Matthew's Star an Historical Fiction by Gary D. Thompson
Copyright © 2005-2008 by Gary D. Thompson
Matthew's Star an Historical Fiction
Introduction
Since the 19th-century Matthew's gospel has continued to provide an unceasing source of speculation for the identification of the star of the Magi. Astronomers are the usual candidates for the constant attempts to identify an historical phenomenon as the basis for the mention in Matthew's gospel of the Magi's star. As usual, the nature of historical knowledge is limited by the character and extent of the evidence.
Matthew's Story
The Matthaean story gives no account of the actual birth of Jesus. The issue for Matthew is the heralding of the birth of the Messianic infant and his first reception by people.
In Matthew's story the "Star of Bethlehem" has the function of both a portent (i.e., its appearance was a sign that a king had been born in Judea) and a guide (i.e., in the continuation of the story it leads the Magi to a particular dwelling in Bethlehem). It would seem logical to hold it was a newly appeared object.
The "star of Bethlehem" is properly the "star of the Magi." Simply, nobody else is reported as seeing it. Even Herod and his advisors, within the context of Matthew's story, did not see the "star." This acts to limit any interpretation of it being a natural astronomical event (that through misinterpretation, or other intention, later became attached to Matthew's gospel). The star story cannot be separated from the Magi story.
Historical Astronomical Explanations
Spectacular celestial phenomena such as planetary conjunctions, supernova, and comets have all been offered as explanations of the "star." However, it is unclear why such explanations would be necessarily relevant to story in chapter 2, verses 1-12 of Matthew's gospel. The text (account) lacks clarity (and adequate details) and contains a number of uncertainties. A major puzzle for any literal historical explanation is Matthew's gospel stating the star went before the Magi until it came to where the child was. (There is nothing to indicate the "star" initially showed the path to Palestine (i.e., Jerusalem).)
Ease Of Historical Astronomical Explanations
On 2 Jan 2004 Dr. Ed. Krupp wrote:to HASTRO-L: "The sky is very accommodating. Give me a date for the birth of Christ, and I'll give you a Christmas Star." This comment summarises the ease with which astronomical explanations can, and have been, made.
Difficulties With The Historical Astronomical Explanations
Interestingly, the story of the star of the Magi, and their journey related to it, ends with their acting on a warning in a dream not to return to Herod. The story in Matthew then takes up with Joseph acting on a warning in a dream. Such serves to indicate we are not within the scope of natural historical events. (Further evidence of such is the Magi immediately lost contact with Jesus and his family and apparently wrote nothing on the episode.)
Uncritical acceptance of the historical accuracy of the "star of the Magi" story simply fails to address a myriad of issues. The looseness of combining the differing accounts in both Matthew and Luke only serves to confuse. They are quite irreconcilable accounts of the birth of Jesus (Matthew's is ultimately tragic while Luke's is idyllic) and cannot be fitted into a single common story. Neither account will bear critical examination.
Matthew' story is dictated by Old Testament prophecies. Luke's story shows association with the infancy narratives of the apocryphal gospels. But both are, amongst other things, designed to verify the birth of Jesus at Bethlehem. Mark's gospel most definitely believes that Jesus was born at Nazareth. John's gospel does not accept that Jesus was born in Bethlehem. The New Testament documents generally indicate that there was no knowledge of where Jesus was born.
The idea that the gospel stories of the birth of Jesus are literal history, and based on later accounts of reliable eye-witnesses to the events, ignores the last two centuries of biblical scholarship.
The Matthaean account has the Magi interpreting events both through the observation of celestial phenomena and through dreams (i.e., they were warned in a dream not to go back to Herod). Is an actual eye-witness the source of Matthew's account of the Magi's "warning in a dream," and departure by alternative route? I hardly think so. If we are dealing with literally true events then exactly when was this knowledge known to the writer(s) of Matthew's gospel.
At best scholarship aspires to tentative claims based on historical probability. It is reasonable to believe that the greater probability is the Matthaean birth narrative involving "Star" and "Magi" is a literary construct. There is no mention of "The Star of Bethlehem" in other sources. There is no mention of such in other books forming the New Testament and also no mention of such in any writings in the Graeco-Roman world. (Matthew's story of the visit by the Magi, however, is retold in increased detail in the 2nd-century apocryphal Book of James.)
