The star of Bethlehem : an astronomer's view
"Two thousand years ago, according to the Bible, a star rose low in the east and stopped high above Bethlehem. Was it a miracle, a sign from God to herald the birth of Christ? Was there a star at all, or was it simply added to the Bible to fulfill the Old Testament prophecy concerning the birth of the Messiah? Or was the Star of Bethlehem an actual astronomical event? For hundreds of years, astronomers as prominent as Johannes Kepler have sought an answer to this last baffling question. In The Star of Bethlehem, Mark Kidger brings all the tools of modern science, years of historical research, and an infectious spirit of inquiry to bear on the mystery. Could the Star have been Venus? What about a meteor or a rare type of meteor shower?
Print Book, English, 1999
Princeton University Press, Princeton, N.J., 1999
xi 306 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm
9780691058238, 0691058237
41273124
Matthew's star
A star over Bethlehem?
The first Christmas
Halley's comet and other red herrings
Shooting stars and fiery rains
Supernova Bethlehem?
We three kings?
Triple conjunctions: a key to unlocking the mystery?
Is the answer written in Chinese?
What was the Star of Bethlehem?
Epilogue. Which star is the star?
Appendix. The heavens above Bethlehem