Birth.good.birth.evil.xmas.2019.print.copy.final

BEHOLD, WISE MEN FROM THE EAST CAME1
:
A Ring’s Tale Backstory2
By John R. Wible, December 25, 2019
John’s Thirty-Ninth Annual Christmas Poem
Lou was a scientist, a forensic specialist, well, at least a budding criminologist. In fact, she
was eleven years old, but she loved NCIS, CSI (fill in the blank with your favorite city,) and
she wanted to be a forensic scientist some years hence. As it always does once a year,
Christmas Day was drawing nigh for "Poppi," Lou, Sally and the rest of the family. Unlike in
the real world, in Poppi's "mind - palace," Lou and Sally, his "double-barreled"
granddaughters, loved his stories, a mix of history, fancy, and (frankly) conspiracy theories.
In fact, it was said of him, that Poppi couldn't tell the difference between the
aforementioned literary forms, much to the delight of his two granddaughters and to the
consternation of his wife, who had to live with Poppi's "mind - palace" the rest of the year.
As the family was making last-minute preparations for Christmas, one item was the set-up of
the manger scene together with its figurines. As the granddaughters carefully (sort of)
unboxed the porcelain pieces, Poppi was reminded of the story of the “Three Wise Men.”
In his “mind-palace,3
” Poppi had explored that story and had actually studied a bit of reading
on the subject. In fact, the story of “The Three Wise Men” figures, in no small way, into the
chapter entitled: “The Birth of Good, the Birth of Evil,” which, itself, finds its way into the
meta-narrative that lives in that “mind-palace,” The Ring’s Tail. The story that follows
herein-below will ultimately be influenced by the traditional, vel non, story of the Wise Men,
especially into who they were, into their place of origin, and into the ‘STAR’ that guided them.
Who, in detail, they really were or may have been, their points of origin and their ultimate
destination is beyond the scope of this Christmas Story and will be explored in a later
writing.
Despite the fact that the temperature this particular Christmas Eve turned out to be its
1
Matthew 2:1. (NRSV.)
2
This story is a prequel to the story from two years ago, The Ring's Tale. As with last year's story, this work takes
place almost two thousand years ago. This story is based on the books, Mystery of the Magi: The Quest to Identify
the Three Wise Men, by Dwight Longenecker and The Star of Bethlehem, The Legacy of the Magi, by Michael
Molnar. This tale begins the two-millennium-long story arc involving a family, a ring, a painting, and the Words of
Levi, the original, holographic notes of St. Matthew, the Apostle who recorded the words and deeds of Jesus.
3
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s famous detective, Sherlock Holmes famously retreated frequently into his “mind-palace”
to solve his cases.

2Behold, Wise Men from the East Came
seasonal crisp and cold, Poppi and Lou decided to bundle up and take a long walk right after
supper. Sally preferred to watch videos of “Peppa Pig.”
Poppi and Lou, the older granddaughter, decided to walk in the hayfield adjacent to the
house, the field that, in the daylight shown a golden-white colour in grass season and a muted
crimson when the clover was in bloom.
At night, however, when the moon had risen, its iridescent glow falling upon they hayfield’s
surface, that same hayfield transformed itself into a long expanse of a snowy lawn from a
Clement Moore poem, or into a Scottish moor from Sir Walter Scott’s pen, or maybe into the
vast Arabian Desert, the Ar-Rub'al-Khali, in Arabic, the “Empty Quarter,” that ripples in the
south from Yemen to the Persian Gulf and from Oman to Jordan, north to Iraq. The Desert,
the “Rub'al-Khali,” occupies most of the Arabian Peninsula, an area of some 900,000 square
miles.4
It borders the River Jordan and thus, Palestine, a significant fact in this telling of the
story.
As Poppi and Lou walked the field, suddenly, a "shooting star" emerged from behind Pollux in
the Constellation Gemini located in the Northern Hemisphere's Second Quadrant. The "star"
shone brightly enough and “flashily” enough to catch the attention of both Lou and Poppi.
“Perhaps, the ‘shooting star’ is a part of the tail-end of the annual Geminids meteor shower,”
Poppi observed unbidden and as though he knew something about that which he was saying.
Lou, ever the quick-wit, sarcastically quipped, “Thank you, Jim Cantore.5
” It seems, however,
that Poppi never got the memo, took the hint, or got the message. To Poppi, there are words
that must be spoken whether anyone cares or is listening.
Tonight, the Arabian Desert came to Poppi’s mind as, apparently, it did to Lou’s. Perhaps the
cause was the shimmer of the moon across the field or was the sudden “falling star” that
caught the attention of both of them and that prompted Lou’s upcoming question, the
question that sets the story in motion – perhaps like that “falling star.”
“Poppi,” Lou began, “As we were setting up the manger scene, I started wondering about
something, something in the manger scene, something about the Christmas Story.” Poppi
4
See: "Rub Al-Khali, a photo and short description". A Lovely World.
5
Meteorologist at the Weather Channel whose presence near any beach in the United States frequently panics
sun-bathers as he is known as the harbinger of the “ground-zero” of a hurricane’s landfall.

John R. Wible3
looked at her and nodded.
Lou continued, “It’s the story itself. Like I understand that Jesus was born and all that stuff,
but it’s the shepherds, the stars, the gifts, the wise men – all that other stuff. It’s a pretty
cool story, I guess.” Her scientist’s mind opened like the petals of a nascent poinsettia. “OK,
the shepherds I get. These people were shepherds, and I suppose that shepherds would be
‘out in the fields' watching the sheep to keep away the wolves and tigers.”
“Tigers?” Poppi interrupted, “Could you possibly mean ‘wolves and Judean lions?’ I’m pretty
sure there aren’t any tigers in that part of the world – at least not for quite a few hundred
miles.”
“OK, ‘lions,” Lou followed on with a “w-h-a-t-e-v-e-r” expression, a little annoyed at with the
sense of balance and correctness (some would describe it as “anal-retentiveness”) that
existed only in Poppi’s “mind-palace.
“L-i-o-n-s,” Lou repeated with sarcastic emphasis. She hesitated a minute then soldiered on.
“But something about parts of that story bothers me – the ‘Wise Men from the East.’ Is that
part actually true? It always makes me think of Christmas programs at church with the old
men dressed up in bathrobes, dumb pointy hats made out of cardboard from laundered shirts,
and fake beards. They look more like birthday-party magicians than ‘Wise Men.’ Is that even
possible, I mean, why would ‘Wise Men from the East’ come to see Jesus be born?”
“I know He was to be the King, but then, at that moment, He was a son of a nobody from an
out-of-the-way, back-water village and now, in a strange town. And – in a stable? ‘Wise Men’
riding across the desert on camels in a caravan – really? Doesn’t this sound more like
something somebody put in there just to add some ‘woo-woo factor' to the story?”
Lou’s questions or statements of disbelief actually gave Poppi the opportunity to begin his
story. This would be the beginning of The Ring’s Tale. This episode was "The Birth of Good,
the Birth of Evil: A Ring's Tale Backstory."
Poppi began, “You’ve just asked a question that scholars have debated for a couple of
thousands of years. They call it ‘the Pious Fiction Theory.”
"Really?" Lou looked puzzled.
“OK,” Poppi continued, “The theory holds that the writer of the Book of Matthew or someone

in the faith, made up and added the 'Wise Men’ story to make the case to his readers that
Jesus’ birth was really a kingly birth, one of recognized importance despite the actual facts.
But you, my dear, are a woman of science. You like facts – and mysteries. Let’s look at the
facts and see if we can solve the mystery.”
“Do you remember what Matthew says about the so-called ‘Wise Men?”
“I think so,” Lou replied. “I’ll see if I can quote it.” Surprisingly, she could.
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi
from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born
king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”
When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. When
he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he
asked them where the Messiah was to be born. “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they
replied, “for this is what the prophet has written: ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land
of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will
come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.”
Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the
star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully
for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and
worship him.”
After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen
when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child
was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they
saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then
they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense,
and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they
returned to their country by another route.6
“Very good!” Poppi exclaimed. “I’m impressed. I think you got it ‘word for word’ – and the
words are important. How did you learn it?”
6
Matthew 2:1-12 (NIV.)

