“Medicine’s role is to entertain us while Nature takes its course.”
–Voltaire (November 21, 1694 – May 30, 1778) was a French Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher famous for his wit, his attacks on the established Catholic Church, and his … Wikipedia
If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is ‘thank you’, it will be enough.
~ Meister Eckhart (1260 – 1328) was a German theologian, philosopher and mystic, born near Gotha, in the Landgraviate of Thuringia in the Holy Roman Empire.Wikipedia
December 2, 2016 – Daily Mail
For hundreds of years, scientists and theologians alike have been perplexed by the origins of the Star of Bethlehem – the mysterious biblical symbol that guided the Magi to their newborn leader, Jesus.
It’s come to be known as the ‘Christmas Star,’ but researchers now say it may not have been a star at all.
A new study of historical, astronomical, and biblical records suggests the event in 6 BC was actually a rare planetary alignment, during which the sun, Jupiter, the moon, and Saturn all lay in the constellation Aries.
For hundreds of years, scientists and theologians alike have been perplexed by the Star of Bethlehem – the mysterious symbol that guided the Magi to their newborn leader. It’s come to be known as the ‘Christmas Star,’ but researchers now say it may not have been a star at all
THE NEW THEORY
New research suggests the event in 6 BC was actually a rare planetary alignment, during which the sun, Jupiter, the moon, and Saturn all lay in the constellation Aries.
For the Magi, the Zoroastrian priests of ancient Babylon and Mesopotamia – also known as the Three Wise Men or Three Kings – this alignment in Aries would have symbolized the birth of a newborn ruler in Judea.
Jupiter and the moon together represented the birth of a ruler with a special destiny, while Saturn was the symbol of giving life.
And, so was the presence of Aries in the vernal equinox, which marks the start of spring.
Grant Mathews, professor of theoretical astrophysics and cosmology in the Department of Physics at the University of Notre Dame has studied the Star of Bethlehem for more than a decade.
‘Astronomers, historians, and theologians have pondered the question of the ‘Christmas Star’ for many years,’ said Mathews.
‘Where and when did it appear? What did it look like? If the billions of stars out there, which among them shone bright on that day so long ago?
‘Modern astrophysics is how we attempt to explain one of history’s greatest astronomical events.’
According to the researcher, the sun, Jupiter, the moon, and Saturn were aligned in Aries, while Venus was in the constellation Pisces, and Mercury and Mars were on the other side, in Taurus.
And, when this planetary alignment occurred in 6 BC, Aries was also the location of the vernal equinox.
Jupiter and the moon together represented the birth of a ruler with a special destiny, while Saturn was the symbol of giving life, according to Mathews.
A new study of historical, astronomical, and biblical records suggests the event in 6 BC was actually a rare planetary alignment, during which the sun, Jupiter, the moon, and Saturn all lay in the constellation Aries
‘The Magi would have seen this in the east and recognized that it symbolized a regal birth in Judea,’ ultimately leading them in search of the newborn ruler, Mathews said.
An event of this kind is extremely rare; a similar alignment won’t be seen again for another 16,000 years.
But even then, vernal equinox would not be in Aries.
Even calculating 500,000 years into the future, the researcher says no alignment like the one now known as the Christmas Star could be found.
The researcher could help to explain the true nature of the elusive star, and Mathews is working on a book about his findings.
EXPERT EXPLAINS WHAT COULD HAVE HAPPENED
According to Professor David Weintraub of Vanderbilt University, if Matthew’s wise men actually undertook a journey to search for a newborn king, the bright star didn’t guide them; it only told them when to set out.
And they wouldn’t have found an infant swaddled in a manger. After all, the baby was already eight months old by the time they decoded the astrological message they believed predicted the birth of a future king.
The portent began on April 17 of 6 B.C. with the heliacal rising of Jupiter that morning, followed, at noon, by its lunar occultation in the constellation Aries.
It lasted until December 19 of 6 B.C. when Jupiter stopped moving to the west, stood still briefly, and began moving to the east, as compared with the fixed background stars.
By the earliest time the men could have arrived in Bethlehem, the baby Jesus would likely have been at least a toddler.
