Product Description
Fascinating new study on the Star of Bethlehem - includes analysis from computer models based on the date of the star's appearance.
Customer Reviews:
Star-Gazing From the East.......2007-01-16
Using a different methodology from his contemporaries author George Leonard, Jr., adds his voice to the long list of Bethlehem Star studiers with his book "In Search of the Morning Star" (2006). Founding his text with the numerous traditional beliefs about the birth of Christ this Christian author proceeds through various ancient middle and far eastern astronomical sources.
Leonard's fascinating study arrives at several shaky conclusions. Some might find many of his points untenable. Two brief examples will suffice. First, from the patristic age (200s AD) forward Christianity has known with certainty that December 25th is the memorial of Christ's birth and not the actual birthday. Leonard's lengthy chapter one explanation for Dec. 25th authenticity is unnecessary. Second, in chapter six, he believes the magi visited Jerusalem-Bethlehem during March 27th to April 14th, 4 BC, only days before the death of Herod the Great. Although this is possible, it is highly improbable. (History says that Herod spent his final days in Jericho, not Jerusalem. And there is no record of the magi being in Jericho.)
Portions of Leonard's valiant work here are notable. Chapter 2's sketch of the Herodians is informative if brief. His discussion on the division of Abijah and the temples' construction will be new learning for many. His Chinese and Korean stellar histories bring a curious new look to the ancient Bethlehem star story.
Leonard's is a good study. You will want to read it with a copy of Matthew 2 and Josephus close at hand. His writing style is comfortable (sporting short chapters, maps, and black and white photos) with 10 chapters and 8 appendixes (and 14 pages of endnotes).
This book is recommended to all Bethlehem Star studiers, ancient magi students, and ancient solar system historians.
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- Agatha Christy Christmas stories
- The Way to Heaven
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A Star over Bethlehem and Other Stories
Agatha C. Mallowan
Manufacturer: Berkley Trade
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ASIN: 0425132293 |
Customer Reviews:
Agatha Christy Christmas stories.......2007-03-29
This is not a bit of Hercule Poirot about a murder or something. This is a little book of Christmas poetry and short stories, from Agatha Christie Mallowan. In the first story, Mary looks upon her babe and an angel says she is allowed to see into the childs future, and seeing that future, is told that God has said she has the right to say if the child will live or die....it is up to her, the conversation gets very interesting.
Martyers are in another story, having suffered horribly they wonder, was it enough? Did they suffer enough for the Christ? The story of the Naughty Donkey, these will all tug at your heart.
The Way to Heaven.......2006-09-18
Agatha Christie published the stories and poems of STAR OVER BETHLEHEM during her very late, in fact penultimate period, one which has been widely derided but one in which in my opinion, she was still capable of pulling off tremendous successes as well as the puzzling flops. Of all the different decades of her writing, the 60s is the one in which I would have liked most to have known her, and even though her development had taken a different direction, she was still very much at the top of her game at certain moments. She had long ago left off writing the Mary Westmacott novels, and the great days of her playwriting career had recently come to a halt with the superlative RULE OF THREE in 1962. And yet some of the mystical, as well as the shrewdly observant, the qualities we read "Mary Westmacott" to enjoy in bulk, still clings to the material of STAR OVER BETHLEHEM, and in fact in some ways it's Christie's most nodernist, fragmented, and yet far-reaching work.
The poems aren't much, and really if these poems are new then she hasn't progressed much since her very first book of poems from back in the 1920s--a remarkable case of intellectual paralysis if you ask me. But the stories seem very much of a piece, and very much contemporary--even to such internal details as the talk about the "ban the Bomb" marchers, or the Japanese sci-fi structure of "In the Cool of the Evening," in which water contaminated by a nuclear power plant accident has mutated the animals and plant life of a small English village into innumerable new monstrous yet beautiful species.
One story, "The water Bus," doesn't do it for me, it's a little too contained and foreshortened. A typically self-satisfied English bourgeoise, like Joan Scudamore in Westmacott's masterpiece ABSENT IN THE SPRING (1944). goes for a cooling ride in a London water bus and finds herself jostled by a variety of loud, shrieking lower class peasants. At first they repel her, then under Christ's influence she comes to accept them as wholly human.
The remaining stories, from the Nativity themes of "The Naughty Donkey" and the title piece, all the way through to the modern pageantry of "Promotion in the Highest," are superbly satisfying, testaments to Christie's magnificent storytelling abilities.
