that it was decided by the Church to celebrate Christmas, the birth of Christ, in December to replace the Pagan festival of the winter soltice popular in Europe. It was thought mistakenly that the soltice occurred on the 25th December rather than on the 21st December so this date was chosen. ActualContinue reading “#12 Summary of Star of Bethlehem Article”

#10 Conclusion to Star of Bethlehem article

The three wise men followed an actual astronomical phenomenon that appeared in the east.  It led them from Persia to Judea.  The phenomenon travelling across the sky was a comet probably travelling southwards. As stated in the birth narrative of the gospel of Matthew, the star, in the line of sight of the wise menContinue reading “#10 Conclusion to Star of Bethlehem article”

#8 Supporting Evidence that Jesus was Born at Passover

There are two lines of evidence to support the view that Jesus was born just before Passover in the month of April: “There was no room at the inn.”  Jerusalem and Bethlehem nearby would have been very busy between the 13th and 27th April 5 BC as all adult Jewish males were required to celebrate Passover atContinue reading “#8 Supporting Evidence that Jesus was Born at Passover”

#7 Was Jesus Born at Passover?

The first appearance of the star seems to mark the exact time of Jesus’ birth – at least King Herod interpreted it this way: Matt 2:7 “Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared.”  This implies that the Messiah – Jesus was born on theContinue reading “#7 Was Jesus Born at Passover?”

#6 Comets as Signs

From ancient times comets seen as bright stars in the sky were taken as signs of momentous happenings on Earth –  portents of changes of power in government.  The Star of Bethlehem was not a customary event, but an unexpected appearance indicating that it had special significance. The Chinese called these stars ‘broom stars’ dueContinue reading “#6 Comets as Signs”

#5 Three Indications that the Star of Bethlehem was a Comet

The Star of Bethlehem behaved like a comet in three particular ways. The first indication of it being a comet is its unexpected appearance Comets are actually giant snowballs made of water ice covered with tar.  They orbit the Sun in highly elliptical orbits that swing out into the outer Solar System and back aroundContinue reading “#5 Three Indications that the Star of Bethlehem was a Comet”

#4 A Comet of 5 BC?

The article, ‘The Star of Bethlehem’ in Science and Christian Belief written by Colin Humphreys was a great find.  It supplies most of the facts upon which this article is based.  He recommends that rather than thinking that the Bible is untrue, as many people think today, or surmising that the Biblical authors were using literary devicesContinue reading “#4 A Comet of 5 BC?”

#3 When Was Jesus Born?

At this point we need to discuss when Jesus was born to see if any comet appeared coinciding with this date.  It is actually certain that Jesus was not born in 1 AD, but several years before this date. Matt 2:13-20 tells how, after the Magi left, Joseph had a dream in which an angelContinue reading “#3 When Was Jesus Born?”