He claims Matthew may have written to convince his readers that Jesus was the prophesied Messiah.
Given the astrological clues embedded in his gospel, he must have believed the story of the Star of Bethlehem would be convincing evidence for many in his audience.
(Thanks to Robert McEwen, H.W., M. for this.)
This is astrological and astronomical in nature. The tradition of bonfires, candles came because those days were so dark. Now we have the tradition of Christmas lights, trees, and candles and a burning fireplace fire from that Northern European tradition.
Another tradition, the holy cross, is the division of the four equinoxes and in the annual calendar being divided into quarters. The cross symbol combines the 4 different times astrologically. This symbol of rebirth of the Sun is as the Sun of the Universe the Bible chooses to name “the Son of God!”
Frazer’s Golden Bough declares the time of light returning (Solstice, Winter Equinox) when the Kings were born. They were conceived on the Spring Equinox.
The Sun is in Capricorn traditionally during Solstice, and so we see ourselves replaying the traditions that gives us meaning and purpose to those dark times. We as consciousness are able to cross out the old and become renewed with hope and joy. The advent, the coming of the light, plays out in all religions and cultures.
Mercury the planet of communication is now in Capricorn. You will see and feel that the traditions are a natural way of communicating with those around you.
Happy solstice and happy holiday no matter what your tradition.
Robert McEwen is an astrologer and has been practicing as a professional since 1977 around the planet and has settled here in Portland. Contact information for an appointment for your personal astrological consultation is: Phone 503-706-0396
| About suffering they were never wrong, The old Masters: how well they understood Its human position: how it takes place While someone else is eating or opening a window or just walking dully along; How, when the aged are reverently, passionately waiting For the miraculous birth, there always must be Children who did not specially want it to happen, skating On a pond at the edge of the wood: They never forgot That even the dreadful martyrdom must run its course Anyhow in a corner, some untidy spot Where the dogs go on with their doggy life and the torturer’s horse Scratches its innocent behind on a tree. In Breughel’s Icarus, for instance: how everything turns away |
The Greek language distinguishes at least four different ways as to how the word love is used. Ancient Greek has four distinct words for love: agápe, éros, philía, and storgē. However, as with other languages, it has been historically difficult to separate the meanings of these words when used outside of their respective contexts. Nonetheless, the senses in which these words were generally used are as follows:
(via Wikipedia.org)
Translation by Neil Douglas-Klotz in Prayers of the Cosmos
O Birther! Father- Mother of the Cosmos
Focus your light within us – make it useful.
Create your reign of unity now-
through our fiery hearts and willing hands
Help us love beyond our ideals
and sprout acts of compassion for all creatures.
Animate the earth within us: we then
feel the Wisdom underneath supporting all.
Untangle the knots within
so that we can mend our hearts’ simple ties to each other.
Don’t let surface things delude us,
But free us from what holds us back from our true purpose.
Out of you, the astonishing fire,
Returning light and sound to the cosmos.
Amen
Bishop Irenaeus (late 2nd century – died c. AD 202), also referred to as Saint Irenaeus, was Bishop of Lugdunum in Gaul, then a part of the Roman Empire (now Lyon, France). He was an early Church Father and apologist, and his writings were formative in the early development of Christian theology. A resident of Smyrna, he heard the preaching of St. Polycarp, a disciple of St. John the Evangelist.
Irenaeus’ best-known book, Adversus Haereses or Against Heresies (c. 180), is a detailed attack on Gnosticism, which he considered a serious threat to the Church, and especially on the system of the Gnostic Valentinus. As one of the first great Christian theologians, he emphasized the traditional elements in the Church, especially the episcopate, Scripture, and tradition. Against the Gnostics, who said that they possessed a secret oral tradition from Jesus himself, Irenaeus maintained that the bishops in different cities are known as far back as the Apostles and that the bishops provided the only safe guide to the interpretation of Scripture. His polemical work is credited for laying out the “orthodoxies of the Christian church, its faith, its preaching and the books that it held as sacred authority.” His writings, with those of Clement and Ignatius, are taken as among the earliest signs of the doctrine of the primacy of the Roman see. Irenaeus is the earliest witness to recognition of the canonical character of all four gospels.
