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...We know that Halley's Comet was visible in the sky in 11 B.C. However, as the Magi trekked toward Jerusalem and on to Bethlehem, it seems unlikely that they followed a comet because its position would have changed as the Earth rotated, so the comet would not have led them in a single direction. What's more, in the ancient world, comets were often regarded as bad omens...We can also rule out novas and supernovas. Either event would have resulted in a detectable remnant, but astronomers have not found anything that might date back to this time.Furthermore, had the Magi followed...

Despite attempts by modern biblical scholarship to debunk the gospel account of three magi visiting the newborn Jesus in Bethlehem, the stories were “historically true” according to extensive research by author Dwight Longenecker. In his new book, Mystery of the Magi: The Quest to Identify the Three Wise Men, Longenecker, a scholar and Catholic priest, states that an impartial study of the relevant data “shows beyond reasonable doubt” that the Magi of Matthew’s gospel were historical figures. For many years, Longenecker writes, skeptical scholars have rejected the possibility that the infancy stories about Jesus could be historical for a number...

Astrologers to predict next president at meetingAssociated Press Sunday, May 18, 2008 DENVER --Picking a winner of the presidential contest is front and center at what's being billed as the largest astrologers' convention in years. More than 1,500 astrologers from 45 countries have descended on Denver, site of the Democratic National Convention in August, for the "United Astrology Conference: Rockin' the Universe." The gathering concludes Tuesday with a panel predicting a presidential winner in November. Key to those picks: Astrological charts for John McCain, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. And integral to those charts: The candidates' exact birth times. A...

There seems to be some dispute about the date of the first Christmas. Part of that has to do with the Gregorian calendar, which is the one we use. At one time, Greek months had three ten day weeks. This forced them to add a month or two now and then. The ancient Hebrews, who alternated 29 and 30 day months, had the same problem. Our hour and minute divisions go all the way back to Mesopotamia. Our 24 hour day comes from pharaonic Egypt. The names we use for days and months come to us from the classical Greek,...