Astrology and the Bible

Bible study is about to be HOT this week

Aug 09, 2023

I can’t remember when I started to grow an interest in astrology but I shamed myself for it. Not because I thought it was dumb or because I cared about people’s perceptions of who I am based on my birthday, but because of fear and shame. For those who don’t know, I grew up in a very Pentecostal church for most of my formative years. So much of Eurocentric Christian doctrine is based on fear and shame, and it locks countless curious followers of Christ away from expanding their worldview, making new friends, asking the questions that keep them awake at night, and being OK with being wrong. My fear was in the idea of damnation; a premise of Christianity that was drilled into me in my early childhood in the Pentecostal church. Stepping out of line, in any capacity, could mean an eternity of pain and suffering. To a Black girl in a suburban town navigating racism, sexism, and the complexities of sexual trauma in middle school, the idea of indefinite pain and suffering was more than enough to keep me in check. The journey of healing and unlearning much of my conservative Christian upbringing is a story for another day but, slowly, I opened myself up to the possibilities in the unexplored worlds of thought around me (which includes astrology).

Why am I writing about this now? I know that a large percentage of the HTA readership is of the Christan faith, including my mom. I’ve got some big projects and bigger plans that are coming to fruition and I want to share all who are interested. I’ll explain what some of those plans are later in this article but, first, I have to debunk some myths and practice speaking my truth. Now, as I was saying…

In part, astrology is a study of patterns based on celestial entities. Some of them are fixed –like stars, luminaries, and planets – while others gallop across the universe (like comets and asteroids). But what is the difference between astrology and astronomy?

According to the Cambridge Dictionary:
Astronomy is the scientific study of the universe and of objects that exist naturally in space, such as the moon, the sun, planets, and stars
Astrology is the study of the movements and positions of the sun, moon, planets, and stars in the belief that they affect the character and lives of people
Basically, astronomy says “Hey, that star is doing something!” and astrology says, “Cool, but what could that mean for us?”

Sailors knew the importance of astronomy. Reading the stars to more efficiently navigate the seas to reach a destination was always the name of the game. Different star collections (constellations) lead to different directions, all of which are available to all of us and all of which are important. Astrologers have been studying the skies and the patterns within them for thousands of years. In recent history, we’ve learned that the sun, which is considered a “masculine” luminary and runs on a 24-hour cycle, is the same as the male hormonal cycle (which also restarts every 24 hours). The moon, which is considered “feminine” runs on about a 28-day cycle is the same as a menstruation cycle. More patterns, more astrology, no demon worship.

In fact, the foundational principles for modern-day astrology are mentioned a few times in the Bible. Here are two of them: the Creation and the Birth of Jesus. Let’s discuss.

The Creation

Many of us know the Creation story, but let’s look a little deeper at a specific passage about the creation of the known universe.

Genesis 1:14-15 (KJV)
And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: and let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.
Genesis 1:14-15 (NIV)
And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years, and let them be lights in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so.

As I’ve mentioned earlier, astrology is a study of patterns, and we can attribute characteristics applicable to humans in those patterns. The astrological calendar based on the 12 signs and 12 houses mark the cycle of a person’s life and the cycle of the Earth’s seasons. What does this look like? Aries is the 1st sign in the zodiac. It symbolizes the raw, unfiltered energy of new life. It’s bold and exciting, it’s impulsive and will deal with the consequences later (if it feels like it). Aries, literally, symbolizes a newborn child in this way. It’s no coincidence that Aries season is also the beginning of springtime and is bursting with new life. Thinking agriculturally, springtime isn’t the time for planning (that was for the autumn and winter months), it’s the time for action. It’s the time to harvest and move quickly before the summer heat overwhelms certain plants. It’s also not a coincidence that Good Friday and Easter (the death and resurrection of Jesus) also happen in Aries season. While many people focus on the death aspect of these holidays, in reality, it’s the birth of the Christian faith, the start of a new world religion; the time for planning and preparation was over, upon Jesus’ death started the action.

There’s also a reason why so many religious holidays happen around the end of December; the winter solstice (the longest night in the calendar year). Using contemporary examples, there’s a reason “cuffing season” clicks off in Libra season (check out this article from Women’s Health about it), and why so many people aggressively make New Year’s resolutions or try to start a business during Capricorn season (This AllBusiness article agrees, though it doesn’t mention astrology). These are just a few examples of the signs, seasons, days, and years that the heavens give us insight into. Not to “predict the future” or to hail Satan, but to show us the patterns of the reality that we all live in. It would be no different from being scared of the weatherman for “predicting” a storm on the horizon, though it is hilarious to picture people screaming BURN HIM AT THE STAKE outside of the NBC headquarters.

Let’s not forget that at the end of the creation of the heavens and their signs, God says “And it was good.” There’s nothing wrong with people studying the sacred times marked in our world, though we may have been shamed into believing so.

The Birth of Christ

Next, the birth of Jesus. Let’s see what scripture has to say about this:

Matthew 2:1-2 (KJV)
Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 2 saying, “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.”
Matthew 2:1-2 (NIV)
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem 2 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.”

The wise men were both astronomers and astrologers. They noticed that a specific star, later named the Star of Bethlehem, was behaving unusually (astronomy). They then deduced that because the star was acting in this way that it meant that a major world event had taken place in a specific part of the globe. Imagine, all you have is a singular star and hundreds (possibly thousands) of years worth of knowledge about the sacred times, days, and years mentioned in Genesis to find one specific baby. While scripture does say that the Son of God would be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2), how were the wise men to know when exactly or even who to look for? There were thousands of newcomers into the city because of the census and they just “happened” to arrive at the exact night of Jesus’s birth? Really?

The Takeaway

Regardless of what I believe now, I love thinking about these scriptures in this way because 1. I was an English major in college and I live for nuance 2. The dichotomy of these passages shows the value of studying the stars and offers examples of practical uses found in the Bible. I mean, what good is a tool if you never use it?

Now do I think there are people who will still demonize astrology and all other ancient and/or indigenous practices outside the Eurocentric-Christian canon? Yes.
Do I think some people will read this and start fervently praying for the sanctity of my soul? Yes.
Do I think these are the same people burning that hypothetical weatherman at the stake?....👀
Did I write this entire study specifically because my mother reads my newsletter and I want her to understand that I’ve thought about this extensively before sharing my upcoming project? Oh yes.
More than anything else, do I hope that some of the people who have read this article allow themselves the grace to be curious about the world we live in and how things work without fear of damnation? With my entire heart.

My Big News!

As my career as a journalist has grown in the past few months, I’m encouraging all who are astro-curious and travel lovers to follow me on this new platform:

Cosmic Traveler: A travel platform where I share itineraries, destination reviews, and more insider knowledge curated by your favorite travel journalist (me), while exploring how astrology influences where and how we all travel.

CLICK HERE for more info

I LOVE YOU ALL and I’d love to know your thoughts on this. Please share, comment, and tag me in any conversations this starts :)

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