John R. Wible5
“I had to learn it for a church play, a Christmas pageant. I wanted to play Mary, but they
made me be the narrator – so I had to learn the whole story. That’s helpful for this
story, isn’t it,” Lou said with an impish grin.
“Precisely, Grasshopper,7
” Poppi beamed. “If we’re going to solve this case scientifically,
we need to gather the facts first, right?”
“Right,” agreed Lou.
“So, who wrote the story?” Poppi began to build the case
“Matthew?” inquired Lou, wondering where this train was going.
Poppi opined with a lawyer’s answer. “That’s right in one sense. Perhaps, a majority of
scholars think that the final manuscript, the hand-written document that made it into the
Bible, was indeed originally written by Matthew the Disciple in the middle part of the
First Century. That document that I call ‘The Words of Levi,’ probably included
Matthew's notes on what Jesus said and did, maybe John Marks’ account of the events,
and perhaps writings from another source now lost in the ages.”
“While Matthew probably wrote his original work in his native Aramaic, that was the
common language for average people in the day, perhaps a few years later, someone,
possibly a disciple of Matthew’s, collected Matthews notes, edited them, and rewrote
them in the Greek language in which most of the New Testament was written.8
Lou, do
you know any Greek?”
Unfazed by what she considered a ridiculous question, Lou retorted, “Sure, Poppi, I know
a little Greek – he runs a deli on the Courthouse Square in Philly.”
“Smart mouth!” Poppi returned, “That’s a really dumb joke.”
Lou again unfazed: “Of course it is – you taught it to me.”
“Touché,” Poppi had to agree. Poppi continued, “. . . and, Lou, in what religion was Matthew
raised?”
7
Reference to the TV show, “Kung-Fu. (1972-1975).” In flashbacks to his schooling as a Shaolin monk, young Kwai
Chang Caine frequently is referred to as “Grasshopper” by his mentor, Master Po.
8
Longenecker, Dwight. Mystery of the Magi: The Quest to Identify the Three Wise Men.

“A Jew, wasn’t Matthew a Jew?”
“Yes, he was. And who was Matthew’s audience?” Poppi continued.
“Christians?” Lou hazarded another guess.
“Right again,” Poppi continued, “but not just ‘Christians’ in general, Christians in his time
and place – perhaps second-generation Christians in First Century Palestine and
particularly in Syria, and Asia Minor. By that time, the epicenter of Christianity had
decidedly moved north of Judea. Maybe he had in mind some Jews, too, whom he’d like to
influence. Why do you think it’s important to know who the audience was?”
Lou gave an “I don’t have a clue” shrug of her shoulders. Poppi answered his own question
with a series of follow-up questions.
“Do you think that there might be things that Matthew would say or not say or the way
he would say it if he assumed that the audience would know what he was talking about?”
Lou gave an indication of still not understanding.
“When you’re investigating a mystery and interviewing witnesses, it’s always important to
see things from the witness’ point of view. That way, you can get a better idea of what
your witness is saying. Sometimes words can mean different things, can’t they?”
“Miss Investigator, witnesses rarely give ‘just the facts, ma'am.9
’ Despite the idea that
the investigator only wants facts, the witness usually tells a story, and she tells it from
her perspective, her view of life - a story, not just the simple, plain facts. The witness
will usually make the assumption that the hearer of the story will understand certain
things. That's why she uses the words she does. N'est-ce pas10
?”
Lou again looked puzzled, gently guiding Poppi back to his story minus the cutesy French
sayings.
“That's going to be important to help us interpret some of Matthew’s words. Matthew
was writing in the middle or late part of the First Century perhaps from the Syrian city
of Antioch.11
9
“Just the facts, Ma.am, just the facts,” is a line frequently spoken by Jack Webb in the Dragnet TV show.
10
French. Isn’t it so? Am I not right?
11
Noland, John, The Gospel of Matthew: A Commentary on the Greek Text.

John R. Wible7
Lou interrupted what was now becoming a lesson in “Investigative Tips and Techniques
101,” a subject about which both she and Poppi knew that Poppi was ignorant. “OK, Poppi, I
get that Matthew was a Jew writing from – where was it?”
“Antioch of Syria.”
Prompted, Lou continued, “Yes, writing from Antioch of Syria, but what does that have to
do with ‘Wise Men’ and ‘stars in the East?”
“Everything,” Poppi retorted. “Everything. Let's look at exactly what Matthew wrote and
find the clues. ‘How about a nice game of...’ Clue©12,13
?”
“What's the first line?” Poppi began.
“After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi . . .”
Lou recited.
“Stop,” Poppi interrupted, "no further. What does this line tell us, Madam Sleuth?”
Lou replied, “Well, I guess it tells us that Jesus was born.” Poppi agreed.
“And born in Bethlehem of Judea . . .”
“Yes, and do you know where that was?"
"Somewhere in the Middle East, I guess."
"Yes, in the country of Judea on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea, just to the
west of the Great Arabian Desert," Poppi continued. "Does Matthew tell us when this
happened?”
“How do I know,” Lou answered. “It doesn't give me a year, does it?”
“Actually, it does,” responded Poppi. “It was ‘in the time of King Herod.’ That must refer
to Herod the Great who was the so-called ‘King of the Judeans,14
’ placed sort of in charge
of Judea and its neighbor to the north, Syria, by the Roman Senate. He was subject, of
course, to his Roman overlords.”
12
©Hasbro toys.
13
The question, “How about a nice game of . . .” is a reference to the final line spit out by the WOPR computer,
Joshua, in the 1983 movie, War Games, starring, inter alia, Matthew Broderick, Dabney Coleman, and Ally Sheedy.
14
Flavius Josephus, The Wars of the Jews.

