Star of Bethlehem (Christmas star)
The Star of Bethlehem, also known as the Christmas Star, is a significant symbol in Christian theology, believed to be a divine sign announcing the birth of Jesus Christ. According to the Gospel of Matthew, the star guided the Three Wise Men, or magi, from the East to Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus. This celestial event is intertwined with various interpretations and historical discussions, including debates about its plausibility as a natural astronomical phenomenon or a theological narrative crafted for encouraging believers.
The timing of the star's appearance has been linked to significant historical events, with scholars estimating Jesus's birth around 6-4 BCE. Various religious groups have their own interpretations of the star; for example, Eastern Orthodox Christians view it as an aureole, while Seventh-day Adventists describe it as a group of shining angels. Modern astronomical research has sought to explain the phenomenon through events like novas and alignments of planets, reigniting interest in the story.
The Star of Bethlehem has also influenced cultural practices, such as the tradition of placing a star atop Christmas trees, symbolizing its significance in the Nativity story. Additionally, it remains a focal point of pilgrimage and tourism in Bethlehem today, reflecting its enduring impact on religious and cultural life.
On this Page
Star of Bethlehem (Christmas star)
According to Christian theology, the Christmas Star, or the Star of Bethlehem, was a miraculous sign from God revealing the birth of Jesus. It appeared in the night sky to the Three Wise Men or Kings (the magi) directing them to the birth spot of the messiah. They followed the path of the star to Jerusalem, where King Herod directed the magi to continue to the southern suburb of Bethlehem. Bethlehem is the birthplace of King David, from whose biological line the Jewish messiah will be born.
Historical event or pious fiction, the story of the Star of Bethlehem found in the Gospel of Matthew is a favorite subject of theologians and astrologers. Some naysayers consider the story of the star a fanciful fairy tale created by Matthew, who was writing the Gospel at the same time. Others suggest there was a series of natural astronomical events at the time, which Matthew took as an omen. The debate between the faithful and the rationalists has raged throughout the millennia.
Background
The faithful find proof linking the birth of Jesus and the rising of the Star of Bethlehem in verses from Jewish prophets and biblical scripture. The importance of the star is heightened because ancient Egyptians, Jews, Greeks, and Romans used astronomical events to explain earthly ones.
The magi witnessed the star in the East, or rising in the East. They reported this to King Herod as a divine sign the King was born. Astrologers claim to have traced back in time reports that Halley’s Comet appeared about the same time Matthew recorded in the Gospel the story about the Star of Bethlehem and the birth of Christ in a manger. Astronomers in China recorded seeing a new star in 5 BCE that is about the time of the birth of Christ.
Modern astronomers claim that a valid explanation for the Star of Bethlehem is the formation of a nova. A nova appears in the sky as a new star in a constellation, and just as the Star of Bethlehem faded from view, so too a nova dims and disappears over months. The story of the magi viewing the Star of Bethlehem offers insights into the temporal period of Jesus’s birth. Individuals in the story of the star include King Herod, Matthew, and the Jewish chronicler for the Romans, Josephus. Working backwards in time from when Herod died to the time the magi told him about the Star of Bethlehem, complementing this with other events, scholars set the date of the birth of Jesus either as 6-4 BCE or 3-2 BCE.
Over the centuries, the Star of Bethlehem remained a theological oral tradition. For the Eastern Orthodox, the Star appeared in the shape of an aureole in which the child lays. Seventh-day Adventists described the star as a company of shining angels. Jehovah’s Witnesses found a sinister message in the story, claiming the star signaled a time for the anti-Christ to meet with Herod and carry out a plan to kill the newborn messiah. Other events in the sky reportedly occurring coincident to the reports of the magi confirm and enhance the miracle of the Star of Bethlehem, rather than explain it away.
Star of Bethlehem Today
Rationalists claim Matthew was an evangelist who concocted the story about the magi and the Star of Bethlehem. Matthew, not being an eyewitness to the appearance of the star shining above where Jesus was born, or around to hear firsthand the magi tell the tale, is claimed to have written a homiletic story at best or a fairy tale of pious fiction.
