Posted on 12/14/2003 4:14:42 PM PST by UnklGene
Researcher has theory on the 'Star of Bethlehem' -
By Rachel L. Toalson San Antonio Express-News
12/13/2003
All she did was ask him to hang a star above the three wise men adorning their lawn that Christmas in 1998. But Marion Larson's request launched her father into a project that, after hours of research, would carry him across the world.
"I was tricked into it," said Rick Larson, a former law professor at Texas A&M University in College Station. "I'm not an astronomer, I'm a lawyer. But when you tell a lawyer he has to have a star, he's got to figure out what the star is."
Larson has not only figured out what the star is, he's also shared his findings with thousands of people around the world in a multi-media presentation called "Star of Bethlehem."
He will bring his presentation to the Alamo Heights High School auditorium Sunday, courtesy of New Heights, the contemporary worship service at Alamo Heights United Methodist Church and the nonprofit organization Star Project.
Larson uses an animated computer model of the universe to recreate the sky over Jerusalem 2,000 years ago. He also introduces mathematical, historical and biblical references to show how the star could have been possible.
Though the presentation's popularity has grown mainly by word of mouth, Larson has been invited to share with audiences in Albania, Beijing and Shanghai, China, much of Eastern Europe and most of the United States.
The church brought Larson to San Antonio last year, said Linda Marceau, a volunteer during last year's presentation, but limited seating and high interest garnered another visit.
"We were turning people away," she said. "We can hold about 800 people, but we were trying to get about 900 people jammed in there last year. We had to have a larger location."
A reception will precede this year's presentation at 9:30 a.m., with holiday entertainment provided by Jazz Protagonists.
Marceau's husband, Richard, like her a church member who was involved in last year's presentation, said Larson's findings will intrigue his audience.
"It's an incredible presentation," he said. "He's a wise guy who did a lot of research, and he gives compelling, scientific evidence for the proof of the star."
While Larson's ultimate mission is to reach people with the truth of the Messiah, he said "Star of Bethlehem" has just as often appealed to non-Christians.
"It's not just some dry lecture. I mean, some of it is, but then I blow your mind.
Trajan88; TAMU Class of '88; Law Hall (may it R.I.P.) Ramp 9 Mule; f.u.p.!
"The Star of Bethlehem", by Craig Chester
Preview: For over two thousand years the Star of Bethlehem has been a powerful symbol of the Christian faith. Its unique story, told here by astronomer Craig Chester, was originally presented at Hillsdale College Center for Constructive Alternatives Seminar, "Man and Creation: Perspectives on Science and Religion," in the fall of 1992.
[excerpt]
Conjunctions of planets have long been considered good possibilities. A conjunction is a close apparent approach between two celestial objects. Technically speaking, a conjunction occurs at the moment when both objects have the same celestial longitude; one is due north of the other. The closer the objects, the more visually impressive is the event and the more significant astrologically.In 3 B.C. and 2 B.C., there was a series of close conjunctions involving Jupiter, the planet that represented kingship, coronations, and the birth of kings. In Hebrew, Jupiter was known as Sedeq or "Righteousness," a term also used for the Messiah.
In September of 3 B.C., Jupiter came into conjunction with Regulus, the star of kingship, the brightest star in the constellation of Leo. Leo was the constellation of kings, and it was associated with the Lion of Judah. The royal planet approached the royal star in the royal constellation representing Israel. Just a month earlier, Jupiter and Venus, the Mother planet, had almost seemed to touch each other in another close conjunction, also in Leo. Then the conjunction between Jupiter and Regulus was repeated, not once but twice, in February and May of 2 B.C. Finally, in June of 2 B.C., Jupiter and Venus, the two brightest objects in the sky save the sun and the moon, experienced an even closer encounter when their disks appeared to touch; to the naked eye they became a single object above the setting sun. This exceptionally rare spectacle could not have been missed by the Magi.
In fact, we have seen here only the highlights of an impressive series of planetary motions and conjunctions fraught with a variety of astrological meanings, involving all the other known planets of the period, Mercury, Mars, and Saturn. The astrological significance of these impressive events must surely have been seen by the Magi as the announcement of the impending birth of a great king of Israel.
You are right.
Chapter 1: The Star of Bethlehem in History
It was Roger W. Sinnott, writing in the astronomical journal Sky and Telescope, who was the first to draw attention to this unusual conjunction of Jupiter and Venus. He said it was a brilliant “double star” which finally gave the appearance of merging into a single “star” as the planets drew nearer the western horizon. Sinnott showed that only the sharpest eyes would have been able to split them. The twinkling caused by the unsteady horizon atmosphere would have blended the two planets into one “star” for almost all viewers. “The fusion of two planets would have been a rare and awe-inspiring event.” 1 [1 Sky and Telescope, December, 1968, 384–386. ]
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