She was to write, as far as I know, only one story after these, the Mr. Quin adventure of "The Harlequin Tea Set." She was like Prospero, tempted to break her own rod, a master storyteller now giving it all up for the pleasures of silence. She is, I think, our very greatest writer, and this book a puzzling sidelight to her genius.
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Star of Bethlehem (Classic Quilt Series, No 4)
Laura Nownes
Manufacturer: First Glance Books
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Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0913327255 |
Customer Reviews:
Is it April 17, 6 BC?.......2006-05-08
Professional astronomer Michael Molnar's "The Star of Bethlehem: The Legacy of the Magi" (2000) is destined to become a classic in star studies. This 187-page (hardback) book is well documented with 16 informative pages of endnotes, a helpful 11-page glossary, and a 5-page chronology. Molnar also completes this work with an interesting 9-page appendix entitled "Defining the Position of the Zodiac".
This fascinating book was a quick read for me (I completed it in only a few days). I've also noticed that much of the information herein has been featured on various television documentaries about history's most famous star. I have used its material often in discussions, and for teaching, about Christ's Nativity.
From an ancient numismatic study, Molnar suggests that the arrival of the Magi to Jerusalem and then later in Bethlehem (Matthew 2) may be pinpointed with certain amount of accuracy. Syrian coins, minted just before the birth of Christ, sport a ram together with a star.
This coinage discovery led Molnar to consider the power of the star in the world of late antiquity. Documenting (from ancient star charts and other records) Jupiter as the royal planet in the ancient mind and Aries (the Ram) as a symbol of Judah in the ancient Zodiac, Molnar identifies Jupiter's passage through Aries (in the western sky) during the spring of 6 B.C. (chapter 4). This portent may have convinced the Magi (as avid stargazers east of Palestine) of an immanent regal birth in Israel (page 101).
Molnar's extensive research among the ancient documents leads him to an exciting conclusion- the Magi arrival occurred on April 17, 6 B.C. (the date Jupiter was most prominent to the naked eye in Aries)! Could this date be Jesus of Nazareth's birthday? Molnar seems convinced.
Molnar also talks about various ancient topics (i.e. the Roman Saturnalia, the origins for the official date for Christmas as December 25th, the dating of Herod the Great's death, and much more). The book, additionally, offers several black and white ancient coin photos, a number of ancient zodiac/star charts, maps and drawings of key people from his research.
Molnar's writing style is non technical and persuasive. His coin study is fascinating and the star charts are informative. This is an excellent book and a good gift candidate. It is recommended to all astronomy buffs, teachers, Bethlehem star studiers, students of late antiquity, biblical researchers, and history readers. Order your copy soon.
A Fascinating Insight Into The Ancient Mind.......2006-01-12
If you seek to understand the worldview of people far removed in time, you have to think like them. Astrology, the sacred science of the first century AD, "exceeded every religion in power and influence" according to Roman historian Michael Grant. Most of the great scientific thinkers of the period were astrologers. Horoscopes were read on street corners for a penny and in palaces for heaps of gold. Emperors like Tiberius, Claudius and Nero didn't make a political move without first consulting their astrologers - the theme of my novel "The Nero Prediction".
Since this was also the century of Christ, there can be no doubt that Christian astrologers would have searched for the birthday of Jesus of Nazareth as further proof of his divinity. They knew he was born towards the end of King Herod's reign but they needed to know the exact day of the nativity. To us this would seem to be an impossible task but not to a first century magus. What seems absurd to us would have seemed obvious to them. Jesus was born at a moment in time when the stars foretold his astounding future. There was no single Star of Bethlehem. The "Star" was a spectacular configuration of planets.
In a fascinating feat of astral detective work, Molnar sets out to find this apocalyptic configuration. The reader is first introduced to the fundamentals of classical astrology. Implementing its lore, he narrows down the birth in the manger to April 17, 6 BC. Of course it is extremely unlikely that this is the actual birthday of the historical Jesus. But Molnar tells us why the heavenly array on this portentous day could have been the origin of the Star of Bethlehem legend.
A profound, groundbreaking work.
brilliant and thorough!.......2005-03-31
Any understanding of Greek science and philosophy in antiquity makes it evident that the Greek pursuit of knowledge was an attempt in understanding the workings of god (much like a later Newton thought that he was studying god the clock-maker).