There is speculation the story about the Star of Bethlehem was written for second generation demoralized Jews, who were living under Greek occupation and oppression recovering from the destruction of their Holy Temple. Matthew was trying to invigorate and give hope to his generation with the story about the star, the birth of Jesus the messiah, the Son of God. But his generation and subsequent generations of Jews rejected the messianic story, never coming to worship Jesus. This rejection of Jesus and the charge against Jews that they killed Christ linger to this day as the crux of anti-Semitism.
The story about the Star of Bethlehem is getting a new look by scientists and stargazers using new technology to study the sky. The 2015 appearance of a blood moon stimulated articles about the Star of Bethlehem. The blood moon shines at the time of a lunar eclipse. The rays of the sun curve around the Earth, reflect off the moon, and appear red to the human eye. There are only ten times since 1 CE that four blood moons appeared consecutively at times of Jewish festivals in any one year. Almost each time blood moons so appeared, major events affecting the Jewish people occurred: in 1493–94 the Spanish Inquisition occurred, in 1949–50 the state of Israel was reborn after 2,000 years of exile, and in 1967–68 Jerusalem was unified under the sovereignty of the state of Israel. In October 2015, a blood moon soon followed the grouping of three planets in a five-degree diameter circle called the "planetary trio." They passed within 1.1 degrees of one another. Some believe this astral grouping is the same Star of Bethlehem the magi witnessed. The phenomenon sparked interest about the Star of Bethlehem in the religious and secular press.
In the Bible (Numbers 24:17), there is talk of a star rising from Jacob (known as the Star of Prophecy). Jewish scholars claim this refers to the rise again of the Jewish nation that will crush its enemies, which is the basis for Israel’s wide political support among Christian evangelicals. Christian canon claims the star rising in the East refers to the birth of the King of the Jews, whom all will worship as the Messiah; this scares many Jews because of fear of forced conversions.
In 2014 the Netherland’s University of Groningen sponsored a two-day colloquium on the Star of Bethlehem at which twenty academics across numerous disciplines presented papers. The city of Bethlehem has found renewed interest as a religious destination for tourists and pilgrims, because of the Star of Bethlehem. Tourism is responsible for 15 percent of Palestinian GDP. There is a Star Street in Bethlehem with an active commercial center.
The popularity of bringing a Christmas tree into homes gained momentum in fifteenth-century Germany. By the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, decorations adorning the trees were elaborate, and the custom spread throughout Christian communities. In later years, people have topped the tree with a star to represent the Star of Bethlehem from the Nativity.
Bibliography
Bohlin, Ray. "The Star of Bethlehem." Bible.org. Probe Ministries. 17 May 2010. Web. 16 June 2016.
Borschel-Dan, Amanda. "As planets align, some see return of Jesus’ Star of Bethlehem." Times of Israel. The Times of Israel, 26 Oct. 2015. Web. 16 June 2016.
Cooper, James. The Star of Bethlehem. WhyChristmas.com. 2016. Web. 16 June 2016.
Gill, Victoria. "Star of Bethlehem: The astronomical explanations." BBC s:BBC" News. BBC. 23 Dec. 2012. Web. 16 June 2016.
Kooten, George H., and Peter Barthel, eds. The Star of Bethlehem and the Magi: Interdisciplinary Perspectives from Experts on the Ancient Near East. Netherlands: Koninklijke Brill NV, 2015. Print.
Larson, F.A. "The nine points of Christ’s star." The Star of Bethlehem. F.A. Larson, 2016. Web. 16 June 2016.
McEveety, Stephen. The Star of Bethlehem Documentary 2007. You Tube. shadowfilms, 1971. Web. 16 June 2016.
Paffenroth, Kim. "The Star of Bethlehem Casts Light on Its Modern Interpreters." Quarterly Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society 34 (1993): 449-60. Web. 16 June 2016.