The Great Christ Comet (45 page)

The comet was present in Aquarius's water (which was, in Bab­ylo­nian zodiacal reckoning, within the sign of Aquarius) for the second of the three Jupiter-Saturn conjunctions in Pisces—the two planets came to within 1 degree of each other from September 26 to October 5, 7 BC. If visible, the comet would have been just under 30 degrees from the planets at this time.

The comet remained in Aquarius's flowing water (and within the Bab­ylo­nian zodiacal sign of Aquarius) for a long time. Strikingly, according to our orbit, the comet was within 1½ degrees of the star
λ
Aquarii all the way from October 22 through to December 20, 7 BC. It was here through the third of the Jupiter-Saturn conjunctions in Pisces, which climaxed on December 1–8 in 7 BC (
fig. 10.5
).

The comet was definitely visible to the Magi by December 10–17, 7 BC (
fig. 10.6
).

Our overview of November 21, 8 BC, to December 17, 7 BC (see
fig. 10.7
), provides a few potentially auspicious celestial contexts for the comet's first appearance, all relating to the triple conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn in Pisces in 7 BC: (1) during the first conjunction in May–June, when the planets came to within 1 degree of each other (May 27–31) and the comet was within 15 degrees of them in the sign and constellation of Pisces; (2) during the second (and closest) conjunction in September–October, when the planets were within 1 degree of each other (September 26–October 5) and the comet was less than 30 degrees away, now in the sign and constellation of Aquarius, specifically in Aquarius's water; or (3) during the third and final conjunction in early December, when the planets came to within 1 degree and 4 arcminutes of each other (December 1–8) and the comet was about 30 degrees from them, still in Aquarius's water.

It is astonishing that John Nolland, in his commentary on Matthew's Gospel, proposed that the Star of Bethlehem was a “new star” that was first observed during the triple conjunction:

One might speculate that a new star appearing close to a near conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn (it has been popular to identify [one of three] near conjunctions of these planets in 7/6 BC with the star of the Magi) might be taken to herald a key royal birth among the Jews, on the basis that Jupiter was the royal planet and that Saturn, as the star of Saturday, was at times associated with the Jews because of their sabbath observance.
17

The Magi would certainly have been more liable to notice a new star in Pisces or Aquarius while they were viewing the conjunction be
tween Jupiter, the planet so closely associated with the Most High God, and Saturn. If the Star first appeared during one of the conjunctions, it might conceivably have transformed the scene into an investiture ceremony—the conjunction may have made it seem that Jupiter, representing God, was granting royal authority to Saturn, and that this authority would be exercised on behalf of Saturn by a ruler represented by the comet. Since oracles and omens marking the births of great kings tended to highlight their royal destiny, a comet appearing at such a propitious moment might have been initially perceived by the Magi to have a natal function (although the comet's dramatic heliacal rising in Virgo in September/October of 6 BC certainly convinced them that the birth occurred then).
18

The planet Saturn was sometimes associated with Israel, and hence the conjunction could have been interpreted to mean that God would bestow sovereignty to Israel. The sudden appearance of a new “star” in that same region of the sky at this point might have seemed to symbolize the investiture of the Messiah, who would rule and reign on behalf of Israel. Whether this would have been the Magi's initial interpretation is questionable, but, as the allusions to Israel and the Messiah became clearer to them over the rest of the cometary apparition, it might well have become their preferred interpretation. A first appearance in Aquarius might (in retrospect) have been perceived to be significant in that it was thought to be ruled by Saturn, the planet of Israel, and Aquarius was sometimes considered the zodiacal sign of Israel.

