Based on that information, he then went looking for the kind of celestial event that would have signaled to ancient astrologers like the Magi that something as memorable as the birth of a king was about to take place. 6 B.C. The planet Jupiter, named after the supreme deity of the ancient Romans, came over the horizon that morning accompanied by a host of other celestial signs that would have been like flashing neon light to the astrologers. The moon and the sun were both right there, and Saturn was nearby, all within the sign of Aries the Ram. Restudying the original Greek of Matthew's Gospel account Molnar saw a very technical description of exactly what occurred that April, as well as later in the year. Words for 'going forward' and 'stood over' were the same as what we call today retrograde motion.
Retrograde motion is an optical illusion created by the orbits of the planets.
As the earth's orbit catches up to another planet, such as Jupiter, the planet's movement across the sky appears to slow and stop. Later that summer and fall, Jupiter underwent retrograde motion. Molnar's colleagues at other East Coast universities seem to consider his new book, The Star of Bethlehem , a major breakthrough. Molnar says the book, which was issued in October by Rutgers University Press, is now in its second printing. See Mike Molnar 's Web site at Rutgers University here, which includes an area on the Star of Bethlehem .