In book 7, 821 of his "Laws", Plato writes that the observation of movement of the bodies in the heavens is ordered and rational, that:
"men must study [the planets], so as to learn enough about them all to avoid blasphemy", because they are the work of god. In book 12, 967, Plato goes on to write "the systematic motion of the heavenly bodies and other bodies ...[are] under the control of reason, which is responsible for the order in the universe."
Indeed to understand the Greek notions of astronomy & astrology is to understand that astronomy was the study of the mechanics/laws which governed heavenly movement, and that this movement had a logos, purpose which could only be understood through astrology. It was part of Greek religion. Greek astrology/astronomy spread to the east with the conquests of Alexander (d. 323 BC). And the capital of general Selucus on the Tigris, Selucia, was eventually incorporated into the Parthian (Persian) kingdom. Greek astronomical/astrological notions thus were the standard in "the east".
Molnar's work is a tour de force. Not suffering the limitations of other astronomers, Molnar is perfectly aware that to understand what the phenomenon of the "star of Bethlehem" might have been, entailed that he would need to consult what the authorities believed at the time. Augmenting his knowledge as an astronomer with an understanding of numismatics and the depictions of star signs on the coins of the time, as well as consulting the astrological beliefs of those times, Molnar has delivered a thesis which is unchallengable (except maybe by American flat-earth-creationists?).
This book is technical. This is a point that Molnar makes constantly in his book. The reason that it is technical is, as Molnar explains, because the Greek cosomology (astronomy/astrology) of those times was itself technical.
Another theorist on the Star of Bethlehem fails miserably.......2003-08-08
The first principle concerning the whats and wherefores concerning the Star of Bethlehem is the New Testament account concerning the Nativity Story. Why else would anyone write a book on the Star of Bethlehem if the New Testament is not going to be used to substanciate his theory. But Professor Michael Molnar does exactly the opposite of what common sense dictates. He does not need the New Testament to dictate terms to him. He is the expert and he is going to prove the New Testament wrong.
Traditionally John the Baptist is born on June 24th: for now let us forget what BC year it was it. To disprove the tradional dates of Jesus Christ one would have to demonstrate that John the Baptist was born six months from whatever date is chosen. A theorist can not just pick and choose his data. To disprove December 25th as the date for Christ's birth June 24th will have to be disproved for the date John the Baptist was born.
The New Testament tells us that Elisabeth, John the Baptist's mother, was pregnant six months before the Enunciation to Mary: the day she conceived Christ. Half a year from June 24th is December 25th. Professor Molnar tells us that Jesus was born on April 17th. That date is not six months from June 24th. No theorist can have his cake and eat it. All the date concerning the Nativity Story has to be accounted for.
Professor Molnar goes off on a tangent concerning what coins means that were minted, admittedly, years after the fact. These coins are a sleigh of hand maneuver to get the reader thinking in one area taking his mind off of the Nativity Story.
Then we have of course Professor Molnar not knowing the year and date that Julius Caesar introduced the calendar year. He dates it at January 1st 45 BC. WRONG! Professor Molnar get out your pencil and paper and write this down: January 1st 46 BC was the date Julius Caesar introduce the calendar year to the Roman world: 38-years later a major changes were made in six out of the 12 months: that was Juanuary 1st 8 BC. 38-years is one complete lunar cycle. Professor Molnar look up Keith Gordon Irwing's work "365 Days" and get your facts straight before putting out another failed publication attempting to pinpoint the date of the Star of Bethlehem.
Very objective, very well researched........2003-05-21
Michael Molnar has produced a superbly researched book. Easy to read and informative, yet with enough technical detail to impress any expert; historical or astrological. Personally I was enthralled by his presentation of the astrological data; the horoscope for the day April 17, 6 B.C.; the actual planetary alignments and the meanings conveyed to astrologers of the time. Totally impressive. I myself do not study astrology, but I would immediately recommend this book to anyone who has,or to anyone who has ever wondered about the biblical story as I have. His research is extremely relevant to our cynical modern age, giving confident and entirely convincing answers to a story which for me always raised questions. His objectivity is impressive; one cannot determine from the writings whether or not the author is himself a religious man. Very well laid out, logically presented, a superb read. Two thumbs way up!
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- A scientific examination of both historical and modern mysteries of the heavens
- Look towards the heavens, you will be surprised!
