New-York tribune., 1906-03-18
raE srAR OF BETHLEHEM

L lDe--so-. Tex: Ls there any ast-onOmi-
e f1-e--a -- confirmation OF the popular be-
-t thai STAY announced the birth q Christ?
Popular belle. IS octen based upon truth; but
H-anoEy has never recognized the Star Ot the
H'gF . which YOU refer The cause OF II les
1'-t fart thar the Oldest Astronomical accounts
a. Dost careful observations we possess, from
us Chinese i- thet- Natuan-,in. DO not make
az mention = a comet or any other UNUSUAL
igl n the SKY tl TIE days OF the commence
as1t O. our era The answer 70 this much dis
l-,si question therefore belongs % the domain
asology s-d history rather than 70 that OF
r-oaomy- SIN. We Try once more 70 epitomize
a. he possibilities and views ln favor OF that
Efslgs star
fTom the early times the belief has preVaiieo
gsi 4 srs- had guided the wise men 20 Zion
ms popular belief car be easily explained y
y realize the importance attached 70 a comet
Earkil1 q that period. Il wa believed 70
.1eoode war famine, pestilence and al possiote
.'ss,e-E With supernatural power u plLIeSSl!
.-sd itsef into the spokes Of the wheel U
sA-ny OF states; but Il also illunined tne @ lou
arth ard death o. great men Why, tneh'
sase nct also q star have stood over the craole
ne greatest man of all tmesE II y y 70
ans inaposz4 Die that HaIiey's comet announced
-s hrth o. Christ Visible 20 al men Il ap-
s-sfeo II the skies IN the year y B. c. ana II
- Only rei1cuish the erroneous assumption
- Christ was born 81 the year 1 OF our era
- comet car -ery well be reconciled with mat
y Christmas night Indeed. the historical
.sloIos IN the Gospel OF ST. Luke are calculated
t1ow that Jesus wss born much earlier than
seaeraily assumed and that the uncertain
e oi his Incarnation varies between the years
&c 10 o. 0Er era Incidentally. according 70
,,.sl.eooulsEts calculations, Halley's comet VIII
S@..a @ appear OF Nay II Of the year 1910
ne slgr ~ "Cassiopeia" there had suddenly
<geereoi !n 1872, e new star" "a novs), when
go brsae Observed IN Herritzwadt then tuIly
,sfloed and named the Pilgrim star" This
S a. 1rEt shoIe ss brightly as Venus, ana
s~-o --~o went 50 far a. 70 assert that II was tden-
- with TIE Star OF the Mag1," also With the
T.t 80 o. the year 945 and that Of the year 1864
,.S-y-gn Goodricke and P1got later assumed a
S--1llcal temperance of this new star. the
- '-s Arsgo never recognized such periooiclty
- - oeIlec The Identity OF ''TychO's star" with
,saf gar o. Bethlehem because the most ancient
y -SIos % not admit such interpretations.
mere -asfe Is a third possibility Of proving by as
,-s'iy the Star OF Bethlehem" The Greek
,.sa-ai text q the writings OF the New Testa-
= a - translated BY ST. HierOnyme into Latin,
l.e 1.e description of the alteration OF the child
- ~ the wise men Of the Orient, uses al
r..ey two differing Greek words This
- - KeDpleT. who inferred from these two
49, mat they did not denote one single un-
-. slar. but the conjunction OF two bright
80 ldeleT later on calculated that IN the
49, r. G., two Of the largest planets or our
so-+ Hystel.-e &. Jupiter and Saturn. were IN
srs'' tloH 81 Pisces IA October and November,
a. '.-sl nave appeared 20 the Magi as one
q ptis ms last assumption IN favor OF the star
''hiehem" seems % be the most probable.