“From the other material later in the Gospel,15
we know that Jesus’ birth was at the very
end of Herod's reign. Further, it is generally accepted that Herod died in the year 4
BC.16
”
Still further, we know that Herod's death was preceded by a lunar eclipse some 29 days
before Passover.17,18
Eclipses usually signaled death or another bad event,19
and being near
Passover, the Jewish feast day, this eclipse was going to affect Judea – and it did.”
“And the eclipse is important because...?” Lou queried.
Poppi replied, “It’s important because people all over that part of the world in Matthew’s
day, including the Jews, put special emphasis on events that happened in the sky – just
like that ‘falling star’ we saw earlier. Remember from the passage you quoted that there
was ‘a star in the East,’ as the King James Version says? We're going to see why Matthew
included the mention of the ‘star' and why he used those particular words to describe it.
As I said earlier, Matthew’s word-choice is important. Let's continue. What's the next
phrase?”
"Magi from the East came to Jerusalem. . ." Lou obliged.
"Great," Poppi exclaimed, "Magi." Who are they and from where did the come?"
"Aren't they Persian gurus or something,” Lou asked in an answering sort of way.
"You're on the right track, but the wrong subcontinent," Poppi answered or corrected,
“depending on your point of view.” ‘Gurus' are teachers from India, so these guys aren't
gurus. Most people would place the 'Magi' in Persia, so if this had happened a couple of
hundred years before it did, you might be totally right. Here's a 'little Greek.' Our word,
'Magi,' from which we get 'magic,' from the Greek 'Magoi,' generally thought to be from
the name of a Persian tribe or clan, one of five or six that came to dominate the country
of Persia, later in the time we're discussing. It became known as Parthia. The Magi were
indeed scholars, priests of an ancient religion called 'Zoroastrianism,' and were important
in the Parthian King's court. That is . . . until the coup d'etat."
15
Matthew 2:19-21.
16
Perowne, Stewart H. (2013). "Herod". Encyclopædia Britannica.
17
Flavius Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews.
18
Catalogue of Eclipses, “Eclipse of March 13, 4 BC.”. http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/LEcat5/LE-0099-0000.html
19
Ptolemy, Claudius. Apotelesmatika, or Astrological Outcomes, written in the First Century BC.

John R. Wible9
"Whoa, stop the bus," Lou pleaded, waving her hands in a "surrender" motion. You've
Jumped into French or something that I don't speak. In fact, I don't think you speak it
either - at least, not very good."
"Not very well. I don't speak French very well,” Poppi corrected with a smile.
"See," Lou shot Back. "I knew you didn't speak French, so, why are you using it?"
Calmly Poppi replied, "Coup d'etat is when a group of people try to overthrow the
government unlawfully, like the French Revolution or the Russian Revolution. Some years
before Jesus was born, a bunch of men tried to overthrow the King in Parthia, and the
Magi were part of the plot. They were lucky to survive, but they lost most of their
influence. It's highly unlikely that the King of Parthia would send them as messengers to
look for a King of the Jews. Besides, why would the King of Parthia be interested in a
newborn King of the Jews?"
Lou just shrugged.
"He wouldn't,” Poppi continued. “He'd have no interest at all. And another 'besides,” Poppi
added, "Remember I mentioned that the Romans were the ones actually running Judea?
Well, they controlled a lot more territory in that area: The entire Middle East to the
east as far as the Euphrates River. The Euphrates was the dividing line between the
Roman Empire and the Parthian Empire. If the Parthian king sent his spies to Jerusalem,
they'd have to cross into Roman territory. This would be a serious mistake and would
probably lead to a war with the Romans. That's about the last thing he wanted.20
”
"And still another 'besides.’ Besides, by the time of the birth of Jesus, the word, 'Magi'
had become a generic word meaning, 'court magician' or 'astrologer,' or 'wise man who
advises the king.' It's like the word, 'JELL-O®,21
.' JELL-O®
' is actually a trademarked
word that refers to a certain brand of red and green jiggly stuff, but the word has been
used so much that it now could mean, 'any brand of red or green jiggly stuff.' It's
generic; It's lost its specific meaning. Likewise, the word, 'Magi' could refer to wise men
from any one of several countries, not just Parthia or Persia. They wouldn’t have to be
Zoroastrian priests, either, just court scholars, advisors, or ‘wise men.”
20
Longenecker, supra.
21
JELL-O is a registered trademark of Kraft Foods, Chicago, Illinois.

“Cool,” Lou fawned, not wanting to show actual interest (because that would not be cool.)
“If the ‘Three Wise Men’ were not from Persia, or Parthia, or India, then where?”
“Hold up,” Poppi again interrupted, “You’ve now added the word ‘three.’ How do you know
there were three wise men? Does Matthew give us that information?”
“Sure, he does,” Lou replied, confidently. It says it right there in the plain text.”
“Does it,” Poppi inquired, secretly amazed that his eleven-year-old granddaughter had
used the phrase, ‘plain text,’ a scholarly term of art. “Perhaps,” he wondered, “some
scholarship has begun to rub off.” But then, again, he reeled his pride back in realizing
that she already was a budding scholar and if so, it wasn’t from any of his influence. “And
where in the ‘plain text’ does it say that there were three wise men? I don’t see it in
Matthew. Maybe it’s from Second Hezekiah.22
”
Poppi could see the wheels turning in Lou’s mind. She was probably reciting the books of
the Old Testament in her head. “Poppi, I don’t think there is such a book.”
“Exactly, Grasshopper!23
” punctuated Poppi with a grin. “It isn’t there, not in ‘Second
Hezekiah’ and not in Matthew’s Gospel. Matthew tells us that there were three gifts, but
nowhere does he number the wise men.”
“So, where do we get the idea of ‘three’ Wise Men?” Lou fell into the “usual trap.”
“Tra-di-TIÓN!”24
Poppi sang out lustily, as his voice “cut through the still night air.25
” “That
assumption has been added over the centuries by tradition as have a lot of other things
such as items we’d see in the typical manger scene.”
Lou was non-plussed, painfully aware of Poppi’s infamous ‘theatrics’ (though she probably
would call them something else less. . . ‘lyrical.’)
By this time, the “Dynamic Duo” had completed three laps around the hayfield, and it was
getting colder. Poppi suggested that they go inside for a while and get a cup of hot
chocolate. Lou, never one to turn down something sweet, agreed to the idea instantly.
22
Second Hezekiah. There is no such book in the Bible.
23
See “Grasshopper,” supra.
24
Poppi referred to the title and opening line of a song from the Broadway play, “Fiddler on the Roof,” sung by the
lead character, Tevia.
25
Yet another “artistic” reference, this one from the Ray Stevens song, “Ahab, the A-rab.”

John R. Wible11
So, inside they went. Poppi headed for the kitchen to heat up the chocolate while Lou
headed for to get another look at the manger scene.
Sally had disengaged from her “Electronic Pig,” and by now was beginning to suspect that
she was missing out on something interesting. She noticed that Poppi was making hot
chocolate and wondered if she could have some, too. Poppi nodded approvingly and asked
Sally if she would care to join Lou and him in the hayfield. Sally, certain by now that she
was, indeed, missing out on something, nodded her head with a big smile and went for her
coat. Likewise, Lou traded her our light jacket for a heavier coat as did Poppi. After
“chocolating up” and bundling up, the now “Three Amigos” went back to the field.
Lou was not very talkative, but Sally took up the slack. “What have you two been doing out
in the field?” Sally wanted to find out.
“Oh, we’ve been walking and talking,” Poppi replied.
“Talking about what?” was the obvious next inquiry from Sally.
Lou, a little annoyed that Sally had joined them, attempted to “blow her off” with a
simple, “Stuff, we’ve been talking about ‘stuff.”
Sally, her curiosity now aroused, pressed the issue. “What kind of stuff, what kind of
stuff have you two been talking about?”
Lou, wanting to show Poppi that she had been listening and had at least grasped a part of
what he had been saying, replied, “Wise Men, deserts, magic, and Persian rugs!”
“What?” Sally howled in a high-pitched voice, “prizes, dessert, magic, and Persian cats?”
“Not exactly,” Poppi corrected. We’ve been talking about the story of the Wise Men at
Jesus’ birth.”
“Oh,” was all Sally had.
Lou chimed in, “You know, the Three Wise Men in the manger scene, except that there
were not three of them, right?”
“Not three?” Sally questioned, “but what about the song? You know, "When You Wish
Upon a Star.”