The William Tell myth illustrates how fictitious history can originate and find general acceptance, even in a comparatively recent historical period. The completely fictitious medieval Swiss hero, who reputedly lived in the 14th-century, is based on the (9th-century CE Scandinavian) hero-figure Toke the Archer who appears in the multi-volume work on Danish history, Gesta Danorum ("Deeds of the Danes"), by the 12th-century author Saxo Grammaticus (Saxo the Grammarian / Saxo the Literate).
Problems With Historical Astronomical Explanations
A basic question relation to Matthew's "star" is: Are we dealing with an astronomical/astrological phenomenon or a literary device? The reason that no astronomical (or astrological) explanations satisfactorily fit all the criteria for The Star of Bethlehem is perhaps due to it being a literary device. No actual star had appeared. (A planetary conjunction theory such as the Jupiter-Saturn conjunction is a two-star phenomenon.) No natural historical event matches Matthew's story of the "star."
Interestingly, the "Magi" are not initially directly conducted by the "star" to Bethlehem. They first go to Herod in Jerusalem who advises them that the "king" would be born in Bethlehem. With this knowledge the "Magi" are then conducted by the "star" to the very dwelling-house in Bethlehem. This latter part of the narrative is not astronomy (or astrology). In the context of the story it is strange that the "star" did not guide them directly to Bethlehem. However, the "slaughter of the innocents" motif is a common theme in mythology that is attached to the birth of heroes prior to the time of Jesus. (The "slaughter of the innocents" in Matthew's gospel was likely included to fulfill Jeremiah's prophecy about the biblical matriarch Rachel who was buried in Bethlehem. According to Josephus there was a Roman census of allegiance circa 5 BCE which led to a slaughter of some 5000 people who refused to sign their to the Roman Emperor.)
The form of Matthew's text has the meaning that the re-sighted "star" remained stationary over a particular dwelling-house (and induced the Magi to stop there). The force of the story is the "star" must have been quite low to the earth's surface and could not have been some astral phenomena high in the sky.
This last function and behaviour of the "star" (as a personal guide to a particular dwelling in Bethlehem) presents a difficulty for the exclusively astronomical explanation of the "star." It shows that a non-astronomical explanation for the "star" needs to be sought. (The use of the term "stood over" indicates position.) It is simply another example where the Bible cannot be literally true.
Astrological Explanation
Arguments for an exclusively astrological interpretation of "The Star of Bethlehem" would appear to have some merit and some theologians at the beginning of the 19th-century supported such.
A number of modern writes now hold that some Magi in a foreign country managed to both identify the birth of Jesus and specifically locate the new-born Jesus by means of their astrological knowledge.
Molnar's Astrological Explanation
The astronomer Michael Molnar believes the simplest and most likely explanation of the "star" lies in astrology as it was practiced in Roman times. Michael Molnar's (clearly overly enthusiastic) position is that the "star" does not need to be a phenomenon that is visible to the "magi" but only needs to have been astrologically calculated by them and its significance as a sign that a king had been born in Judea understood.
Molnar basically proposes that Matthew merely identified that Jesus was born under a regal portent and this was due to the fact that there was an actual portent that people interpreted as the birth of the Messiah, and associated this with the birth of Jesus. In a nutshell Molnar holds: The triple conjunction of Saturn and Jupiter in 7 BCE, in the zodiacal constellation Pisces, was linked to a "son of God" being born in Israel, and the Magi had knowledge of a prophecy of the birth of Jesus. (It also pivots on the assumption that the belief existed at this time that the zodiacal constellation Pisces represented the Jews.)
Molnar holds (Hastro-L posting): "No astronomical event fits the account in Matthew, but well documented astrological conditions do. The event of April 17, 6 BC followed by other astrological events centering around Jupiter in that year fit the account. The astrologer Firmicus Maternus (c. AD 334) referred to these conditions as befitting the birth of a world ruler with a divine and immortal nature. I claim that this is a reference to the Star outside of the Bible."
