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Moreover, when the wise men arrive in Bethlehem, the star is low enough in the sky to lead them to a specific house. As physicist Aaron Adair puts it: “the Star is said to stop in place and hover over a particular lodging, acting as an ancient GPS unit.” The “description of the movements of the Star,” he noted, was “outside what is physically possible for any observable astronomical object.”
Theological underpinning
In short, there appears to be nothing “normal” or “natural” about the phenomenon that Matthew describes. Perhaps the point that Matthew is trying to make is a different one.
Matthew’s story of the star draws from a body of tradition in which stars are connected to rulers. The rising of a star signifies that a ruler has come to power.
In the biblical book of Numbers, for example, which dates to 5th century B.C., the prophet Balaam predicts the arrival of a ruler who will defeat the enemies of Israel. “A star shall come out of Jacob, [meaning Israel]…it shall crush the borderlands of Moab.”
One of the most well-known examples of this tradition from antiquity is the so-called “Sidus Iulium,” or “Julian Star,” a comet that appeared a few months after the assassination of Julius Caesar in 44 B.C. Roman authors Suetonius and Pliny the Elder report that the comet was so bright that it was visible in the late afternoon, and that many Romans interpreted the spectacle as evidence that Julius Caesar was now a god.
In light of such traditions, I believe Matthew’s story of the star exists not to inform readers about a specific astronomical event, but to support claims that he is making about the character of Jesus.
Put another way, I argue that Matthew’s goal in telling this story is more theological than it is historical.
The upcoming conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn is therefore likely not a return of the Star of Bethlehem, but Matthew would likely be pleased with the awe it inspires in those who anticipate it.
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMia2h0dHBzOi8vbmF0aW9uYWxwb3N0LmNvbS9uZXdzL2p1cGl0ZXItYW5kLXNhdHVybi1jb252ZXJnZS1vbi1kZWMtMjEtd2FzLXRoaXMtdGhlLWJpYmxpY2FsLXN0YXItb2YtYmV0aGxlaGVt0gGZAWh0dHBzOi8vbmF0aW9uYWxwb3N0LmNvbS9uZXdzL2p1cGl0ZXItYW5kLXNhdHVybi1jb252ZXJnZS1vbi1kZWMtMjEtd2FzLXRoaXMtdGhlLWJpYmxpY2FsLXN0YXItb2YtYmV0aGxlaGVtL3djbS8zZDAyOWM5YS04YTFkLTQ1YWQtOWM0NS01NjMyOTdkNmM5MTYvYW1wLw?oc=5
2020-12-18 04:08:37Z
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