“Sally, do you mean ‘We Three Kings of Orient Are?” Poppi interjected.
“Yeah, right, that one. There are three kings in that song, aren’t there?”
“Sally, the song ain’t right, OK?” Lou interrupted.
“OK, OK, that’s enough. Let’s get back on the subject,” Poppi took a grandfatherly tone
as he cut off their sidebar conversation. “Do you want to hear more of the story?”
A resounding “Yes,” was the expected duet.
“Alright then, back to the story.” Poppi launched himself once more into the fray. “We
were talking about the possible place of origin of the Wise Men, ever how many there
were, and we had deduced that they could not have been ‘Magi’ from Persia or Parthia,
not at least as most people understand who the Magi were. Am I correct, Lou?”
“Yes,” Lou obliged. “I’ve heard all that. If they didn’t come from Persia, then where?”
“I thought you’d never ask,” Poppi replied in kindness, anxious, himself to get on with the
story. “Lou, where does Matthew say they were from?” Lou just squinted, cocked her
head to the left, and cocked her lips to the right. “Think,” Poppi prompted. What’s that
first line again?”
Obligingly, Lou again recited more of the first line of the story. “After Jesus was born in
Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the East. . .”
“Stop!” Poppi vocally held up his palm. “Where?”
“The East,” Sally joined in. “They came from ‘the East.”
“Little One Too,’26
where would think ‘the East’ was?” Poppi started to draw her out and
into the conversation as well.”
“Tuscaloosa,” she replied. “Tuscaloosa is east of Philly, isn’t it?”
Lou put her hands on her hips in exasperation and blurted out, “Crazy, you’re crazy. The
‘Wise Men’ didn’t come from Tuscaloosa. Frankly, I’m not sure if there are any ‘wise men’
in Tuscaloosa.”
26
“Little One Too, from the children’s book of the same name. This was one of Poppi’s pet names for Sally, the
younger granddaughter.

John R. Wible13
“Well,” Poppi settled the girls down, “No, I’m pretty sure they did not come from
Tuscaloosa, but Sally is right that if you’re in Philadelphia (Philly,) Mississippi, Tuscaloosa
would be ‘east,” wouldn’t it? The point is that where you are determines where ‘East’ is.”
Once again, Lou was bewildered. “Let me explain. First a review, OK? Who wrote the
story? Matthew, right?” Lou nodded while Sally just looked on.
Lou needled Sally a little. “Matthew, Matthew wrote the story of the thr… ah, the Wise
Men.” She corrected herself before “three” automatically emerged from her mouth.
“You are right on the money,” Poppi congratulated. “Matthew was a Jew. He had spent a
lot of time in Judea. If you asked a hundred “Jews-on-the-street, where “East’ was,
ninety-nine would say, ‘Arabia.’ Arabia is right across the River Jordan from Judea. And,
if you go due east across the Jordan. . .”
“Wait a minute,” an astutely smart-mouthed Lou now turned her jets on Poppi, “How did
you get across the River Jordan without ‘drownding?’ Only Jesus could walk on the water.
Am I right?”
“Lou,” Sally invited herself into the issue at hand, “in a motor-boat, goofy!”
“Perhaps not,” smiled Poppi, enjoying the sisterly banter. “There weren’t any motorboats
then, but you would have to take a boat of some sort, probably a sail-powered fishing
boat, like Peter’s, to get ‘cross Jordan again.”27
As they walked in the increasing coolness with the full, “Cold Moon” rising to its apogee,
Poppi “ramped-up” his story. “We were talking about who the ‘Wise Men’ were and where
they came from. First, we have to go back a little in history, back to the time of the
Jews’ Babylonian captivity in the 6th
Century B.C.”
“Have you girls ever heard anything about that, maybe the story of Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abednego or Daniel in the Lion’s Den?”
The sisters nodded in agreement – well, a little bit of agreement.
“As you remember, the Jews from Judea were taken into captivity by the people from a
27
Poppi referenced a line from the old Spiritual, “I Won’t Have to Cross Jordan Again.” Unfortunately, the sisters
didn’t get it. They were only eleven and seven.

place called ‘Babylon’ because they had been unfaithful to God. Is this ringing any bells?”
Again a “quarter-hearted” nod of agreement.
“Well, after the captivity which lasted 70 years, not all the Jews returned to Judea.
They went to different places. One of those places was northern Arabia. You see, unlike
today, the Jews had a lot in common with these Arabians, sometimes called Arabs. Do you
remember the story of Abraham? There’s a song about him, and I’ll bet you’ve heard it.”
At that, Poppi broke into song. “Father Abraham had many sons, many sons had Father
Abraham. And I am one of them and so are you. So, let’s just praise the LORD.” At that,
the sisters did remember the song and joined in. The three of them sang a few choruses.
Poppi continued. “One of the ‘sons of Abraham’ was the father of the Arabs. Since
Abraham taught him about God, He had the same religion as Abraham. If you will
remember from the story, Abraham migrated to Judea, and quite a few generations
passed. His great-great-great ETC. grandchildren were taken into slavery in Egypt where
they stayed for 400 years. Then God sent Moses to lead them out and back to Judea, the
Promised land. Moses made a great many changes to their religion, all approved by God.”
“But, over the years, the Jews sort of lost the main idea. They got caught up in the
details and forgot the bigger picture. That’s what led to their Babylonian captivity. But
this part of the story isn’t about the Jews, it’s about the Arabs. Remember those
descendants of Abraham that were in the Arabian desert?
Again, “sort-of” nods.
“Well,” Poppi continued, “Many of the Arabs still held to the original faith that Abraham
did. Now, they mixed this faith with the local religions, but the center-part of Abraham’s
faith was still in their hearts. It is to these people that some of the Jews went after
captivity instead of returning to Palestine.”
“When the freed Jews moved into northern Arabia, they found a home and a similar
religion, albeit without all the trappings, the ‘showy’ stuff.”
“One of the places they settled was a rocky area called ‘Petra’ which, unsurprisingly
means ‘rock’ in Greek.”

John R. Wible15
Lou rolled her eyes. “Great, we’ve gone from French to Greek words. I don’t understand
any of this, Poppi. What are you talking about?”
“OK,” Poppi slowed himself down, “Forget the Greek words. Just remember that there
was a rocky place called ‘Petra.’ It was a grand place. Those Arabs really knew how to
carve things out of the rocks. They even carved the faces of elaborate buildings around
the mouths of caves. Over time, Petra became a beautiful city with many of the
rock-carved caves.”
“How do you know that,” Lou asked, now intrigued.
“Because they are still there. The carved rock faces are still there. You can Google®28
it if
you don’t believe me. In fact, the most famous one, called, ‘They Treasury’ took an
important place in the movie, ‘Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.’ Did either of you see
that one? “
Sally decided to thaw out her lips. “Ah. . . no, I don’t believe I did. Was it made in olden
times before they made movies?”
Lou chided her, “Silly, how could they make a movie before they made movies? Besides, if
it didn’t have Peppa Pig in it you wouldn’t have seen it anyway.”
“A lot you know,” Sally rejoined. “Have you seen it, Miss Kleptologist?”
“That’s criminologist, for your 4-1-1!” Lou came back, “And no, I don’t think I saw it, for
your ‘inform’. They made that movie before I was born.”
Poppi put an end to the bickering. “Indeed, they did make it before either of you were
born, but that’s really not that long ago, is it? It’s still out there on the ‘net.”
“See, ‘Pig-Head,” Lou put in sideways.
“OK, that’s enough of that.” Poppi raised his voice, getting tired from the walk and the
cold. “Let’s get back to the story before we have to go inside. I still have the most
important part to tell.”
Lou calmed down. “What’s that?”
28
® “Google” is a registered trademark of Google, LLC.