Molnar believes that Matthew uses astrological terminology that Matthew's account describes three astrological "phases." He believes the story in Matthew tells us that there was a regal portent under which, as Matthew claims, Jesus was born. The reason Matthew refers to astrology is that there was indeed an astrological portent that people interpreted as the birth of the Messiah. And Christians (i.e., Matthew) concluded that this revealed the birth of Jesus as Christ."
Difficulties With The Astrological Explanation
The problem in a nutshell seems to be: The Matthaean account speaks of a "star" but this can not be successfully matched with any astronomical event. (The term aster means star.)However, in seeking an astrological match the problem exists that a single "star" - as a herald star for a king - does not accord with astrological tradition. Hence "Matthew's" account gets an interpretative tweaking by Molnar. It is actually two occultations of the planet Jupiter by the Moon in 6 BCE in the constellation Aries.
The astrological theory of the "star of the Magi," which has been around for some 100 years, is also difficult to accept within the context of a natural historical event. That a broad astrological interpretation by the Magi can lead them to journey to a foreign land, and particularly identify the obscure new-born Jesus, requires more than just a focus on the astronomical/astrological side of the argument. Are we to believe that Magi (i.e., professional astrologers) in a foreign country (possibly Persia) actually managed to locate Jesus by means of their knowledge of astrology?
There is no mention of the Star of Bethlehem in other sources. Molnar, however, would hold there is a reference to the Star outside of the Bible, which can be found in the "Mathesis" of Firmicus Maternus, a 4th-century CE astrologer who converted to Christianity.
The use of a 4th- century CE statement by Firmicus Maternus - to attempt an astrological identification with the Matthaean "Star of Bethlehem" - certainly does not appear to enable a simple and obvious match to be made. Certainly it would not serve to verify the "Journey of the Magi". The introduction of evidence from much later periods can enable us to go down a number of different tracks.
Michael Molnar proposes that Matthew merely identified that Jesus was born under a regal portent and this was due to the fact that there was an actual portent that people interpreted as the birth of the Messiah, and associated this with the birth of Jesus. But the "Star" identifies the particular house where Jesus is - and by doing so makes him the person for whom the sign is intended. The text of Matthew is not "history" pure and simple but "history" with a purpose. Matthew does not have the implication that this is a chance event. Back-dating from a later period to make the connection between a particular "Star" and Jesus distorts the Matthaean text. Both the "Star" and the "Journey of the Magi" serve the integral purpose of being current and related to Jesus exclusively.
Molnar strongly maintains standardisation in Hellenistic astrological tradition. Whilst astrologers in the 4th century CE would have been using texts composed centuries earlier (even as far back as 2nd/3rd centuries BCE - for example Firmicus cites Nechepso and Petosiris) there was no single Hellenistic or Near Eastern astrology.
During the 2nd century CE (and indeed the 4th-century CE) astrological ideas were still in the phase of dynamic development (i.e., Valens and Ptolemy, and ). Though the "Tetrabiblos" of Ptolemy had the effect of systematizing astrology it did not standardize such. To infer what the unidentified "Magi" may have practised as astrology does not establish such as a fact. Both Valens and Ptolemy tended to use simple arithmetical schemes for astrology. It would need to be demonstrated that the "Magi" had a suitable mathematical method.
The term "stood over" was also used in the description of comets. Molnar usually limits the "standing (over)" term to the examples of the motions of the planet Jupiter. Colin Humphrey's article points out that the term "stood over" was more commonly applied to comets. In his article "The Star of Bethlehem-a Comet in 5 BC-and the Date of Christ's Birth" he gives examples of such. He cites two references from Josephus and Dio Cassius which are metaphorical descriptions about impending doom that comets brought to Jerusalem and Rome, respectively. In the contexts of the stories 'stood over' and 'hung over' are blatantly about bad omens. This seems to support the wider use of astrological terms in other than a strict planetary context. These passages argue against easy acceptance of terms in Matthew referring to astrological phenomenon involving planets. (See: "The Star of Bethlehem-a Comet in 5 BC-and the Date of the Birth of Christ." by Colin Humphreys, Quarterly Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society, Volume 32, 1991, Pages 389-407.) Could it also be that, similar to today, some common astrological terms had a wider "vulgar" use and no astrological beliefs were actually being implied?
