2024 and 1954: Comet, Cognitive Bias, Counter Arguments, Coincidence?
Signs of War Part 2: Are Comets the Broom of Destruction?
I will sweep it with the broom of destruction,” declares the Lord of hosts.
Isaiah 14:23, NASB 1995
(source: Myrabella / Public domain)
Signs of War Series:
In the previous article, we were introduced to the “Devil Comet”, 12P/Pons-Brooks (12P) named after the astronomers who discovered the comet as it visited the inner solar system with a 71-year orbit of our sun. It reached perihelion (the closest point to the sun) on April 21st, 2024.
What did comets mean in ancient times?
What happened the last time 12P came into the solar system?
Does the Bible reference comets?
The next few articles will analyze the ancient historical views on comets. For example, the ancients believed comets were a harbinger of disasters and wars.
Is this just superstition?
Aren’t comets just merely a large ball of ice and gas?
Let’s look at some of the arguments and debates.
Counterarguments, Coincidence, and Cognitive Bias
The counterargument is that the odds of the passing comet correlating to a year of war, earthquake, or volcanic activity are pretty high given there are many wars and seismic events all the time. Therefore there is a risk of cognitive bias where what we perceive as a direct correlation, is just a coincidence.
Cognitive bias is a systematic thought process caused by the tendency of the human brain to simplify information processing through a filter of personal experience and preference.1
Cognitive bias impacts both sides of the debate. Scientists will remain fixed on their hypothesis based on data and theologians will point to God as the orchestrator. This was the debate over the centuries as theologians and scientists collided, especially in educational institutions where free thinking was encouraged and superstitions were driven out of academia.
Let’s start with one of the secular free thinkers, Andrew Dickson White, and then contrast this with other theologians.
The Warfare of Science with Theology
Andrew Dickson White (1832 - 1918) co-founded Cornell University, the first major American educational institution unaffiliated with any religious body.2 During this time, most universities were founded as religious institutions.
Professor White gave lectures attempting to separate dogmatic theology from science. His papers and lectures culminated in an extensive work published in 1910 called A History of The Warfare of Science with Theology in Christendom.3 In the Introduction of his work, he writes,
My conviction is that Science, though it has conquered Dogmatic Theology based on biblical texts and ancient modes of thought, will go hand in hand with Religion; and that although theological control will continue to diminish, Religion, as seen in the recognition of “a Power in the universe, not ourselves, which makes for righteousness,” and in the love of God and of our neighbor, will steadily grow stronger and stronger…4
Professor White curates many Christian viewpoints regarding creation, nature, comets, meteors, and eclipses, but ends with the following,
The physical and natural sciences are henceforth likely to be developed normally and without fear of being sterilized by theology...
Though Professor White does an extensive job documenting historical religious perspectives on comets and other phenomena, his worldview dictates the separation of church and science.
White drives an intellectual wedge between God and science. Therefore, “the two shall not meet” and let them grow independently of each other.
Contrary to the separation of theology and science is the perspective that theology is supported by science, and vice versa. Another way to state this is that theology and science synergistically support each other. Science and theology will each grow and the studies interact so that each increases the effect of the other.
Kepler, Newton, and Galileo were all men of great faith and their scientific contributions continued to build faith in God almighty.
“He who thinks half-heartedly will not believe in God; but he who really thinks has to believe in God.”
― Isaac Newton5
Since 1910, with the increase of technology, knowledge, and discoveries, some have come to the personal conclusion that archaeology, astronomy, biology, physics, probability, and mathematics all reinforce the existence of God, the truths of faith concerning God, God’s Word, and His works such as the Biblical Creation.
Additional Research: The Sixth Seal Signs and The Covenant Signs take the apologetics approach where science and probability reinforce God’s signs and Covenants. The Signs of Jonah, on solar eclipses, is due out in late-May 2024.
Ancient References to Comets
In our previous research, Babylonians would record astronomical signs on cuneiform tablets which helped us pinpoint the solar eclipse over Nineveh (Reference Nineveh 763 BC Solar Eclipse Inscribed on Cuneiform Clay Tablets). However how much did Babylonians or Chaldeans know about comets?