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Astronomical Enigmas: Life on Mars, the Star of Bethlehem, and Other Milky Way Mysteries
Mark Kidger
Manufacturer: The Johns Hopkins University Press
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ASIN: 0801880262 |
Book Description
Questions about the heavens are as old as civilization, perhaps as old as language itself. Is this universe infinite? What are the lights we see in the sky? In the millennia since our distant ancestors first looked up, these basic questions have been answered in countless ways, while other, more difficult questions have arisen and been answered in turn. This insatiable curiosity is fundamental to our nature, and as we learn more about our universe, we better understand our place in it.
Astronomer Mark Kidger has spent his career helping the general public understand the nature of the universe and what astronomy can tell us about its composition, history, and future. In Astronomical Enigmas, he presents the questions he is asked most frequently and offers answers that are at once clear, succinct, and stimulating.
Kidger begins by exploring the heavens from the perspective of our forebears, moving from Stonehenge and the earliest theories about the planets and stars to one of the great historical mysteries in astronomy: the identity of the star of Bethlehem. He then answers questions that provoke some of the most passionate and heated arguments between astronomers: Is there life on Mars? Is Pluto a planet? What did we learn by going to the Moon? He uses these questions to look at how astronomers deduce information about objects they could never visit. Finally, Kidger looks to the future by examining two urgent questions -- the possibility that an asteroid might devastate life on Earth and the impact of climate change as witnessed on other planets -- before coming full circle to look at our own origins, answering the question "Are we stardust?" The answer is as astonishing as it is unexpected. Witty, engaging, and accessible, Astronomical Enigmas is a terrific way for anyone who is fascintated by the skies to learn how much we know about our solar system -- and how much there still is to discover.
Customer Reviews:
A scientific examination of both historical and modern mysteries of the heavens.......2005-10-11
Astronomer Mark Kidger presents Astronomical Enigmas: Life On Mars, The Star Of Bethlehem & Other Milky Way Mysteries, a scientific examination of both historical and modern mysteries of the heavens, from "Stonehenge: Monument or Megalithic Observatory?" and "What Was the Christmas Star?" to "Pluto: Imposter or King of the Outer Darkness?" and "Are We Stardust?" Drawing extensively from research conducted throughout the twentieth and early twenty-first century, Astronomical Enigmas strives to present all that is known about puzzling conundrums in terms accessible to lay readers. An index allows for quick and easy lookup of specific subjects in this recommended compendium for anyone who has gazed up at the night sky with burning curiosity.
Look towards the heavens, you will be surprised!.......2005-08-26
Astronomical Enigmas is a beautifully written book which will entertain and educate the reader on the wonders of the universe. Dr Kidger takes us on a journey through history and space, clearly explaining each chapter with the non astronomer in mind. He tells us why we should be more fearful of the greenhouse effect than an asteroid colliding with Earth; one of my greatest fears. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and patiently await his next.
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- Review of "Only A Star"
- Only a Star (Facklam) 0-8028-5174-6
- Only a Star (Facklam) 0-8028-5174-6
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Only a Star
Margery Facklam
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ASIN: 0802851746 |
Customer Reviews:
Review of "Only A Star".......2001-12-17
This is a beautiful written and illustrated book. It shows a new perspective on that special night. I love the simplistic view the author took on Christmas: how nature provided it's own decorations for Christ's birth. While it is not particularly for toddlers, I would highly recommend it to children and adults.
Only a Star (Facklam) 0-8028-5174-6.......2000-09-26
This book was OK but not one I would recommend to be read with preschoolers in a school or church setting. There were too many "what if's" that took away from nativity story. Perhaps these things happened; maybe they didn't. But there was no mention of why this night or this baby was so special to mankind.
Only a Star (Facklam) 0-8028-5174-6.......2000-09-26
This book was OK but not one I would recommend to be read with preschoolers in a school or church setting. There were too many "what if's" that took away from nativity story. Perhaps these things happened; maybe they didn't. But there was no mention of why this night or this baby was so special to mankind.
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- A long trip back in history
- A Star is Born!
- Absorbing, noteworthy, imaginative
- The Bard of Bethlehem
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The Bard of Bethlehem
David James Trapp
Manufacturer: PublishAmerica
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Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 1424133130
Release Date: 2006-10-16 |
Book Description
It is 5 B.C., a year of turmoil. A brilliant new star shines in the heavens, glorious, stationary and mysterious. And Caesar Augustus now decrees that the Empire be taxed. Terentius and Bridicia are Celts living in Tarsus in Cilicia. Terentius is a gifted harpist who plays songs to the new star. Bridicia is a redheaded fish peddler. They discover love, but their joy is quickly threatened by a Druid's curse and by a governor's cunning. The Celts must flee, but these dangers relentlessly pursue them. The flight of the Celts takes them to Jerusalem in Judea. Yet King Herod's kingdom offers no refuge; rather, it is mired in bloody politics. With just their wits and his music the Celts seem doomed, but salvation can come in amazing ways. The Bard of Bethlehem is a novel of history, intrigue and discovery that will keep you breathless to the last paragraph.