"A recent study by Michael Molnar argues that the most likely horoscope in whic professional astrologers such as the Magi would be interested was the appearance of the Sun, Moon, Jupiter and Saturn (all regal signs) in Aries on April 17, 6 B.C.E. However Molnar's conclusions are overly sophisticated : there is no need to interpret the Matthean text in terms of technical or sophisticated astrology such as that of Ptolemy and Firmicus Maternus. Rather the star of Matthew 2.1-12 derives from the common, widespread belief (found already in Plato) that all people have a "natal star" that appears at their birth and passes away with them. Moreover, celestial phenomena are of course frequently associated with important terrestrial events in ancient literature : it seems most plausible to read the Matthean pericope as yet another example of the literary topos." ("The Magi and the Star in the Gospel of Matthew and Early Christian Tradition." by Tim Hegedus, Laval théologique et philosophique, Volume 59, Number 1, February, 2003, Page 84.)
Midrash Explanation
The "star of the Magi" elements of Matthew's birth narrative is only made meaningful by understanding such as Midrash. Within Matthew's account the fact that the "Star" as potent and guide proved accurate and enabled the "Magi" to find the newly born Jesus places it outside of natural history.
The supposedly natural historical events of "star," "Magi journey," and "Magi success" cannot be separated from the deterministic context of who Jesus is within the gospel story. The story of the "star of the Magi" definitely intends to inform that the circumstances of the birth of Jesus was very unusual. However, if Jesus is simply an ordinary person (and not the West Semitic god Yahweh himself on earth) then both the "star" and the "Magi" are irrelevant and mistaken. There is no purpose to the "star of the Magi" story unless it serves the function of identifying the status of Jesus. This also helps to establish the context of whether we assign the "star" and "Magi" to factual history or Midrash.
The "star of the Magi" story is telling us that the Magi successfully identify, and give recognition to, a significant person. If such is actually a case of misidentification on their part then who, if anyone, did they actually miss correctly identifying? According to Matthew's gospel the Magi were successful because the star stood over the particular dwelling where Jesus was located. This part of the story acts to limit any interpretation of it being an astrological scenario (that through misinterpretation, or other intention, later became attached to Matthew's gospel). Also, nobody else is reported to have been aware of, or involved in, this particular astrological scenario.
To continue to argue the "star of the Magi" as some type of natural astronomical event, or astrological scenario, and the "Magi journey" as historical, is to continue to argue for some incredibly fortuitous set of random occurrences. Few people seem to appreciate this side of the issue.
The gospels are not secular documents and neither are they primarily historical documents. A purely human Jesus was not part of the convictions of the earliest Christians and the New Testament writings depict him as divine. Jesus was believed identical with the West Semitic god Yahweh - Jesus being Yahweh himself on earth. Attempts to extract a purely human Jesus from the New Testament seem not to appreciate that the gospels are primarily teaching catechisms.
We do not have original copies of any of the gospels. The oldest surviving copies of the gospels date from circa 200 CE, and no early copies of a gospel are exactly alike. During the process of transmission it was usual for the hand made manuscripts to be "corrected" here and there by different copyists. It is not possible to claim certain knowledge of exactly what the original text of any biblical writing was.
It is generally thought that an anonymous author compiled the gospel of Matthew sometime after the fall of Jerusalem in 70 CE and before the council of Jamia in 90 CE. Matthew is also believed to have been composed in Greek in dependence on "Sayings Gospel Q" and Mark, both also written in Greek by unknown authors. The outline of Matthew's gospel is taken from Mark and the "Sayings Gospel Q" material inserted. Matthew at the time of writing embodies current Christian beliefs regarding Jesus.
The gospel of Mark is generally thought to have been written shortly after the fall of Jerusalem and to be based on stories about Jesus and also a primitive Christian gospel. Mark does not give any account of Jesus' birth. The New Testament documents generally indicate there was no knowledge of where Jesus was born.
