The Virgin Birth of Jesus Christ 

    This disappearance of the Star was a sign to them that Herod was wicked and not to be trusted. They had 

perhaps made a mistake in going to Herod at all. Since the Star had been lost to their sight for a time, the three 

wise men were overjoyed to see the Christmas Star again, after they left Herod.  When they saw the star, they 

rejoiced exceedingly with great joy .  (Mt 2:10). The Star had reappeared to show them they were again on 

the right path. This disappearance and reappearance of the Star is another indication that the Christmas Star 

was partly miraculous. 

Who Could See the Star? 

    Some commentators have suggested that only the three kings could see the Christmas Star, because it was 

wholly  miraculous and only given to them to see. On the contrary, Blessed Anne Catherine relates that the 

three kings  awoke the inhabitants living near to show them the star. 

191

 They saw the Star in wonder, but did 

not understand its meaning.

192

    Also, she mentions that the shepherds, to whom the angels announced the Birth of Christ (Lk 2:8 20), also 

saw the Christmas Star above the cave where Jesus was born.  They looked about them, and were astonished 

to see a wonderful radiance over the place where the Cave of the Nativity was. 

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    Thus, the star could be seen by many people, but it's meaning was open only to those who were open to the 

Spirit of God. The three kings, when they interpreted the stars and the Christmas Star, found meaning partly in 

the arrangement and patterns in the actual stars, but more so through the inner guidance of the Holy Spirit. 

The Christmas star was a real object, a comet, but it had a supernatural aspect to it. 

One Becomes Two 

    According to Blessed Anne Catherine, when Christ was born of the Virgin Mary, the three wise men saw 

the Christmas Star split in two, forming an image which they interpreted as a picture of a virgin and her child. 

She describes what the three wise men saw in this heavenly sign.  They were on a pyramid shaped tower 

looking through long tubes at the Star of Jacob, which had a tail. The star split asunder before their eyes, and I 

saw a great shining virgin appear therein, before whom a radiant child hovered in the air. 

194

    The splitting of the comet, the Christmas Star, was an actual event seen in the sky which symbolized the 

Birth of Jesus Christ. Comets do split into pieces in nature,

195

 as has been seen in recent years with the 

Shoemaker Levy comet, which split into several pieces before colliding with Jupiter. However, the splitting of 

the Christmas Star was an act of God signifying the Birth of the Savior, not a mere coincidence of nature.

196

Halley's Comet 

    The Christmas Star could not have been Halley's Comet. Halley's Comet was visible from late August to 

mid October in 12 

B.C.

197

 But, according to Blessed Anne Catherine, the Magi did not begin their journey until 

the night of Christ's Birth, very early on November 25, and they ended their journey about December 23, at 

the end of the day.

198

 The time frame for the appearance of Halley's Comet does not match the time frame for 

the journey of the Magi. Therefore, they could not have been guided by Halley's Comet. 

    The three wise men began their journey because they saw the Christmas Star split in two. If Halley's Comet 

had split into two pieces, then its orbit around the sun would have been significantly altered and it would not 

return each time after the usual 75 to 77 year length of time. Halley's Comet appeared in 87 

B.C.

, in 12 

B.C.

and again in 

A.D.

 66, which is a period of about the same length of time.

199

 Also, there is no record of Halley's 

comet splitting in two in 12 

B.C.

Observers of the Stars 

      `Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the East, and have come to 

worship him.'   (Mt 2:2). 

    The Magi were observers of the stars. Their interpretation of signs they saw in the night sky led them to 

understand that the Messiah, the long promised king of the Jews had been born. They came from the East, not 

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