Customer Reviews:
A long trip back in history.......2007-03-10
Trapp's novel takes you back to 5 B.C. where the Celts, Jews, and Greeks all live under Roman rule by Julius Caesar. This is a time of political turmoil, where Maximus, the Governor of Cilicia, is asked to step down because he hasn't been performing his duties, due to what is called "the black melancholy." Maximus lost his wife and could be in the throes of depression, because after being relieved of his governing duties he attempts suicide.
The Druids, even in placid times, had to hide their practices, but one Druid stands out, Corvus, who states that the Britons trained him although he now lives in Tarsus. Corvus buys and sells various items: linen, cotton, and herbs. He is wise in the way of Celts, but is an angry, vengeful man who cursed a young Celtic woman who would not sleep with him during the feast of Samhain, the Celtic New Year. Even though Caesar executed Druids and outlawed their beliefs, Corvus and others still practice the old ways.
The young cursed beauty, Bridicia, who is a fish peddler, meets the harpist Terentius. He immediately falls in love with her. She refuses his offer of marriage since she cannot bear children. Terentius, who, though Celtic, maneuvers through the Jewish, Greek and predominately Roman parts of town without impunity, loves her and doesn't care that she is barren.
The storyline is woven tightly around political scandals, Caesar's mandatory census and taxation of all males, while Bridicia and Terentius's relationship blooms along with a star that is seen in the heavens. The star amazes everyone of all races and religions, "What could it mean as it fails to weaken or disappear but only increases in size and strength?"
The book keeps you spell-bound with the interweaving of numerous plot lines. A great historical novel with the flair of fiction and nonfiction combined. Highly recommended, but Trapp isn't true to the language of the period and uses some words that weren't in existence until the Middle Ages.
Armchair Interviews says: The Bard of Bethlehem gives new meaning to old legends and the co-habitation of many cultures in the Holy Land.
A Star is Born!.......2007-01-13
Welcome to the twenty-second year of the reign of Caesar Augustus or 5 B.C.! The Roman world is at the height of its power and corruption at a time when men of all nationalities hope for a better world. The Romans may control half the world but numerous plots and intrigues threaten their power; Greeks, Celts, and Jews proudly cling to their cultural roots while they serve as slaves and servants to their domineering overlords.
Terentius and Bridicia are the main characters, a bard and fish peddler, whose love endures through multiple perils in this riveting, intriguing novel. "Someone betrayed me," becomes the catch-all phrase for them as well as for the a Druid who has set a debilitating curse on Bridicia; for the young Jewish musician threatened because of jealousy and prejudice; and for the governor who has reached the pinnacle of success but whose every action now seems to create more and more enemies.
In the midst of it all, a wondrous star appears that is brighter than all other stars and which carries a mystical aura touching every observer and laying bare the obvious and hidden motives behind every actor and actress. "What could it mean as it fails to weaken or disappear but only increases in size and strength?"
Join Terentius and Bridicia as they elude the looming disasters threatening them in Tarsus in Cilicia and then as they travel to the land below where the star shines and they meet the characters whose destiny will be forever connected to that initial heavenly appearance!
David James Trapp's writing has evolved gracefully and powerfully since his last novel, Dog Days in Bedlam. The Bard of Bethlehem is a novel you will love and remember forever as the work of a master storyteller capable of fully and accurately portraying the known and unknown players of ancient sacred and secular history!!! Wonderful!!!!
Reviewed by Viviane Crystal on January 12, 2007
Absorbing, noteworthy, imaginative.......2006-12-24
Reviewed by Richard R. Blake for Reader Views (12/06)
This remarkable story begins in the city of Tarsus in a period of political chaos. It is the story of two young Celts. The book is rich in Celtic background, customs, and Druid folklore. Young Terentius, a harpist, and Bridicia, his bride, are threatened by a Druid's curse and are caught in a web of political corruption. Trapp exhibits great scope and depth in his understanding of the political upheaval in the year 5 B.C.