There is no reason to believe that in the birth narratives "Matthew" was writing a historical record and recording a genuine narrative of real events. Attempting to sort out a scheme of historical events has not led to a persuasive natural explanation of the "Star of Bethlehem".
The attempt to deal with the Matthaean birth narrative as a factual account, that embodies a general accuracy, requires it to be interpreted in isolation to Luke's gospel. Herod's interest in the Magi's journey in Matthew is not shown at all in the scenario described in the birth narrative in Luke.
Recent Scholarship
The publication of a recent conference papers on Prayer, Magic and the Stars in the Ancient and Late Antique World includes a paper setting out that the Star of Bethlehem may not have been anything astronomical. "Conventionally, modern scholars - most often scientists - consider the star a sort of historical puzzle that can be solved by science; they scan records, documents, and data to find likely celestial events that then might have been (mis)interpreted as a portent of Christ's advent by gullible, superstitious Christians. But to focus on a scientific 'explanation' for the star of Bethlehem is to move considerably beyond the interpretive horizons for the first four centuries of the Common Era. Early Christians rarely addressed the question of what exactly the star was, in terms of an astronomical event." (See: "A New Star on the Horizon: Astral Christologies and Stellar Debates in Early Christian Discourse" by Nicola Denzey, in Prayer, Magic and the Stars in the Ancient and Late Antique World, edited by Scott Noegel, Joel Walker, and Brannon Wheeler (2003, Page 208).)
Jewish Prophecy As Possible Basis For Matthew's Star
The gospel birth stories provide some insight into the conflicting strands of the Jesuine tradition. The Bethlehem tradition linked Jesus to Jerusalem and to the Davidic background.
The Old Testament provides literary sources to enable the particular literary construct in Matthew. In this we have the basis for a process of mythification. There is a reasonable case for believing the material in the Matthaean account has been shaped by Old Testament prophecies. The Matthaean birth narratives exhibit a tendency to seek fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy. The author(s) of the Matthaean birth narrative had the aim of creating a birth narrative able to fit the cultural expectations of the time. A further intent is to convince readers of the validity of Jesus' resurrection and that Jesus is the fulfillment and culmination of Hebrew history.
The birth of Jesus in Bethlehem meets Micah's prophecy that the Messiah would be a descendant of David (and Bethlehem was the city of David).
The Matthaean "Star" likely meets Balaam's oracle (Numbers 24.17) that a star would come forth out of Jacob. (It would appear that it was applied Messianically to Bar-Cochba, "son of the star", who led the Jewish revolt against the Romans during the time of Emperor Hadrian. Interestingly, no actual star had appeared.) Strong parallels suggest that Matthew's story of the "star" and the Magi was shaped by the story of Balaam in Numbers 22-24.
The expectation that the Messiah would be recognized by the Gentiles arose from such passages as Isaiah 60:6. (The appearance of the Magi fulfills the prophecy of Micah 5:2.) The author(s) of the Matthaean birth narrative had the messiahship connected with the birth of Jesus when in fact messiahship was not ascribed until after the belief in Jesus' resurrection.
Rabbinic Messianic Expectations
There is a Rabbinical tradition that at the time of the Messiah's birth, a star will appear in the east and remain for a long time.
According to Rabbinic tradition an unusual (and bright) star appeared in the east ("his star") when Abraham was born. (I am unaware that anybody has successfully maintained an astrological basis for the "Star of Abraham.") Further, there was the star that guided Abraham on his way to Moriah. (See: The Legends of the Jews by Louis Ginzberg, Volume 1, 1909, Chapter V Abraham, Sections "The Star in the East" and "The Journey to Moriah.")
The association between Christianity and Pisces is of late medieval origin. The notion that Pisces was related to Judea or Christianity originated from a Jewish medieval misconception about ancient astrological beliefs. The medieval Jewish scholar Isaac Abrabanel (1437-1508) held certain views regarding the signs Pisces, Aries and Virgo and their associations (See: The "Star of the Messiah" Reconsidered, by Roy Rosenberg in Biblica, volume 53, 1972, pages 105-109.) Isaac Abarbanel held the belief that a Jupiter-Saturn conjunction in Pisces had a connection with Palestine, and in 1463 calculated that such took place three years before the birth of Moses.
