The argument just described in the words of Jesus Himself would be adopted not earlier than through two cycles of Jupiter from the time of this writing (in August 2015). There are other arguments – the works of H.P. Blavatsky, she hadn’t any education, but who gave us a huge amount of knowledge and information. That’s at least 10 books, each volume as large the Bible, and these books are not detective novels. Where did she take it all? For Theosophists it is no secret that the real authors of the Theosophical literature, are precisely those Magi – Melchior, Balthazar and Caspar. But for many, this is not an argument. The even Gautama Buddha warned his listeners “about the inadmissibility of forming opinions based on tradition or authority before completing the study of the subject”.
“Just as there are people, completely unable to study music, mathematics, etc., so there are those who are closed to certain areas of thought. His work will be distorted by critics, who, after having read three lines on the first page, two in the middle of the book, and the closing sentence, will proclaim it is ‘unreadable’; it will be mocked by the sycophants of science and the Church, it will be incorrectly cited by their lackeys, while the average reader will not understand its significance.” Paul Zhibier.
And so, the best test of all historical events – is their close’ liaison with astronomical phenomena referred to in the documents. Using this rule, we will continue to.
The year of Herod’s death
The proof that Messiah was born between 8 and 4 BC is based on the information from the Gospel of Matthew (2.1), which states that Jesus was born during the reign of King Herod of Judea (the Great), (the most common date of the reign of Herod is 40 – 4 BC, but there is also 37—1 BC). Many authors of historical records were negatively disposed to Herod, due to his brutal, tyrannical activities, and of course, the percentage of objectivity cannot be proved.
Detailed descriptions of the life of Herod the Great are in the work of the historian Josephus Titus Flavius – “Jewish Antiquities”, where there are contradictions about the date of Herod’s death. In conventional calculations, it turns out that his death was 4BC or 1BC.
Herod became the ruler after the capture of Jerusalem.
“This destruction befell the city of Jerusalem when Marcus Agrippa and Caninius Gallus were consuls of Rome on the hundred eighty and fifth olympiad, the third month, on the solemnity of the fast, as if a periodical revolution of calamities had returned since that which befell the Jews under Pompey; for the Jews were taken by him on the same day, and this was after twenty-seven years time”. (Antiquities of the Jews – XIV, chapter 16.4)
The 185th Olympiad was in 40 BC, and Pompey conquered Jerusalem in 63 BC. After 27 years, will turn – 36 BC. And while here, in the same sentence immediately there are visible contradictions, lets try to rely on the above mentioned rule.
And Herod died from 37 years after the beginning of the reign: “Then he had done these things, he died, the fifth day after he had caused Antipater to be slain; having reigned, since he had procured Antigonus to be slain, thirty-four years; but since he had been declared king by the Romans, thirty-seven”. (Antiquities of the Jews – XVII, chapter 8.1)
Shortly before his death, there was an eclipse of the Moon
“But Herod deprived this Matthias of the high priesthood, and burnt the other Matthias, who had raised the sedition, with his companions, alive. And that very night there was an eclipse of the Moon”. (Antiquities of the Jews – XVII, chapter 6.4)
Josephus Flavius was not an astronomer, we can hardly believe that he had not the tables of astronomical phenomena, in order to write the history exactly according to astronomical events. But just as observant person, he expounded the astronomical events that were well known to all. But before the death of Herod there was a lunar eclipse (and this is a fact) and most probably many people had seen this eclipse – so it was a total lunar eclipse, because the partial eclipse looks like a regular moon phase and not everyone can see it. But in 4 years BC there were two lunar eclipses: first – on the 13th of March, the second – on the 5th of September and both were partial eclipses, and only astronomers could know about this fact. But in 1st year BC, there were two total lunar eclipses on the 9th of January and on the 5th of July.
Consequently, Herod died in the 1st year BC and Jesus could have been born before that date and not before the 4th BC.
Star of Bethlehem
The astronomical event, confirming the birth of the Savior was the so-called Star of Bethlehem, mentioned twice.
Mat (2.1) “Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the East came to Jerusalem and ask
(2.2) “Where is the one who has been born King of the Jews? We saw his star in the East and are come to worship him”. About the Star of Bethlehem there have been written many versions and it is not necessary to describe all of them, especially none of them has added clarity.
Here are the main versions:
1. In 7 BC, there was the conjunction of Saturn and Jupiter in Pisces repeating three times – on the 29th of May, on the 1st of October and on the 5th of December. The conjunction of Saturn and Jupiter happens every 12 years in different signs, in Pisces it is once in 800 years.
2. In 6 BC, on the 26th of February there was the conjunction of the three planets: Mars, Saturn and Jupiter in Pisces. This conjunction happens once every 800 years. But that event was an astrological conjunction among the planets with 3°of longitude, Mars was in 27° Pisces, had a decline of -1.8°, Saturn was in 23°, declination – 4.9°, Jupiter 30°, declination 1.17°. In the sky these planets were visible as three separate spots (stars).
3. In 5 BC in Capricorn in the East there was a comet which was visible for 70 days. Let’s analyze the facts:
1. There was no one in Jerusalem who had seen or heard about this Star before the arrival of the Magi.
2. The Magi had seen the star two times, and the character of sight was different.
3. The first time the star was in the East.
4. The second time the star went before them.
Modern science denies the existence of divine spirit in nature and divine origin in man. The scientists are easier to accept the theory of the origin of man from a common ape and to see a brother in a dumb tailless baboon, than to acknowledge the glorious “Sons of Gods”. Religious leaders showed “higher love” for their brothers by burning scientists at the stake and hunging them on the rack.
Any religious person, for example the theologian, evangelist, cult minister, churchman or simple believer is short of the Faith, so they ask God about something all the time. The one who has the Faith gives himself into the hands of the Lord. And so religious people cling to any straw (mystical miracle) to confirm the presence of God and adjust the facts or the astronomical events to holy Scripture. There is God and there is a Holy Spirit and one of the best of humanity Sons – Jesus has not left us up to this day. The astronomers are able to watch, but they do not use philosophical basis of astrology. The astrologers, it seems, do not watch the starry sky at all but use computers only. But, at that time