David James Trapp is a master story teller. He draws the reader back in time, two thousand years, to a time when the Celts, Jews, Romans, and Greeks, were all deeply affected by the appearance of a mysterious new star.
Terentius played music to the star. "...the melody he created was fantastic, complex, impossible to describe...Tenentius always kept is eyes on the mystery star. Such a brilliant sign! He knew beyond any doubt now that all those Druids were wrong to fear this star."
Tenentius, Bridicia, and their Egyptian slave girl fled Tarsus hoping to find safety in Judea. They were pursued by Corvus, a self proclaimed Druid leader seeking revenge.
David James Trapp has the uncanny ability to make you feel you are walking along side his characters. I felt the anguish of Terentius after his release from custody. "Every step was hard. His limbs ached from the bruises, and breathing was difficult...sharp pains pounded through his skull...with every step he scanned the streets looking for his beloved Bridicia."
This is fast paced historical fiction at its best. David has the inherent ability to keep the reader involved in an intricate plot with unexpected twists, and attention-grabbing sub plots. "The Bard of Bethlehem" is an excellent read, noteworthy, and absorbing.
The Bard of Bethlehem.......2006-12-11
It is 5 BC. Terentius is a Celt living in Tarsus in Cilicia. A bard at heart, yet lacking the poetic talent to be so named, Terentius made his living as a musician. His life was rather uncomplicated, quiet, and lonely. He made beautiful music on his harp. Sometimes people listened and even gave him a few coins for his efforts.
Destiny it would seem had other plans for Terentius. A Jew by the name of Matthias came to the musician one day asking for lute lessons. Terentius agreed to do so as he secretly hoped that the man would teach him the psalms, beautiful and powerful works.
Another important chance meeting was also in store for Terentius. A Celtic woman by the name of Bridicia. Bridicia was a fish peddler in Tarsus. Soon, she was also mate to Terentius.
Unfortunately, this joy was not meant to last. Terentius soon found himself on the wrong side of a powerful Druid Corvus. Corvus had cursed Bridicia to be barren when she refused his affections. This situation only got worse when Corvus murdered Matthias, thinking that his victim is Terentius.
The Bard of Bethlehem is a fresh look at the political and cultural environment in the days just before the birth of Christ. The interactions are quite true to life without any sort of sugar coating or modifications to appease modern political correctness. Well written.
Book Description
Two thousand years ago, according to the Bible, a star rose low in the east and stopped high above Bethlehem. Was it a miracle, a sign from God to herald the birth of Christ? Was there a star at all, or was it simply added to the Bible to fulfill the Old Testament prophecy concerning the birth of the Messiah? Or was the Star of Bethlehem an actual astronomical event? For hundreds of years, astronomers as prominent as Johannes Kepler have sought an answer to this last baffling question. In The Star of Bethlehem, Mark Kidger brings all the tools of modern science, years of historical research, and an infectious spirit of inquiry to bear on the mystery. He sifts through an astonishing variety of ideas, evidence, and information--including Babylonian sky charts, medieval paintings, data from space probes, and even calculations about the speed of a camel--to present a graceful, original, and scientifically compelling account of what it may have been that illuminated the night skies two millennia ago.
Kidger begins with the stories of early Christians, comparing Matthew's tale of the Star and the three Magi who followed it to Bethlehem with lesser-known accounts excluded from the Bible. Crucially, Kidger follows the latest biblical scholarship in placing Christ's birth between 7 and 5 B.C., which leads him to reject various phenomena that other scientists have proposed as the Star. In clear, colorful prose, he then leads us through the arguments for and against the remaining astronomical candidates. Could the Star have been Venus? What about a meteor or a rare type of meteor shower? Could it have been Halley's Comet, as featured in Giotto's famous painting of the Nativity? Or, as Kidger suspects, was the Star a combination of events--a nova recorded in ancient Chinese and Korean manuscripts preceded by a series of other events, including an unusual triple conjunction of planets?
Customer Reviews:
Interesting, but skewed and biased........2006-11-21
Any work is worth reading if you are studying a particular topic. While not every author is going to be correct, they all tend to offer ideas that, at the very least, provide food for thought or a path to explore in your endeavor.
This is one such work. It has some good ideas that might pique your interest. However, it is highly speculative, boasts minimal resource material, and is very poorly researched.
