Q.: The Magi or wise men who visited baby Jesus said in Matthew 2:2 that they had come to Judea seeking the king of the Jews because we have seen his star in the east. Doesnt this implicitly endorse astrology?
A.: Suppose that the magi *did* engage in astrology in this case: that wouldnt be a problem, inasmuch as reporting something, and endorsing it, are not the same thing, and all Matthew does in this verse is report what the wise men said. If the Magi used astrological symbolism to surmise a birth in the royal family of Judea, they thats what they did. Even a blind pig digs up an acorn now and then; even a broken clock is right twice a day.
But, while the magi probably /did/ engage in astrology at other times (in those days astronomy and astrology amongst non-Jews tended to be inextricably linked), their discernment of meaning behind a celestial event may have been more like the kind of discernment thats involved when a farmer discerns, by observing celestial occurrences, that it is time to sow, or time to harvest. In the case of the star that indicated the birth of the King of Israel, there was a unique prophetic almanac, so to speak, embedded in the prophecies of Balaam, back in Numbers 24:17 ~ I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh. There shall come a star out of Jacob, a sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth.
The second part of the prophecy forecasts the Israelites' domination of the territory of Moab and its neighbors. The corners here are figurative corners of the hairlines of the personified heads of these nations. (The following two verses explain the meaning.) But wheres the star? Apparently the wise men had studied the books of Moses, probably acquired from some post-exile Jews in their country or countries, and had concluded from this passage that a star would appear someday out of Jacob. So its not like they were attempting to see the future and give advice about it, which is the main job of astrologers. They were not engaged in augury in this case; they were paying attention to a prophetic text and trying to make sense of it.
(A sub-question may arise: just what /was/ the Star of Bethlehem? A well-written case that it was a conjunction of Jupiter and Venus, followed by a double-conjunction of Jupiter and Regulus, written by Craig Chester, who has a Ph.D. in astronomy from Case Western Reserve University (in Adobe pdf file-format)may be read at www.hillsdale.edu/imprimi...primis.pdf . Phil Greetham offers various theories, and critiques of them, at www.btinternet.com/~prgre...heory.html .)
Yours in Christ,
Waterrock
A.: Suppose that the magi *did* engage in astrology in this case: that wouldnt be a problem, inasmuch as reporting something, and endorsing it, are not the same thing, and all Matthew does in this verse is report what the wise men said. If the Magi used astrological symbolism to surmise a birth in the royal family of Judea, they thats what they did. Even a blind pig digs up an acorn now and then; even a broken clock is right twice a day.
But, while the magi probably /did/ engage in astrology at other times (in those days astronomy and astrology amongst non-Jews tended to be inextricably linked), their discernment of meaning behind a celestial event may have been more like the kind of discernment thats involved when a farmer discerns, by observing celestial occurrences, that it is time to sow, or time to harvest. In the case of the star that indicated the birth of the King of Israel, there was a unique prophetic almanac, so to speak, embedded in the prophecies of Balaam, back in Numbers 24:17 ~ I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh. There shall come a star out of Jacob, a sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth.
The second part of the prophecy forecasts the Israelites' domination of the territory of Moab and its neighbors. The corners here are figurative corners of the hairlines of the personified heads of these nations. (The following two verses explain the meaning.) But wheres the star? Apparently the wise men had studied the books of Moses, probably acquired from some post-exile Jews in their country or countries, and had concluded from this passage that a star would appear someday out of Jacob. So its not like they were attempting to see the future and give advice about it, which is the main job of astrologers. They were not engaged in augury in this case; they were paying attention to a prophetic text and trying to make sense of it.
(A sub-question may arise: just what /was/ the Star of Bethlehem? A well-written case that it was a conjunction of Jupiter and Venus, followed by a double-conjunction of Jupiter and Regulus, written by Craig Chester, who has a Ph.D. in astronomy from Case Western Reserve University (in Adobe pdf file-format)may be read at www.hillsdale.edu/imprimi...primis.pdf . Phil Greetham offers various theories, and critiques of them, at www.btinternet.com/~prgre...heory.html .)
Yours in Christ,
Waterrock