Around AD 63, the Roman philosopher Lucius Annaeus Seneca wrote:
“Apollonius of Myndos says that the Chaldaeans place comets in the category of planets and have determined their orbits; Epigenes, on the contrary, says that the Chaldaeans have no understanding of comets but that to them comets seem to be on fire from some sort of turbulence in aroused and twisted atmosphere” (Naturales quaestiones VII 4.1).
Also in the Babylonian Talmud, there is potential evidence the Jewish rabbis may have been aware of the periodical nature of comets,
‘A certain star rises once in seventy years and leads the sailors astray, and I suspected it might rise and lead us astray.’ (Horayoth 10a).6
(source: White, A History of The Warfare of Science with Theology in Christendom, p. 174)
In 1910, Professor White, from Cornell University wrote,
The Chaldeans alone among the ancient peoples generally regarded comets without fear, and thought them bodies wandering as harmless as fishes in the sea; the Pythagoreans alone among philosophers seem to have had a vague idea of them as bodies returning at fixed periods of time;7
Early Church Theological Views on Comets
However, from the early church to the 18th century AD and beyond, for nearly 2k years, theologians adopted a worldview that comets were associated with catastrophes.
The belief that every comet is a ball of fire flung from the right hand of an angry God to warn the groveling dwellers of the earth was received into the early Church, and transmitted through the Middle Ages to the Reformation period.8
“The Theological View” of comets noted by White, include
Origen of Alexandria ( c185 – c253 AD), Christian scholar, insisted that comets indicate catastrophes and the downfall of empires and worlds.
Saint Bede the Venerable (c672 - c753 AD)9, Anglo-Saxon theologian, historian, and chronologist declared “Comets portend revolutions of kingdoms, pestilence, war, winds, or heat.”
John of Damascus, Rabanus Maurus, and St. Thomas Aquinas all had the same worldview.10
Let’s research this further, we have the data by looking back at the history of 12P.
Frequency of the Devil Comet
Since 12P/Pons-Brooks orbits the sun every 71 years, it is a once-in-a-lifetime event.
The devil comet became particularly famous due to its vivid outbursts of gas and dust during close approaches to the Sun, which were visible in the years 1883, 1954, and 2023.
Historical accounts of bright celestial objects seen in China in 1385 and Italy in 1457 are thought to be earlier sightings of this comet, further cementing its place in the annals of astronomical observation.11
Using astronomical calculations and observations, periodic comets are predictable. One can look in the rearview mirror for historical events and correlate them to a specific year of the comet.
Like the other heavenly bodies created on the fourth day of the Biblical Creation (Genesis 1:14-19), were comets created for signs (Genesis 1:14)? Are comets part of God’s great clock in the Second Heaven? Are comets another gear in the inner workings of God’s timepiece? Could comets be associated with events on Earth?
As you review the events in this list please note the magnitude, uniqueness, and severity of these wars, battles, or seismic events.
Significant Events Correlating to the Devil’s Comet
Let’s summarize some significant events during the Devil Comet’s passing:
2023-2024 Ongoing Wars
Russia-Ukraine War (4th Generation War)
Israel-Gaza-Iran War (4th Generation War).
Global Biowarfare and Information War (5th Generation War) - millions of deaths, not counting adverse events.
Reference Phinance Technologies - Humanity Projects led by Ed Dowd and team.
Pandora's box was open and it is an obvious boon to the pharmaceutical industry. It was done with consent and even encouragement from the gatekeepers (governments, regulators, academia) and allied with a media campaign that reminded us of wartime.12
2023-2024 Seismic Activity
Turkey/Syria Earthquakes in early 2023 caused 57,000 deaths.
From 2023 through 2024, Iceland Reykjanes Peninsula, Volcano Svartsengi produced large magma flows, forcing multiple evacuations.13
2023 Kilauea, Hawaii erupts at least three times.
The following volcanos have a Max Volcanic explosivity index (VEI) of 4, which is equivalent to Mount St. Helens in 1980.
