| J10 3) There are two primary divisions in astrological reckoning: tropical (based on the Sun), and sidereal (based on the stars, i.e., the constellations). Under tropical astrology, the beginning of the sign Aries occurs at the Spring equinox, when the Sun crosses the equator from south to north. Libra by definition begins at the Autumn equinox, when the Sun crosses from north to south. In sidereal astrology, the star-constellations Aries and Libra are fixed in the heavens, and are not directly related to the equinoxes. The forms and names of these and other major constellations, with slight variations, are known from Sumerian writings to date back to antediluvian times. Josephus (Ant. I:ii:3) and other classical historians attribute their origin to Adam's son Seth and his posterity. These heavenly lights were said to be "divine in origin and sacred in character,"* and to be "for signs and for seasons." Gen. 1:14 Because of the precession of the equinoxes against the background of the stars, whereby the fixed stars appear to move backwards in relation to the equinoxes by one degree of arc every 71.6 years, the relationship between 0 degrees Aries, tropical, and 0 degrees Aries, sidereal,** is constantly changing. Currently, the Spring equinox falls early in the constellation Pisces the Fishes, which precedes Aries in the heavenly Zodiac. However, AT THE BIRTH OF CHRIST, THE SPRING EQUINOX/0 DEGREES ARIES, TROPICAL, COINCIDED WITH THE FIRST DEGREE OF ARIES, SIDEREAL. At no other point in history than the era of Christ and his Apostles did the solar and sidereal signs conjoin. The sidereal Aries ram/lamb came within the same degree as the solar Aries ram/lamb during the time when the true "lamb of God" walked the Earth and became the archetypal sacrificial lamb of Passover. This is a good witness that the heavenly constellations, recorded by the antediluvian Patriarchs, were a prophetic message in the heavens of God's plan of salvation. Seiss, in his THE GOSPEL IN THE STARS, shows how this message begins in the constellation of Virgo, the Virgin, who carries in her hand the star Spica, the Seed (of woman; Gen. 3:15); and the prophecy concludes in the constellation of Leo, the conquering Lion (of Judah: the Messiah). The era of Christ lasted for about one degree of arc = 71.6 years, which covered the period from his birth in 7 BC up to the death of Peter and probably Paul in the mid-60s AD, which climaxed in the destruction of the Temple and the captivity and dispersion of the Jews in 70... * Joseph A. Seiss, THE GOSPEL IN THE STARS; Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1972 (Phila.: Claxton, 1882): 153. ** The zero point of the constellation Aries, and the zero points of the other eleven constellations of the Zodiac, are determined by the position of the Galactic Center. This point was not known in modern times until the latter half of the 20th century, when it was determined by radio astronomy. ... It just "so happens" that the Galactic Center-point lies between the upward-shooting arrow of the constellation Sagittarius and the stinging tail of the constellation Scorpio. These two constellations represent mankind's highest and lowest natures, respectively. ... |