Morning Star: The Search for and Discovery of the Stars of Bethlehem According to the Gospel of Matthew (Abstract)

Volume 49 number 1 (2021)

Rev. Kenneth Beckmann

3704 Derby Ridge Drive, Columbia, MO 65202; kcb@whatajoyfulcelebration.com

Abstract

(Abstract only) For more than two thousand years, the Star of Bethlehem has remained an enigma in the light of biblical scholarship and astronomical research. In 1984, the late Dr. Dorrit Hoffleit wrote an article in the Journal of the AAVSO, Volume 13, Number 1, entitled, “The Christmas Star, Novae and Pulsars.” This article described Carolyn Murphy-Beehler’s discovery of an ancient Christian star map of the Star of Bethlehem in the catacomb of Priscilla at Rome. Recently, I have discovered four clues and two keys that demonstrate that the Star on the star map in the catacomb and the Star in Matthew’s Gospel may be one and the same Star. In this paper, I will demonstrate how two observations, one at the Star’s rising and the other the Star at Midheaven, provide an indisputable argument that the Star of 5 BCE (the Star on the star map in the catacomb) accurately describes the Star Matthew speaks about in his gospel.