“The STAR,” Poppi almost whispered, “the STAR of Bethlehem.’ Since Petra and its
beautiful carved cave entrances were made of rock, it was very hard for anybody to
break into it. It was easy to defend against invaders, and because of its location in
northern Arabia directly in the middle of the trade route between the Gulf of Aqaba to
the south and Damascus, Syria to the north, it became a very wealthy trading city.
Because of that, the people of Petra became skilled merchants especially to the caravans
of camels that would pass by.”
“What do you think they had the most of?” Poppi tried to get the sisters back involved
and interested.
“I dunno,” Lou replied.
“Me neither,” echoed Sally.
“Think, Kiddos, think. From Matthew’s story, what is the merchandise, the goods that the
‘Wise Men’ brought?”
“Gold, frankincense, and myrrh,” both replied in unison.
“Yes!” Poppi spoke excitedly. The people of Petra cornered the market on gold,
frankincense, and myrrh. In the naming of those three items, Matthew has told us where
the ‘Wise Men’ came from. They came from the place where there were a lot of those
three things.”
“In those days, when you visited a king, it was the custom to take gifts. Those gifts
should be of the most valuable things your country had. In the case of Petra, the most
valuable things were gold, frankincense, and myrrh.”
“Now we know the place from which came the ‘Wise Men.’ And, we’ve already determined
that the ‘Magi’ had dispersed all over because of the failed coup. Some of them must
have taken up in Petra and become court advisors to the King of Petra. They were the
‘Wise Men from the East.”
“Wow!” beamed Lou with her eyes as big as the Cold Moon. Sally, likewise, was now into
the plot completely.
“So, who were the ‘Wise Men,’ how many were there, and where did they come from?”

John R. Wible17
Poppi sought as a review.
“I know, I know,” answered Lou, proud of herself for remembering. “We don’t know how
many there were because Matthew doesn’t tell us. They may have been Magi originally
from Persia or Parthia, now court advisors to the King of Petra, and they lived in Petra, a
very rocky place.”
“Yes, yes.” Poppi laughed. “You’ve got it just right. I’m proud of you. But there are two
more parts to the story. What was the ‘STAR’ and why did they care?” Lou and Sally just
looked at each other blankly.
Poppi set up the next part of the story. “Let’s ask ‘why’ first.”
“The King of Petra was in a difficult place – literally. Can either of you tell me why?”
Sally had no clue, but Lou had a thought. ‘Wasn’t Petra located between Persia or Parthia
and Judea which was under the control of the Romans?”
“Yes!” Poppi almost shouted. “Exactly. He was ‘between a rock and a hard place,’ so to
speak. He had the powerful Parthians to his east and the more powerful Roman-controlled
Judea to his west. It would be really good for him to play up to the Romans, and the birth
of a new Judean king would be just the excuse he needed. He could send a delegation,
loaded down with royal gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, and salute the new Judean
king. But how did he know when to load up the welcome party?”
“The STAR!” Lou and Sally whispered in unison.
“Yes, the ‘STAR,” Poppi agreed. “But what was the STAR?”
If the girls had had seats, they would both be on the edge of them because they now
were fully engaged with Poppi’s story. They knew about what they thought was the “Star
of Bethlehem,” but now, they wanted to know the “rest of the story.”
“The ‘STAR,” Poppi began, knowing this was perhaps the most interesting part of the
whole story, “Lou, Miss ‘Remembers the Whole Text,’ what does Matthew say about the
star?”
Lou had to think a minute, going through the story in her head. She recalled,” We saw his
star when it rose and have come to worship him.”

“Good,” commented Poppi, “Is there more?”
“Yes,” she said, a couple of more places.”
Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the
star had appeared.
. . .
After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen
when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child
was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.
“Does it say anything else?”
“I don’t think so,” Lou replied, once again cocking her head and mouth to the left.
“I don’t think so, either,” reassured Poppi. That’s not much to go on, is it? What do
you girls think it could have been?”
They thought a minute. Sally was first to volunteer an answer. “. . . Just a ‘STAR,’
like the one in the manger scene, big and bright, shining its light in front of the
Wise Men and then on the manger or, maybe it could be an angel.”
“Yes,” Poppi acknowledged. “I’d call that star a ‘Magical Star.’ And the angel idea is
a possibility, too. Does that sound right?” Sally nodded assent, hoping that her
ideas would carry the day – actually the night.
“A ‘Magical star’ is certainly one option. What else could it be, something that is
not so ‘magical?”
Lou chimed in, “A comet? We’ve been studying comets in science class - or maybe a
meteor. We’ve been studying them, too.”
“Good.” Poppi was very proud of their thought process. “What else is ‘up there,” he
said as he looked up to a blanket of heavenly lights that were prominent this
particular night. “Look up at the sky and tell me what you see.” They all looked up.
Sally offered, “Something is moving over there. What’s that?”

John R. Wible19
“An airplane!” Lou cut her off. “That’s an airplane, and I don’t think there were any
airplanes in Jesus’ time.” Sally just stared her down. Poppi wasn’t sure whether
Sally was truly annoyed with Lou for messing with her or if, at age seven, and living
totally in the 21st
Century, Sally could comprehend a time when there were no
airplanes.
Poppi dammed that stream immediately. “There weren’t airplanes – or spaceships –
or satellites – or anything manmade in the sky in Jesus’ time. Just trust me on that
one. Can we all agree on that?” Lou was quick to nod in agreement; however, Sally
wasn’t really so sure. Eventually, she came around, not wanting to look foolish
especially in front of Poppi and Lou. No younger sister wants to be shown up by her
big sister.
“So,” Poppi moved on, “What else do you see – and don’t say radio towers either.”
They all laughed. “Stars?” Sally hazarded a guess.
“Planets?” Lou interjected.
“Anything else, kiddos? Can you think of anything else it could be?” Neither could.
“Miss Scientist,” Poppi addressed Lou with mock-formality, “How would we go about
solving this mystery? Have you learned anything about that in science?”
Lou thought a minute and proclaimed, “Elimination.”
Sally shot Lou a “What?” look.
“Elimination,” Lou continued. “We start eliminating the possibilities until we get to
the one thing it could be. That’s what I’ve read in some of my ‘Crime-Stoppers’
books.”
“Brilliant,” howled Poppi. “Positively brilliant. Eliminate the least probable until you
are left with the possible. Did you know that was part of the ‘Scientific Method?”
Lou did NOT know that, but she nodded in agreement nevertheless.
“What are our possibilities, what have you two named?”

