Today the catholic church celebrates the celebration ” HOLY THREE KÖNIG” , its Greek name EPIPHANIA actually means ” ERSCHEINUNG”. In the east church this day is celebrated as birthday of Christ.The “Star of the Magi” can be regarded as an objective phenomenon.
The New Testament is virtually devoid of astronomical allusions. The episode from the Matthäus gospel, the only who mentions it, describes its historical base. With the magician from the east are obviously member of a Babylonian priest caste meant . The Persian priest class was concerned with astronomy and astrologie, which operated already at the time of Jesu astronomy on astonishing high level.1925 found to archaeologists in Iraq a cuneiform script board, on astronomical events. For the year 7 v. Chr., the probable birth year of the historical Jesus, the cuneiform script forecasts a close conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn, which ” researchers in the meantime think was the Biblical; Star of Bethlehem”. Babylon was leading in Astronomy, which up to Kepler was closely intervined with Astrologie. Kepler mentioned in 1606, the hypothesis that a remarkable of Jupiter and Saturn, which occurred in May of the year 7 B.C., was the celestial sign followed by the Wise Men. Today in any astronomy program this can be proofed.The evangelist Matthäus reports us in his gospel (Kap.2, 1-13) of the visit of three Magier (magi) from the morning country. The term in Greek reads ” Magoi – Magier. The term ” Morgenland” points probably to a country in the east (where the sun comes up in the morning!). In which country it really happened, cannot be constituted according to the Biblical report. In any case Matthäus refers to the Balaks narration in Old Testament (4.Mose 22-24). The gifts they bring along – gold, dedicating smoke and myrrhe – are likewise liturgically to be understood: They point to the king (gold) to the priest (dedicating smoke) and to the physician (Myrrhe). Thus the prophecy Jesajas is fulfilled (Jes. 60,2),which speaks there: ” The herdsmen will pull the kings to your light and to the shine which rises over you; Since these three beside the herdsmen were first, who looked for and found the Jesuskind, they were in the course of church history refered holy and we speak of ” Holy three Königen”. From this a rich tradition developed, not least the star singing. The old holiday” Epiphanias” dedicated – ” Day of the holy three Könige” is dedicated to them.