Touching Christmas Tale

[Lion IRC]

Of course Babylonian astronomers knew where Jerusalem was.

But the star wasnt telling them the location of Jerusalem

They would ALSO have known about Jewish Messianic prophecy.
...and the constellations of the zodiac.

Take a look at the night sky over Palestine in 3 - 2 BC.

Now what do you suppose astronomer mystics living during the Roman Empire would make of a ''halo'' conjunction being formed by the triple loop retrograde motion of Jupiter, the largest planet, named after the highest god in the Roman pantheon, around Venus (mother/woman) set against the backdrop of two zodiac constellations - one symbolized by a lion and the other signifying a virgin?

Herod the Great died in March of 4 BC. 5 BC would have been his last December. 3-2 BC would have been too late for him.

Too late for him to do what? Nobody is claiming he did anything post-mortem.