Graeco-Roman Herald Stars
Explanations for "The Star of Bethlehem" and "The Journey of the Magi" can be found within the beliefs of the Graeco-Roman world. It is clear that astronomical/astrological explanations are not to be found for all such stories. In the Graeco-Roman world it was generally believed that brilliant stars (or similar devices) foretold or heralded the birth of great persons.
All Graeco-Roman examples of herald stars cannot be simply placed under the umbrella of astrological Herald star beliefs can better placed within the context of folklore beliefs. An example of such beliefs found in non-astrological literature in the Graeco-Roman world, unconnected by people fantasizing about astrological conditions, involves Lampridius and Cicero concerning Alexander (the Great).
Examples of stars as a guide for journeys and also to light the way are the star that marked the way for Aeneas from Troy to the west to the location where he founded Rome; and the celestial fires that led Thrasybulus and Timoleon.
A star reputedly heralded the birth of Pythagoras and Caesar.
An interesting article regarding a non-astrological origin for stars associated with (the birth of) saviours is "The Influence of the Saviour Sentiment upon Virgil" by the classicist Norman De Witt (Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association, Volume LIV, 1923, Pages 39-50). It focuses on Eclogues 4 and 9 written by Virgil circa 37 BCE.
Pagan Precedents For Matthew's Star
The story of the journey of the Three Magi might also be a literary device inspired by an old Iranian story recast in the formula of the journey of the Armenian king Tiridates from Hamadan to Nero in Rome circa AD 66. (The visit was recorded by Dio Cassius, Suetonius, and Pliny the Elder.) This possible Tiridates-Matthew connection is a case for borrowing by analogy (but not astrology). This ignored (i.e., rejected) 19th-century position was recently supported again by the Iranian expert Ernst Herzfeld. (See: Archaeological History of Iran, by Ernst Herzfeld (1934; pages 65-66).)
When Tiridates journeyed to Rome to pay homage to Nero (as a god) his train included Magi, and presents for Nero. (I think that Pliny referred to Tiridates as Magus.) At the end of their journey Nero responded with fetes and the illumination of Rome.
Whilst Tiridates' visit was political it seems the reason he was deifying Nero was because of Nero's horoscope. However, the story of the journey of Tiridates to Rome to pay homage to Nero was about politics - not astrology. Nero told Tiridates to do such and Tiridates obeyed. In the peace treaty of 61 CE Nero had required this visit, to bestow on Tiridates the kingship of Armenia. Tiridates (1) did not voluntarily make the journey, and (2) was not motivated to do so by Nero's horoscope. The reason for the visit of Tiridates to Rome was politics, not astrology. Using astrology to play politics can be judged as politically astute for that time. The horoscope of Nero was an add-in to the scenario.
It would also appear that the journey of Tiridates to Rome became fused with an old Iranian epic concerning a hero who travelled to a distant land. If "Matthew" borrowed motifs from the journey of Tiridates then this is borrowing by analogy, not astrology. Astrology was not the central theme or impetus for Tiridates' journey. (But the horoscope issue regarding Nero perhaps adds force to the case for Tiridates' journey being the source of the details of the Matthaean nativity story. It can be reasonably held that the nativity story in Matthew is late.)
Nero was the anti-Messiah of early Christian legend. (Nero appears as the Antichrist in the 1st-century Sibylline Oracles. The books comprising this collection of prophecies were compiled by Alexandrian Jews and Christians.) If Nero could receive such homage from the Magi then perhaps "Matthew" could not have Jesus receiving less. (A strong common detail between the Matthew's Gospel and the tale of Tiridates is that Tiridates wished to worship Nero as the Magi had also wished to worship the King of the Jews.) Even Herod and his advisors, within the context of Matthew's story, did not see the "star." (The story may have found its way by popular tale into the Gospel of Matthew.) The Matthean account has an undoubted theological purpose (i.e., that Jesus is the expected Messiah and was born in Bethlehem). Interestingly, like the account of the "Magi" in Matthew, it is related that Tiridates and his entourage returned home by another route.
