Important Dates in the Lives of Jesus and Mary 

looking for any mere human king, but a king who was Divine, for they came to worship Him (cf. Mt 2:11). 

Guided by the grace of the Holy Spirit, they understood signs in the stars, which were not understood even by 

the religious leaders of the Jews. The chief priests and scribes of the Jews knew where the Messiah would be 

born, but not when (Mt 2:4 6). Herod had to find out from the Magi when the star first appeared (Mt 2:7). 

    Some commentators have suggested that the Magi could have arrived many months after the Birth of Jesus 

Christ. This theory is contradicted by the visions of Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich, who stated that the 

wise men started their journey the day of the Birth of Jesus Christ (November 25) and arrived about a month 

later (December 23).

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 Sacred Scripture also makes it clear that the Magi arrived after the birth of Jesus, not 

before. Notice that the wise men ask where is  he who has been born,  (Mt 2:2) indicating that they knew 

from the signs in the stars that the Messiah had already been born.  

Other Theories 

    There was a comet seen in 5 

B.C.

, but this comet was seen early in the year, as early as March and no later 

than June.

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 The Magi made their journey, following the star, in the latter part of the year, from late 

November to late December. Since Jesus was born late in the calendar year, following this comet would not 

have brought the Magi to Bethlehem at the time of Christ's Birth. 

    There was a triple conjunction of the planets Jupiter and Saturn in 7 

B.C.

 From the point of view of an 

observer on earth, the planets Jupiter and Saturn appeared to move close to one another and then move apart 

three times in 7 

B.C.

 on May 27, October 6, and December 1. Some commentators have suggested that this 

triple conjunction was the sign in the stars which the Magi interpreted to mean that the Messiah was born.

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    On the contrary, Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich repeatedly describes the Christmas Star as having a 

long tail, and in one place she actually refers to it as a comet. She further explains that the Magi saw patterns, 

which they interpreted as pictures, in the Christmas star. The appearance of a comet's tail will vary greatly 

from one comet to another. The appearance of the comet's tail is affected by the location of the sun relative to 

the direction of the comet. As viewed from earth, the shape and direction of a comet's tail will change as the 

comet moves through its orbit around the sun. Thus, a comet with a long tail can have an appearance which is 

complex enough to be interpreted as a picture one that changes with time, but a conjunction of planets 

cannot. 

    Also, if the Magi had seen the first conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn, and had begun their journey at that 

time, they would have arrived too early. But if they did not see the first conjunction as such a remarkable event 

that it signified the Birth of a great King, why would the same event occurring in October, or again in 

December, be interpreted as having so much more significance? And the Magi could not have been guided 

through their long journey by such a brief event, which lasts but a single evening (in three different months). 

    In February of 6 

B.C.

, there was a massing of the planets Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. This event is sometimes 

erroneously called a triple conjunction.

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 In any case, this event occurred too early in the year to coincide with 

the Birth of Jesus Christ. And again, such a brief event could not have led the three wise men to Israel during 

the course of a long journey. 

    In the years 3 

B.C.

 and 2 

B.C.

, there were also notable celestial events, including a conjunction of Jupiter and 

Venus in June of 2 

B.C.

, and a triple conjunction of Jupiter with the star Regulus (Sept. 14 of 3 

B.C.

, Feb. 17, 

and May 8 of 2 

B.C.

).

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 Yet how could the Magi have followed the Star to the Christ Child, if the Star was not 

an object, but an event, such as a conjunction, which lasts only a few hours? Also, the detailed descriptions 

given repeatedly by Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich tell of an object with a tail; conjunctions do not appear 

to have a tail. Conjunctions of planets and other brief celestial events could not have been the Christmas Star 

that led the Magi to the Messiah. 

    The Magi must have been much more than casual observers of the stars, for they left their home and their 

country to travel to a distant land based mainly on their understanding of what they saw in the night sky. They 

watched the night sky constantly and found great importance in the celestial events there.

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 They must have 

seen many different conjunctions throughout their years of star watching; the conjunction of planets with other 

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