In one instance, for example, he subtly attempts to convince the reader that a hui hsing might have been a nova or supernova due to its apparent lack of motion in the Chinese record of the astronomical event (pp. 234-235). However, a hui hsing, according to its very own wording and definition, is a "broom star," meaning that it has a tufted tail like a broom. Whether it moved across the sky or not, it was a comet, else it would have been described as a hsing po (a star bushing out) instead of a hui hsing (broom star).
In another instance he makes a comparison between a 4 BC po hsing (properly a hsing po, or xing bo in accepted pinyin) recorded by the Koreans (pp. 235-239) and this same 5 BC hui hsing in the Chinese Annals, and argues for the possibility that the two were one and the same event (pp. 243-244). The Koreans, he suggests in this example, were mistaken by one year, because, he claimes, the Chinese never recorded a 4 BC object, and he reasons that, "It [...] seems unlikely, given the known record of the Chinese as observers, that the Koreans but not the Chinese would record the 4 BC object [...]," (pp. 238-239).
The Korean Samguk Sagi states, "In the 54th year of the King Sijo of Silla (4 BC), in the spring, the second month, on the day ji-you, a star appeared (xing-po) in the constellation Ho-Ku." The Chinese Chien Han Shu states, "In the reign of the Emperor Ai of Han, the third year of the Jian-ping reign period (4 BC), the third month, on the day ji-you, a star appeared (xing po) in the constellation Ho-Ku." (See Pan Ku, "The Eleventh Imperial Annals, The Annals of Emperor Hsiao-Ai," in History of the Former Han Dynasty, trans. H. H. Dubs, 1st ed. vol. 3 (Baltimore, Maryland: Waverly Press, 1955), 33.)
His debate on this point, in short, is moot. Both nations recorded the same event, on the same day, in the same constellation, in the same year, and of the same type (xing po). The only difference between them is the month, which is easily miswritten, as anyone who studies Chinese would recognize.
These are but a select few of the pretentious arguements he makes.
Overall, I would recommend the book if you are doing research. At the very least it has ideas to move you along and ensure that you maintain a broad scope of the hypotheses available. However, I strongly recommend that anyone reading this treatment carefully research Kidger's "facts" before they are taken as such.
Read Other Star Studies First.......2005-07-18
This book by Astronomer Mark Kidger suggests several possible explanations for the star over Bethlehem at Christ's birth. Using the latest technical experimentation and reasoning he says that the star was definitely NOT a comet.
Although well-spoken and thoroughly read, Kidger does not provide sourcing for his presentation. One wonders often about his sources. This keeps Kidger from receiving more stars.
Kidger's fascinating discussion (in chapter 7) on "We Three Kings" led to further readings on the Magi. He proposes that these star gazers were not kings but possibly descendants of the ancient Jewish Diaspora (page 196) who were watching for the birth of a savior-king. (If so, then one wonders why Jewish descendants would go to the hated Herod for travel directions?)
Kidger suggests three possible dates for the birth of Christ. Frustratingly, these are based on ancient Arabic and Chinese star records and the Gospel of Matthew's chronology (without reference to the Gospel of Luke). Applying what Luke says to the birth story dramatically changes Kidger's dates.
So was the Star of Bethlehem a nova, supernova, a conjunction of three planets, or Jupiter off the moon's edge? Read Kidger and find out what he thinks.
This book is recommended to the Veteran in the Star of Bethlehem studies and not the novice. (Read other Star studies first).
misses the mark.......2005-03-31
Mark Kidger is an astronomer. Unfortunately, in this thesis, he has ignored how astronomers/astrologers of the time in question perceived cosmological events (that is, his argument is infused with his modern prejudice), and therefore misses the mark.
In book 7, 821 of his "Laws", Plato writes that the observation of movement of the bodies in the heavens is ordered and rational, that:
"men must study [the planets], so as to learn enough about them all to avoid blasphemy", because they are the work of god. In book 12, 967, Plato goes on to write "the systematic motion of the heavenly bodies and other bodies ...[are] under the control of reason, which is responsible for the order in the universe."
Indeed to understand the Greek notions of astronomy & astrology is to understand that astronomy was the study of the mechanics/laws which governed heavenly movement, and that this movement had a logos, purpose: astrology. It was part of Greek religion. And it is this Greek astronomy/astrology which came to dominate the discipline in "the east" after Alexander's death in 323 BC.
