Notices 11th January 2026

A special welcome to everyone joining us in worship at Kingston today.

Matthew 2:1-12

The wise men. Nobody really knows who they were or where they were from. And what they saw is even more intriguing! The popular view is that they were scholars, astrologers maybe, from Babylon in Persia. What exactly was the celestial delight that so prompted their journey?

Intriguingly, as best as astronomical historians can tell us,

• There was a triple conjunction of Saturn, Jupiter in Pisces in about 7BC. This occurs every 900 years by the way

• There was a three way conjunction between Mars, Jupiter and Saturn in Pisces in 6BC. This happens every 800 years.

Using the equations of physics and maths, a comet would have appeared in Capricorn in 5BC. Guess what! Jesus’ Birth is widely believed to have occurred around spring, in 5BC, at about the same time! Whatdaya know?

All I can say is that there was a lot going on in the heavens from the perspective of this little planet. No wonder these scholars, who many would now days discount as ridiculously superstitious, embarked on a 45 day journey to see a carpenter’s son in a little town with a mere 1000 residents. There’s a chance that the God of the universe was giggling at God’s own pre-emptive genius!

Rev. Michael Duke