A NASA planetary scientist has offered a new scientific twist on one of the Bible’s most enduring mysteries: the Star of Bethlehem. Mark Matney, writing in the Journal of the British Astronomical Association, suggests that the guiding “star” described in the Gospel of Matthew may actually have been a comet recorded by Chinese astronomers in 5 BC.
“It aligns unusually well with the biblical description”
Historians often place Jesus’s birth around 6-5 BC, making the timing of the comet a plausible match. Matney argues the object could have become visible in early June of that year, shining brightly enough to capture attention, and potentially behaving in a way ancient observers interpreted as movement across the sky.
According to Matney’s analysis, someone traveling south from Jerusalem to Bethlehem would have seen the comet appear to move ahead of them. At one point, he writes, its path might even have made it seem to “stop” overhead for a short period, aligning unusually well with the biblical description.
“It can explain all aspects of Matthew’s pericope”
Matney concludes that this candidate comet “can explain all aspects of Matthew’s pericope,” offering a naturalistic explanation that still fits historical records from both East and West.
The study arrives amid a broader wave of attempts to apply scientific methods to biblical narratives. Earlier this year, British anthropologist Paul Warner drew international attention with an unrelated (and heavily disputed) claim that the body of Jesus and the Ark of the Covenant lay in a hidden chamber beneath the Great Pyramid of Egypt.
Star of Bethlehem // Shutterstock