We Saw A Star

Ginny pulled in our drive right at sundown yesterday.

When I opened the door for her, I saw something that made me run back inside to get my camera and to check our kitchen cupboard.

I expected to see what I saw, but I didn’t expect it to be right above our house, right at our front door.

National Geographic News, December 1, 2008, foretold the event.

It’s a planetary conjunction seen beyond the crescent moon. Jupiter and Venus line up so that although the three bodies stand 500 million of mile apart, from earth they look close together.

Back in the 1500s astronomer Johannes Kepler figured out the movements of planets are so regular that he developed laws of planetary motion which NASA still uses today to plot the course of satellites and the space shuttle. I wrote a chapter about this great astronomer in my book Strangers On The Earth. Kepler even composed music, the music of the spheres, using the movements of heavenly bodies as the basis of his composition.

Such a lining up of planets as Ginny and I saw last night occurs regularly. But too much sunlight makes them hard to see without a telescope. The next time a planetary occultation with Venus will be visible from North America is on the morning of April 22, 2009.

But this one happened right in our front yard.

“Historically, striking planetary groupings have held special meaning to ancient astronomers and astrologers,” National Geographic News said.

“In fact, some historians think that a similar conjunction between Jupiter and Venus in 2 B.C. may be the source of the "Star of Bethlehem" story related in the Bible. The stellar pair would have appeared so close together, scholars think, that they might have seemed to meld into one brilliant beacon of light. ….

“A similarly close conjunction between Venus and Jupiter occurred in June of 2 B.C., and some scholars have connected the event with the Christian nativity story…

“According to the Bible, three magi in the East were alerted to the birth of Jesus and led toward Bethlehem by a superbright star—a celestial phenomenon that could be explained by two planets tightly grouped in the sky,” National Geographic said..

Could be.

Of course the Bible says nothing about the number of wisemen, and makes no mention of the star being superbright.

Some scholars think the star may have been a nova; others, a planetary conjunction; still others think it was a supernatural phenomena.

Some Bible scholars connect the appearance of the Star Of Bethlehem with an obscure prophecy made by Balaam, a strange figure in the book of Numbers where he is identified as “the man whose eyes are open”.

Isn’t that a mysterious appellation?

Anyhow, Balaam said:

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,

And shall smite the corners of Moab,

And destroy all the children of Sheth.

Some scholars see a reference to Bethlehem’s Star or even to Christ Himself in those words.

Could be.

Matthew’s Gospel is the only one to mention Bethlehem’s Star:

Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea 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 had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.

And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: 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 great joy.

And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh. And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.

Supernova? Planetary conjunction? Supernatural light?

Who knows?

But here’s a strange thing—in the last chapter of the last book of the Bible, on the last page of the text, Jesus identifies Himself as the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last…

Then He says, “I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star”. And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely”.

The bright and morning star!

That’s something to think about.

Isn’t it?

I tried a close-focus of the moon, Jupiter and Venus but my hands shake too much to eat soup much less get a crisp clear photo of the Heavens, but it seems to me that Jupiter (faint on the far right) has a red glow about it.

And this astrological phenomena stood right above our house.

So I checked our kitchen cupboard carefully.

Just in case, I want everyone to know that we have plenty of frankincense and myrrh.

But if anyone has a spare camel-load of gold…