Lou enumerated (though she probably didn’t know that word – perhaps Sally did,
she’s the champion reader in the family.) “An angel, a ‘Magical Star,’ a comet, a
meteor, a regular star, or a planet. That’s about all I can think of.”
“Yes,” Poppi agreed. “May I add a couple of possibilities?” The girls shrugged an
“OK” shrug. “One thing might be a ‘supernova.’ Another possibility is a combination
of one or more of these, OK?”
The girls had no idea what a ‘supernova’ was, perhaps it was a really fast sports car,
but they were willing to play along. “Oh, wait!” Lou remembered, “Swamp gas. That’s
what they always say UFOs are – swamp gas.”
Never one to miss a cheap shot, Sally impishly laughed, “Hmmm, ‘Swamp Gas,’ I
think that’s something that Lou is full of.”
“It’s NOT ‘Swamp Gas,’ OK?” Poppi thought he would say but then realized that it
really wasn’t necessary to pursue that. Instead, he began to help the girls eliminate
the possibilities. “Magical Star or Angel? Possibly, but let’s look at natural
possibilities before we go there. In my experience, God usually uses the natural
laws He created to get the job done.”
“Remember Matthew’s words and think about a meteor. What do you know about
meteors?”
“I know, I know,” Sally instinctively raised her hand as if in class. “Meteors are
space rocks that fall to earth with a bright light.”
“Excellent, ‘Little One Too!” Poppi pushed further. “. . . And how long would a
meteor stay visible? Would it be long enough for the Wise men to see it, to talk
about it, to show it to the king, and then to follow it? Would it reappear to guide
them to Bethlehem after they had talked with King Herod?”
“No,” the “Scientist” of the group answered emphatically. “I think meteors only
last a few seconds.”
“Yes, like that ‘falling star’ we saw earlier this evening. That’s what a ‘falling star’
is, a meteor, a space rock the burns up in our atmosphere, our air. So, can we rule
out a meteor?”

John R. Wible21
The sisters nodded.
“Let’s consider an actual star, not a ‘magical star,’ but an actual star,” Poppi pursued
a different line. “Now what was it that Matthew said about the ‘STAR?”
Lou, on cue, answered. “. . . went ahead of them until it stopped over the place
where the child was.”
Poppi asked, “What does that tell us about the star? What does that word, ‘went’
imply?
“Movement,” Lou filled in. “It means the star moved.”
“Yes. Do stars move?”
“They could,” Sally offered.
“Yes, a star could move especially if it were a ‘magical star’, but do they usually?”
Sally had no idea, but Lou did. “No, stars don’t move.”
“Then, that rules out a star, right?”
The sisters nodded.
“What do you think about the possibility of a comet?” Poppi probed. “Haley’s Comet
came around in about 11 B.C. Do you think that could have been the ‘STAR?”
“I guess it could have been,” Lou thought aloud, “but is the timing right?”
“A good question, Grasshopper,” Poppi answered, “The timing isn’t right. A little
later, we’ll see why. Besides, in ancient times, comets were thought of as omens of
bad things like the death of a ruler, not the birth of a ruler.29
Poppi was now developing his argument. “How about planets, do they move?”
“I think so,” Lou said half-heartedly.
“Yes, they do move. They circle – revolve – around the sun at certain speeds and at
certain times. Mathematicians and astronomers can even predict where a particular
29
Rao, Joe. “Was the Star of Bethlehem a Star, Comet ... or Miracle?”

star will be at a particular time on a particular date because we know their circle
times, called orbits. Now, here’s a hard question. Do planets ever stop moving?
“I don’t think so,” Lou responded.”
“Poppi offered an alternative answer. “Doesn’t it depend on where you are?”
The sisters were blank, but Poppi continued.
“All the planets revolve around the sun in certain orbits. We are watching them
from observatories, right? At the same time, we on earth are moving, aren’t we?”
He didn’t wait for an answer. “If we are watching a planet move around the sun,
either with a telescope or just looking at it, and we are moving around the sun at a
different speed, our observation of the planets might make it look like the planet
was moving at a different speed than it really was. Right? In fact, if the speeds of
the Earth and the other planet were right, it could look like, or appear, that the
planet was moving at a different speed, maybe even stop and go backward.”
The sisters looked at him dumbfounded, so Poppi looked around and found two
rocks. He demonstrated his answer with the two rocks. Eventually, the sisters
understood. “The answer was not that the planet actually changed its speed or even
reversed its orbit, but that it merely appeared to do so when viewed from Earth
with the naked eye. The Wise Men, looking at a planet could think that the planet
was stopping and changing direction. That reminds us of what Matthew wrote, that
the ‘STAR’ ‘went before them and stopped over where the child was.”
The sisters had grasped the idea of the rocks circling in different orbits, and they
listened intently to the actual words that Matthew wrote, but Poppi’s next ideas
were going to be harder to comprehend. “Have you girls ever heard of astrology?”
“Sure,” Lou answered, “It’s the study of the stars.”
“Well,” Poppi moved the train down a new track, “Astrology is the study of the
stars and other heavenly bodies like planets, but I think you are talking about
astronomy. That’s what they are teaching you in science class, right.”
“Yes,” Lou took the bait. “But I don’t see the difference.”

John R. Wible23
Poppi tried to clear up the point. “Modern astronomy is the study of the skies for
purposes of science. It’s a very popular field of study now. Astronomers have made
many discoveries that add to everybody’s knowledge.”
“Like what, for instance,” Lou queried.
“Like the current belief, that Pluto is not really a planet but is something else.”
“Yeah,” Sally interjected, “like Mickey’s dog!” Lou just sighed disgustedly. “Trying
to be serious with you is like pushing a rope uphill.”
“That’s a great simile,” Poppi complemented. “Where did you hear that?”
“Oh, from you, I guess,” Lou replied.
“Meanwhile,” Poppi drove the train back to the track. “Astrology is an ancient
practice that ‘Wise Men,’ philosophers, kings, and just about everybody believed in
to tell them what was going to happen in the future. Those who really knew their
stuff could tell that when a certain planet or planet moved in a certain way and in a
certain part of the sky, a particular thing would happen. People in olden days
believed in this, but we don’t today.”
“Olden days, Sally needled, “like when you were our age?”
“Do I really have to answer that?” Poppi scowled at her.
“No. Ignore her.” Lou defended. “Give me an example of astrology.”
“OK,” Poppi continued, “In Jesus’ time and even ‘way before, astrologers grouped
the stars into what they called ‘constellations.’ Each constellation represented a
figure the outline of which they could see in the sky. Have you ever looked up for
the ‘Big Dipper?’
Lou nodded.
“To the ancient peoples, these constellations, like the ‘Big Dipper,’ were not only
beautiful and interesting, they had what the people thought was a sort of
scientific meaning. In fact, you could say that astrology was the first science.”