A star reputedly heralded the birth of the Hindu saviour Krishna.
In his The Histories (1.107ff) the Greek historian Herodotus of Halicarnassus (5th-century BCE) reports the story of Astyages, a Median king (6th-century BCE), who consulted with Magi and then tried unsuccessfully to kill his prophesised successor, the child Cyrus. (According to legend Cyrus was his grandson.) In Isaiah 45.1 the term "anointed one" (i.e., Messiah) is applied to Cyrus. Other verses in Isaiah 45.14, 60.6) make reference to the wealth of nations being brought to Israel.
Pagan Saviour Signs
The Zoroastrians had saviour-signs within their religion. (See: "A Dictionary of the Bible" edited by [Sir] William Smith (article "Magi" [by Rev. Edward Plumptre], Volume 2, 1863). The last revised edition I am aware of was published circa 1979.)
A number of writers quote a remarkable prophecy attributed to Zoroaster (flourished circa 600 BC?) which runs: "You, my children, shall be the first honoured by the manifestation of that divine person who is to appear in the world. A star shall go before you to conduct you to the place of his nativity, and when you shall find him, present to him your oblations and sacrifices, for he is indeed your lord and an everlasting king." (See the booklet: Our Pagan Christmas by R. J. Condon (National Secular Society, 2000). Incidentally, Condon has: "... the Wise Men came from the East to Jerusalem according to the prophecy of Zoradasht." See also: Monumental Christianity by John Lundy (1876).) Though it has been denied that this particular prophecy is part of the authentic Zend-Avesta (i.e., it is simply not to be found in the Zend-Avesta) something resembling it was certainly known to the author of the "Arabic Gospel of the Infancy" (an apocryphal gospel of Catholic origin, circa 600 CE). In this particular document we read: "... magi came from the East to Jerusalem as Zeraduscht [Zoroaster] had predicted." This prophecy could well have been known to the writer(s) of the nativity story in Matthew's gospel. The influence of Zoroastrianism is certainly traceable in many other religions.
Two articles, both by Gherardo Gnoli, in "The Encyclopedia of Religion" edited by Mircea Eliade (1987) are interesting. The article "Saoshyant" (Volume 13) has the statement: "The doctrine of the future saviour had already taken shape in the Achaemenid period (sixth to fourth centuries BCE). ... A similar concept, that of the future Buddha, Maitreya, was most likely indebted to it, and Christian messianism can trace it roots to the same source." The article "Magi" (Volume 9) has the statement: "The Zoroastrian doctrine of the Saviour of the Future (Saoshyant) was the basis for the story of the coming of the Magi to Bethlehem in the Gospel of Matthew (2:1-12)."
An additional reference in which the author maintains the same position as Gherardo Gnoli is: I Magi a Betlemme e una predizione di Zoroastro by Giuseppe Messina (Rome, 1933).
The Zoroastrian prophecy of a future saviour and also the story of the Journey of Tiridates can provide the basis for the Matthaean narrative of the "Star" and "Magi" which in all likelihood are narrative fictions comparable to haggadic midrash. (Astronomers do not continually waste their time attempting an astronomical identification of "herald stars" and "saviour signs" in antiquity. These are readily accepted as literary fictions.)
Sumerian Origin Of Celestial Signs
It obviously can't be determined what the origin of the star story was. It can be concluded that the birth stories in the gospels are without historical merit. Occasional references to celestial signs exist in texts from the Sumerian period. One of the earliest and clearest references to a celestial sign dates to the Sumerian "Gudea Cylinder A," circa 2,600 BCE, where the goddess Nisaba tells Gudea, with a sign sent in the form of a bright star, when to begin construction of Ningirsu's temple. The ultimate origin for the latter Graeco-Roman belief in herald stars probably lie within ancient Mesopotamian beliefs. All modern attempts to identify an actual historical "star" are clearly mixing fact and fiction in a confusing manner.
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