If indeed there was something auspicious about the first observation of the comet and/or something susceptible to being interpreted as having natal significance, the comet most likely came to the Magi's attention in connection with one of the three Jupiter-Saturn conjunctions. Cometary precedent would favor the second conjunction, in September-October in 7 BC, or the third conjunction, in December.
19

The Comet's Course from December 17, 7 BC, to September 14, 6 BC

According to our orbit, the comet actually remained under the waters of Aquarius until the point at which it disappeared below the western horizon, in January of 6 BC.
20

From Pisces to Virgo

The comet was absent from the night sky completely until late March or early April of 6 BC.
21
During this time Jupiter and Mars came very close to each other, when Saturn was in the vicinity, in what is called a massing or grouping of planets. This occurred in Pisces. Even though the Magi would not have been able to see the comet, they would have known that, if the comet was maintaining its pattern of behavior, it was within 30 degrees of Saturn under the western/advance fish of Pisces and would remain there until the spring. However, the astronomers may well have wondered if the comet might become visible in the dome of heaven sooner than this. After all, they would have been well aware of the fact that at some stage of their apparition many great comets suddenly start moving rapidly across the constellations and become brighter. However, this comet was highly exceptional; it was still far away from Earth and the Sun.

By the time that the comet did reemerge
in the eastern morning sky,
22
it had indeed returned to its home in Pisces, under its western fish.
23
During its period of absence it had moved only about 10–15 degrees from where it had been, and this movement had actually delayed its reemergence. The comet had continued to increase in brightness and size. It would have been something like 3–5 degrees long from the top of its coma to the end of its tail.
24

By mid-April the comet would have been about 5½ degrees long.

The comet remained below Pisces's western fish and the part of the fishing line connected to it through April, May, June, and even July. Of course, during that whole time it would have been growing brighter, larger, and longer. Each night, it appeared higher in the sky and remained visible for a more extended period before dawn's light bleached it from view.

John the Baptist was born 5 to 6 months before Jesus—this would have occurred in late April or in the early or middle part of May. That is right around the time when the comet would have been becoming a prominent feature in the night sky. It was on the occasion of John the Baptist's birth that, according to Luke 1:78–79, Zechariah, John the Baptist's father, prophesied concerning the imminent coming of the Messiah in terms of a celestial body rising.
25

By mid-May the cometary coma, its apparent length now greater than the Moon's diameter, was appearing more than 3 hours before sunrise and would likely have had a magnitude (-0.1) greater than Arcturus, the fourth brightest star in the night sky.
26
The comet may have been about 11 degrees in length. At this time the comet was “swimming” around the border region between the constellations Pisces and Cetus the Sea-Monster.

The comet's extremely slow motion through the sky for such an extended period, even as it brightened and its tail and coma grew, must have struck the Magi as very peculiar. They would not have known that this unusual behavior was because the comet had become visible much farther from Earth than other comets that appeared in their skies.

By mid-June the comet's brightness (-1.8) would have surpassed that of Sirius, the brightest star, approaching that of Jupiter. It would have been brighter than Hale-Bopp was during its entire 1996/1997 apparition.
27
The comet as a whole may have been about 18 degrees long. The coma may have been about the size of Hale-Bopp's at its largest. In length the coma may have been greater than the Moon's diameter. It was now appearing almost 5 hours before dawn. The comet was in the midst of an apparent sharp celestial U-turn in Pisces. This marked the beginning of its long journey across the sky to the Sun, although this would not become obvious until July.

By mid-July the comet would have been spectacular by any standard. With a mag
nitude like that of Venus and a large coma (perhaps over 2 degrees long), the comet, now almost as long as the Big Dipper, must have been very eye-catching. It was now becoming visible seven hours before sunrise. Since it was appearing each night within a few hours of sunset, it inevitably would have become a talking point within the general population all across the northern hemisphere. In outer space, the comet was about as far from Earth as Earth is from the Sun, and was fast approaching the orbit of Mars.

The comet's procession to the Sun was truly majestic. No comet in recorded history ever put on a display like this. From the western fish of Pisces, the comet passed through the constellations Aquarius (July 26–August 8), Capricornus (August 8–13), and Sagittarius (August 14–21), past the right foot of Ophiuchus (August 21–24), and traversed Scorpius (August 25–September 2) and Libra (September 3–21) before ending up at the star
λ
Virginis (see
fig. 10.8
). This was the location of Virgo's left foot, according to the Greeks, but of both of her feet in the conceptualization of Revelation 12:1. The Sun was a couple of degrees from Virgo's brightest star, Spica, at the time.