“The ancients first used the idea of what they saw in the stars probably for
religious purposes. Most ancient cultures, from the Egyptians to the Greeks, to the
Romans, Persians, and Parthians, even to the Jews, thought that the ‘gods’ created
the heavens and lived there. They believed that the positions of the stars were
their gods' ways of telling stories. These stories were about the creation and
other things that had happened in the past, but also about the future. They
thought they could predict the future by careful ‘reading’ of star positions. This
idea went on for hundreds of years.”
“It just seemed like the thing to do to recognize star patterns in the sky, give
them names, and tell stories about them.30
You see, most of these ancient people
believed that there were many different ‘gods,’ not just One God like we do.”
Sally’s eyes enlarged as big as saucers, and she frowned.
“Don’t worry about it,” Poppi reassured. “That was in olden times, long before the
One True God gave us the Bible to tell us the real story.”
“OK, I think I see,” Sally agreed. Lou nodded as well.
Poppi continued, “I’ve been interested in the details of the Birth of Jesus, and I’ve
consulted several writers on the subject. One with whom I am most impressed is a
retired astronomer, Michael Molnar.31
Mr. Molnar wrote that in the years just
before Jesus’ birth, the conditions in the sky were just right to tell ancient
astrologers to be on the look-out for a new King to be born in Judea.”
“He said first that there were four particularly bright stars, called Regal Stars.
These stars were located in certain constellations. One such Regal Star was called
Regulus. Regulus was nick-named the ‘King Star,’ from the Latin word for “King.”
“Mr. Molnar wrote that at a certain time, Regulus was located next to the moon,
and in fact, the moon, that moves around a lot, moved over Regulus covering it up.
Of course, that doesn’t mean anything to you or to me, but it meant something
important to these ancient astrologers. Are you two with me so far?” Poppi asked.
30
Krco, Marko, “What are constellations used for?” Cornell University.
31
Molnar, supra.

John R. Wible25
“Sort of,” Lou answered with a hesitant stare. Sally just began to look dazed.
“I’ll try to get to the point before you two go to sleep out here in the field. There’s
no point in you two ‘keeping watch over sheep’ here.”
Both Lou and Sally smiled pleasantly at the little joke that both of them caught,
though neither thought was particularly funny. They also smiled at the thought
that this harangue might soon be over (though they would not have used the word
harangue.)
“At any rate,” Poppi persisted, “At this time, the sun was in the right place as
compared with the star constellations. That was a sign to the Magi as well.”
“Next, consider the big planet, Jupiter. Do either of you know anything about it?”
Lou piped up, “It’s big, it’s got stripes, and it has a big spot on it.”
“You mean like that shirt you wear all the time, the striped one with the jelly-stain
on the front?” Sally jabbed at Lou, never missing an opportunity to do so. Lou just
frowned - the kind of frown that indicated that this was not EVEN over.
“As I was saying,” Poppi cleared his throat, “Do you remember that I mentioned
that the moon had covered up Regulus, the ‘king star?’ Well, the same thing
happened with Jupiter. Jupiter rose alongside the moon while the moon was itself
on the rise. Then the moon, as it rose, appeared to overtake and hide Jupiter.
Importantly, this was at the right time of the lunar cycle to have significance to
the country of Judea, where Jesus was born. We wouldn’t even notice that, but
astrologers would.”
“And, remember also, that these weren’t just your average astrologers. They were
very familiar both with Babylonia astrology, with Northern Arabian customs and
Jewish interests. So, something happening in Judah, the home of the Jews, would
be very interesting to the Magi and to their king in Petra.”
“And there was another event in the sky that happened a little before this time
that might have been of interest to the Wise Men. This event was so rare that
people studying the stars would have taken notice and believed that something was
up.”

“What if there were a striking planetary grouping, the close conjunction of two or
three planets? One such event happened in 7 B.C. It was Jupiter and Saturn
crossing paths three times between May and December in that year. A second
event happened the very next year, 6 B.C., and it involved Mars, Jupiter, and
Saturn when they were located in the constellation of Pisces, the Fishes.”
“Astrologers and even astronomers call this a triple conjunction. It’s very rare.
From a hilltop in Petra, star-gazers would have seen Jupiter appear to pass very
closely just to the north of Saturn on May 29th
. The same thing happened on
September 30th
. Then, like icing on the star-gazers cake, it happened a third time
on December 5th
.32
A triple conjunction would be a very strong signal to smart
astrologers that something was about to happen of really big importance, maybe of
“Biblical proportion.”33
“Mr. Molnar points out that we know from other sources that King Herod died in 4
B.C. If he were dead, obviously, the Wise Men would not be consulting him about
the newborn King. Lou, what can we deduce from that bit of information?”
Lou came out of her day-dream (actually an ‘evening-dream’) and cocked her head
to the left and her lips to the right. “Jesus would have to be born before 4 B.C.,
right?”
“Wait a minute,” Sally interrupted, “I thought Jesus was born in Year One. Isn’t
our calendar based on the date of His birth?”
“Yes, it is, but along the way, there were some mistakes made in dating. So, Jesus’
birth did not have to be in the Year One,” Poppi countered. “On March 20, 6 B.C.,
just before sunset in Judea, the Moon slid over Jupiter hiding it while the moon
was located in front of the constellation Aries.34
That was a sign that something was
happening, and the Wise Men would have been watching. Probably soon, they would
be consulting the King of Petra to tell him about what they had found.”
“Perhaps, they would have suggested to the King of Petra that they needed to be
ready to ride to Jerusalem. This is especially so because Jupiter did another
32
Rao, supra.
33
Bill Murray as Dr. Peter Venkman in the 1984 movie, “Ghostbusters.”
34
Molnar, supra.

John R. Wible27
interesting thing involving not the moon this time, but the sun.”
“On the morning of April 17th
, 6 B.C., Jupiter was located in the constellation Aries
and was rising early in the morning with the sun. This early morning rising into the
sun is known as a heliacal rising, meaning ‘rising with the sun.”
“Interestingly enough to me, though I’m sure not to you two, the Greek words for
heliacal rising can be translated, ‘in the East.’ It is for that translation reason that
the older translations of the Bible, notably the King James Version, recorded that
there was a ‘star in the East.’ More modern translations translate the phrase,
‘there was a star at its rising’ or ‘as it rose.”
Lou could not resist another barb (in love, of course.) “Poppi, we’re so glad that
you’re a Greek scholar. That way, we don’t have to be, though I do like gyros.”
Sally, not getting the barb, interjected, “Poppi’s not a Greek, he’s an American.”
“But seriously, Poppi,” Lou inquired, “Matthew writes that after the Wise Men
visited King Herod, the Star led them to Bethlehem. How did that happen?”
Poppi replied, “Do you remember when we talked about the rocks circling at
different speeds? Well, at some point, the rock with the shorter circle will come
even with and pass the other rock? If you were standing on the inside rock looking
at the outside rock, the outside rock would appear to slow down and even to go
backward. Astronomers call that a retrograde motion.” That simply means ‘went
backward.”
“Let’s pretend that you were a passenger looking out the window in Kyle Busch’s
race car on the inside circling the track at Talladega at 180 miles an hour. Now,
Junior comes around him on the outside going 190 miles an hour. If you were
watching Junior, he would appear to be coming toward you but as he passed, he
would appear to be going away from you. It’s a matter of perspective – where you
are standing or sitting to watch.”
“Now pretend that in the same race, going the same speeds, you are riding with
Junior looking out the window at Busch, you would see him coming toward you. But,
as you and Junior passed him, Busch would appear to be going backward. That’s

