thesoulpurposedotorg

I’ve rarely heard a sermon on the Star of Bethlehem or even about the Magi. When I have, those sermons have been very disappointing. We actually know much more about these things than pastors are willing to admit from the pulpit. For one, the Magi were both astronomers and astrologers because in that day there was no distinction between the two. The planets were harbingers of good and bad, signs in the sky as one factor to help us understand the mysteries of life on planet Earth. Centuries later, Galileo was much sought after for his astrological readings as part of a medical diagnosis. Even in his day, astronomy and astrology were as one science.
I recently had the opportunity to see the video entitled The Star of Bethlehem . If you can rent this video, it is well worth it. Written and narrated by a lawyer, it is rather tedious. In addition, this lawyer’s Christian experience is limited to a narrow world view which causes him to fear astrology inordinately. However, the story of the Biblical importance of the Star of Bethlehem is an awesome, powerfully moving story.
In mainline churches we call this the season of Epiphany for which the star of Bethlehem is the harbinger of the Light of Christ, God in the flesh, come into the darkness of the world.