The book in itself is testament enough to Kidger's bona fides as an astronomer (which are never in doubt). However, on the basis of this book, it is also obvious that he is oblivious to the astrological, thus religious, overtones of astronomy, in antiquity. Some modern astronomers (like Kidger), it would seem, though knowledgeable of the history of astronomy, and the importance of historical works by authors like Ptolemy (his Syntaxis , or almagest) tend to ignore, as in this instance, that Ptolemy's Syntaxis was meant to be understood in the context of his Tetrabiblos which was a book on the astrological interpretation of these phenomena.
In this book "The Star of Bethlehem" Kidger completely fails in his thesis because he is oblivious to the astronomy/astrology practiced at the time that the Magi observed the star of Bethlehem. He incorrectly assumes that this "star" was a triple conjunction in Pisces which was not the sign of Judea at all. All antique authorities (if he had actually to consulted them) agree that Pisces was the symbol of the land of Libya. (Aires instead was the sign of Judea). The idea that Pisces represented Judea was a later misconception that came about in the 15th century (AD).
To the interested reader, BUY this book instead:
"THE STAR OF BETHLEHEM. THE LEGACY OF THE MAGI" by Michael Molnar.
Interesting and worth reading..........2000-07-27
One of two books on the star of Bethlehem published in 1999 by an astronomer. Kidger takes the view that the phenomenon was a series of events, specifically a planetary grouping followed a few months later by a bright nova. Whether you're interested in the biblical account at all, Kidger's book is an interesting historical romp through dozens of great planetary conjunctions and massings, and an enjoyable read.
Superseded by Michael Molnar's book on the same topic........2000-05-18
The Star of Bethlehem is a perennially favorite topic for planetarium shows, articles, musings, sermons, and books. What could be left at this late date to say about it? Quite a lot, actually. Enough so that two new books, both titled "The Star of Bethlehem" (How original!) and both copyright 1999 are on my desk as I write.
The story about the Star is found only in the Gospel of Matthew. There are three possibilities: 1) The star was a myth - invented by the writer of Matthew or earlier Christians whom he followed, in order to give Jesus appropriately royal auspices for his birth. 2) The star was a miracle provided by God to guide the Magi, even perhaps visible only to them. 3) The star was a natural astronomical event or events. These three are obviously mutually exclusive and exhaustive. If either of the first two possibilities are correct, there is little more to be said; therefore both of our authors give them short shrift.
Both books cover some of the same material in about the same way. Jesus was *not* born on December 25 of 1 BC as worked out by the Scythian monastic scholar Dionysius Exiguus (Denny the Dwarf) in 525 AD. King Herod, of whom the Magi inquired about the birth, died in 4 BC. For other reasons, the birth is fairly firmly dated to between 6 and 4 BC. If the shepherds were `abiding with their flocks by night', the birth did not take place in December. For various reasons, these authors agree that Spring is more likely.
"The Star of Bethlehem - An Astronomer's View", by Mark Kidger, gives a review of all the various suggestions that have been made over the years, finally settling on a combination of events being the sign: a triple conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn in Pisces (the sign Kidger says is associated with the Jews - more on this later) between May and December of 7 BC, with Mars approaching this pair in February of 6 BC, followed by a near-occultation of Jupiter by the Moon in Pisces in February of 5 BC, and then, possibly a nova in March/April 5 BC, as suggested by some Korean and Chinese records.
I would have found this scenario plausible were it not for the second, and to my mind more interesting, book: "The Star of Bethlehem - The Legacy of the Magi" by Michael R. Molnar. There are two problems, as pointed out by Molnar, with the kinds of solutions reviewed, and those eventually suggested, by Kidger. Firstly, they tend to focus on what we as moderns would find to be visually compelling sights in the heavens. But this neglects the fact that the Magi were certainly *astrologers*, most likely Hellenistic rather than Babylonian in their astrological theories. Most of the events put forward would not have been significant to contemporary astrology. Kidger himself makes this point but does not seem to follow through with a close study of Hellenistic astrology as Molnar has made. Secondly, we have the advantage over the Magi of *knowing*, at least approximately, what the correct time frame is, then sifting through a small number a years to find the most significant events during those years. We have to imagine an ongoing community of astrologers, scanning the skies for generations perhaps, and imagine what would have been absolutely unique over many years, and compelling enough to make them undertake an arduous journey. In this light, Kidger's series of events are not so special.
Se my review of Michael Molnar's book for more details.
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The Star of Bethlehem: An Astronomer's Confirmation
David W. Hughes
Manufacturer: Walker & Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0802706444 |
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