Semeru, Indonesia on March 1st, 2024, and continuing to erupt
Manam, Papua New Guinea on February 28th, 2024, and continuing to erupt
Sheveluch, Russia on March 1st, 2024, and continuing to erupt
1954 Vietnam War
During the previous crossing of 12P,
Vietnam War (1954-1975) - a conflict between the Communist government of North Vietnam and its allies in South Vietnam, known as the Viet Cong, against the government of South Vietnam and its principal ally, the United States.14 This resulted in ~882,000 Vietnamese deaths and 64,000 American and allied military deaths. As many as 26,000 Chinese troops were killed.15
1954, The Battle of Dien Bien Phu, was a decisive Vietnamese military victory that brought an end to French colonial rule in Vietnam. This resulted in the separation of North Vietnam and South Vietnam and, ultimately, the Vietnam War.16
1953-1954 The First Taiwan Strait Crisis between China and Taiwan aided by the United States resulted in less than 1k deaths as there were disputes over the smaller islands.17
1955 Seismic Activity and Possible Correlation to Comets
During 1955, at least 11 earthquakes claimed an estimated total of 529 fatalities in the world. There were 20 damaging or deadly quakes during this period that caused economic losses of approx. $297 million US18
In 1955 the Island of Hawaii saw a major eruption of Kilauea:
The Lava flow covered 15.8 sq km (6.1 square miles) of land burying roads and destroying homes. The eruption lasted 88 days with lava fountains up to 60 meters (200 ft).19
Oddly, seismic activity increased in 1955, even though the 11-year solar cycle was just beginning and not at its peak. Remember in The Sixth Seal Signs there is research on seismic activity related to an increase in solar activity. Thus the solar cycle was not the cause, but scientifically maybe solar activity is triggered by a passing comet that is substantially large. 12P is ~30 kilometers in diameter.
In 1958 a scientific paper looked at Solar Activity as Related to the Statistics of Comets but with the data set the correlation was inconclusive and more research is required.20
In 2004, a Space.com article, “Solar Storms Smack a Comet” noted the opposite where the sun’s solar coronal mass ejections (CMEs) did impact comets.21 So there is a lot to learn when it comes to how different heavenly bodies interact with each other in space and how the sun interacts with seismic activity.
So there is a temporal correlation at least in 2024/2023 and 1954/1955 between a comet and events on Earth. Is there any validity and scriptural support for comets being used as a sign by God?
Isaiah’s “Broom of Destruction”?
Isaiah documents the Lord declaring,
“I will rise up against them,” declares the Lord of hosts, “and will cut off from Babylon name and survivors, offspring and posterity,” declares the Lord.
“I will also make it a possession for the hedgehog and swamps of water, and
I will sweep it with the broom of destruction,” declares the Lord of hosts.
Isaiah 14:22-23, NASB 1995 [emphasis added]
What is the “broom of destruction”?
Is this just figurative, illustrating how God will sweep away evil?
“Broom” in Hebrew is matate (Strong’s Concordance: 4292) which denotes broom or besom and it is only used once in the entire Bible.22 Besom is a broom made of twigs and tied with twine around a stick. Coincidentally the Dictionary of the Scots Language translates “the fyrie-boosome” as a comet,
[O.Sc. has bisom, bissom, bisem, bis(s)ome, byssome, meaning a besom (lit.), and trs. also to a comet or its tail; bussome is also found in Dunbar: “the weido on ane bussome rydand” (Lucina schynnyng in Silence of the Nicht). Its variant boosome, used by Knox to describe a comet “the fyrie-boosome,” has survived in the Gall. dialect.23
“Sweep” in Hebrew is tu or tete (Strong’s Concordance: 2894) which denotes sweep and also it is only used once in the entire Bible.24
“Destruction” in Hebrew is shamad (Strong’s Concordance: 8045) which denotes to be exterminated or destroyed and used 90 times in the Bible.25
Can Isaiah’s “Broom of Destruction” be a “Comet of Destruction”?