called retrograde motion. Nobody’s speed changed, nobody changed orbit, they only
appear to change because of where you are sitting. Does that make sense?”
“Well, sort of,” Lou answered, fully engaged and serious, “except there are a couple
of things wrong with that example.”
“Oh, really? Poppi wondered.
“Racecar drivers don’t have passengers. Even if they did, I’d never be riding with
Kyle Busch, my Daddy would not let me. And, I don’t think my mother would let me
ride with either one.”
“You’ve got me there,” Poppi had to admit because Lou knew a lot more about racin’
than he ever would. “At any rate, that’s how the star ‘reappeared.’ It merely
seemed to go away and then to return in a retrograde motion because the Wise
Men were seeing it from Earth. But, there’s more to this story.”
“Remember I said that Mr. Molnar wrote that on April 17th
, 6 B.C., Jupiter’s
heliacal rising would have occurred? That’s when the Wise Men from Petra would
have taken off for Jerusalem assuming that the royal birth would take place in
Herod’s Palace, the Herodium,35
about 7 miles south of Jerusalem, on a hill shaped
like a cut-off cone. That hill rises to about 2,100 feet above sea level.”
“Hold it!” Lou interrupted, “I don’t understand the distances here, but I don’t think
a caravan of camels could have traveled across the sandy desert that fast.”
“You’ve caught on really fast, Miss Scientist.” Poppi took up the challenge.
“According to Google Maps®, it's about 500 miles from Petra to Jerusalem, and it’s
not across a sandy desert. The sandy desert is ‘way to the east of Petra. Rather,
Jerusalem is straight north riding in the valley of the Jordan River until you get to
Jericho. From there it’s a steep climb to the west and up to Jerusalem. You are
right, this would take a camel caravan quite a while. But, there’s another fact about
the traditional ‘Wise Men’ story that’s been misunderstood.”
“Where does Matthew say that the ‘Wise Men” rode on Camels? Did they ride in
35
Herod’s Jerusalem Palace that he built on the site of his victory over the Parthians and Hasmonaeans. See Israel
Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Israel Experience, “Herodium - King Herod's Palace-Fortress.” 2013.

John R. Wible29
Kyle Busch’s race car?”
“Ah. . . no,” replied Lou while Sally just stared a blank stare. Besides, it was getting
“pretty nippy” out there, and her little legs were beginning to feel like lead weights
– frozen lead weights. She secretly wished that she had a camel to help her
complete the rest of this trip.
Undaunted and by now oblivious, Poppi persisted. “Precisely, Lou. Matthew just says
the Wise Men ‘came.’ He doesn’t say how.” Poppi paused a minute and looked over
into the neighbor’s field. Just across the fence, he saw two horses. Then he
pointed to the horses. “Horses,” he said, “the Wise Men rode horses.”
“O give me a break,” Lou muttered a little louder than she had intended.
But, Poppi just smiled at her. “Yes, Horses. Another book I read was by Father
Dwight Longenecker.36
He wrote that while it’s true that Arabs ride across the
sandy desert on camels, we’re not talking about a sandy desert or Bedouin Arabs
here, and we’re not in the high desert. We’re in the Nabatean territory of
Northern Arabia – specifically Petra. Arabs did, in fact, ride camels, but camels
were mainly used for pack animals.”
“By this time in history, there was great Roman influence in this region. The
Romans used horses extensively. All the leaders rode horses and their armies
featured horse cavalries. Further, the Northern Arabians were famous for raising
and breeding horses. Even today, the Arabian breed is one of the most magnificent
of horses.”
“The Wise Men living in Petra would have ridden horses. That’s how they got to
Jerusalem so fast. After the Triple Planetary Conjunction, and especially when
they saw the first heliacal rising, they would have been tipped off to the event
that was about to take place.”
Since, as North Arabian Arabs, they would have been well aware of the Jewish
scriptures and the belief in a coming Messiah, they would have consulted the King
of Petra who would have seen the great political value in honoring a new son to be
born to Herod. He would have ordered the Wise Men to make preparations, gather
36
See Longenecker, supra.

their gifts, the local currency of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, and be on their
way.”
“Now here’s another question for you two ‘scholars.’ Did the Wise Men need a star
or whatever it was to guide them from King Herod’s Palace to Bethlehem?”
The sisters shook their heads. Lou muttered under her breath, “yes” as she shook
her head, “no.” Sally picked up on the contradiction and giggled, but Poppi either
missed it or, more probably, ignored it.
“Remember what Matthew said about King Herod’s priests and what the priests
said to the Wise Men?”
“Yes,” Lou recalled, changing her story.
When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. When
he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he
asked them where the Messiah was to be born. ‘In Bethlehem in Judea,’ they
replied, ‘for this is what the prophet has written: ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land
of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will
come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’
“So, the wise men would not even have needed the star to tell them that the place
was Bethlehem because Herod’s men told them that,” Lou surmised. “All they had
to do was go where the King’s men said to go.”
“You have answered well, Grasshopper,” beamed Poppi. “It’s not far at all from
Herod’s Palace to Bethlehem, particularly not on horseback. They would have
headed south to Bethlehem to scour the village for the child.”
“There were other unusual things that happened in the sky around that time, all of
which would not be noticed by the average person, perhaps not even by Herod’s
priests, but would definitely have been noticed by the Wise Men. It may be that
the Wise Men left Herod’s Palace just as the Earth, their vantage point, was
lapping Jupiter causing it to appear to reverse course and ‘go before them.”
“Would they have needed a star or anything else to locate the house, note that
Matthew records the word, ‘house’ indicating that some time had passed since the

John R. Wible31
birth of the Savior?”
The sisters, by now getting pretty tired of “orbiting” the hayfield and probably
‘kicking a dead horse’, just looked at each other with “I dunno” in their blue eyes.
Poppi came to the rescue, “The answer is ‘no.’ Bethlehem was a small village. Even
though it filled up past capacity for the registration that brought Joseph and
Mary there in the first place, those people had all returned to their homes in other
towns. The place was fairly deserted. All the Wise Men would have had to do was
ask the first townsperson they saw.”
“You probably know from school, which is a pretty small population, that very little
that is interesting goes unnoticed, right?” He asked rhetorically. “The same holds
true for a small village especially in Jesus’ time where almost everybody was
related to everybody else.”
“Do you mean like the people that live around our other grandparents?” Sally
braved a question risking a follow-up that would set Poppi onto more of the story.
Lou just looked really hard at Sally then rolled her eyes up to the sky as if to say
with Homer Simpson, “D’oh!” Sally missed the whole eye-roll, but Poppi didn’t, and
he executed a perfect retrograde motion.
“Kiddos, I think we’ve had enough for one evening. I’m getting tired and I’ll bet you
are, too. With that, he headed for the house, which, by now wasn’t far away as
they had been circling, “not unlike Jupiter,” Poppi thought to himself but had the
grace not to pursue.
Back in the house, the three “Wise People” found the rest of the family intently
staring intently at their cellphones.
“We had about given you guys up,” Gam said.
“Yeah, we were about to send out Buck, the bloodhound, to sniff around. “What
were you three doing?” Amy, the children’s mother added.
“Just walking and talking,” Lou replied as she plopped down on the sofa.
“And... ‘star-gazing,’ Poppi added as he sent a glance Sally’s way, but Sally never

noticed; She had dropped to the lap of her daddy, Stacy, and was already asleep.
* * *
An expanded and re-edited version of This Christmas story is in development and,
when finished, will be available online at <johnthebaptist15.com>
To receive a print edition of the expanded version, please contact the author at
<johnwible.wible@gmail.com> or call 334.414.2853.
This truncated version is retitled and used for the sake of appropriateness to the
season and due to space limitations
I wish you the merriest of Christmases and I
hope you see the ‘star’ of Christmas this year

Birth.good.birth.evil.xmas.2019.print.copy.final

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