In 1992, the late Hollis R. Johnson, astronomer and Professor at Indiana University, along with the late Svend Holm-Nielsen, theologian, published this theory in a paper titled, “Comments on two possible references to comets in the Old Testament.”
Abstract: In a search for possible references to comets in the Old Testament, we found two candidates, one from the time of David and one from the time of Isaiah. Although no firm conclusions can be drawn, we discuss the linguistic, historical, and astronomical evidence for each.
Though no firm conclusions can be drawn here, the linguistic, historical, and astronomical data points support the theological worldview.
Finally, another datapoint, Chinese astronomers, dating as far back as 1059 BC, called comets with a tail, huixing (彗星, "broom star"). The broomstick metaphor was evident in China as they observed the tails pointing away from the sun.26
In Closing
What did comets mean in ancient times?
The Theological View: “Comets portend revolutions of kingdoms, pestilence, war, winds, or heat.”
What happened the last time 12P came into the solar system?
2023/2024 - Wars (4GW/5GW), Seismic Activity
1954/1955 - was the genesis of the Vietnam War and the First Taiwan Strait Crisis
1955 - Several Earthquakes and the Hawaii, Kilauea eruption
Does the Bible reference comets?
Not conclusive but Isaiah’s “Broom of Destruction” is interesting (Isaiah 14:23)
There is a potential scientific correlation between passing comets large enough to increase the activity in our sun. This would increase the chance of an earth-facing coronal mass ejection (CME) which could cause increased seismic activity.
The solar cycle of 11 years peaks in 2025 which correlates to the passing 12P comet in 2023 and 2024. There are other comets anticipated as well (to be discussed) There has been an increase in solar activity and thus the solar cycle and incoming 30-kilometer diameter comet may perturb the sun enough to generate more coronal mass ejections. Some of these may be earth-facing which would trigger seismic activity.
The increase in wars, however, would be supernatural.
More research to come.
https://www.techtarget.com/searchenterpriseai/definition/cognitive-bias#:~:text=Cognitive%20bias%20is%20a%20systematic,large%20amounts%20of%20information%20quickly.
https://freethought-trail.org/profiles/profile:white-andrew-dickson/
https://librarycollections.law.umn.edu/documents/darrow/History_Warfare_Science_Theology_White_Vol_1.pdf
White, A. (1910). A History of The Warfare of Science with Theology in Christendom. D. Appleton and Company.
https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/135106.Isaac_Newton
https://webspace.science.uu.nl/~gent0113/babylon/babybibl_comets.htm
White, A. (1910). A History of The Warfare of Science with Theology in Christendom. D. Appleton and Company. p. 174.
Ibid.
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Bede-the-Venerable
White, A. (1910). A History of The Warfare of Science with Theology in Christendom. D. Appleton and Company. p. 175.
https://www.earth.com/news/devil-comet-is-visible-in-the-northern-hemisphere/
https://phinancetechnologies.com/HumanityProjects/The%20VDamage%20Project.htm
https://www.newsweek.com/iceland-volcano-eruption-sundhnukur-reykjanes-volcanic-warning-1892769
https://www.britannica.com/event/Vietnam-War
https://www.history.com/topics/european-history/battle-of-dien-bien-phu
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Taiwan_Strait_Crisis
https://www.volcanodiscovery.com/earthquakes/damaging/archive/1955.html#:~:text=The%20most%20severely%20affected%20countries,and%20Chile%20(1%20quake).
https://www.usgs.gov/observatories/hvo/news/volcano-watch-week-marks-65-years-kilauea-volcanos-1955-eruption
Sekanina, Z. (1958). Solar activity as related to the statistics of comets. SAO/NASA. https://adsabs.harvard.edu/full/1959BAICz..10..103S
https://www.space.com/571-solar-storms-smack-comet.html
https://biblehub.com/hebrew/4292.htm
https://dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd00062604
https://biblehub.com/hebrew/2894.htm
https://biblehub.com/hebrew/8045.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_comet_observations_in_China#:~:text=Later%20on%2C%20a%20distinction%20is,point%20away%20from%20the%20sun.