Astrology, Birthdays, and the Bible

According to authors Ralph and Adelin Linton, there is a definite connection between astrology and birthdays. They observe in their book The Lore of Birthdays: “Mesopotamia and Egypt, the cradles of civilization, were also the first lands in which men remembered and honoured their birthdays. The keeping of birthday records was important in ancient times principally because a birth date was essential for the casting of a horoscope.”

True, the Israelites also kept birth records. But this was done so as to establish men’s ages for priestly, military, and other services. (Numbers 1:2, 3; 4:2, 3; 2 Kings 11:21) The Bible, however, does not record the birth dates of even prominent men, such as Noah, Abraham, Moses, David​—or Jesus Christ! “To be sure,” the above authors admit, “there are birthday celebrations mentioned in the Bible, but only to commemorate the natal day of such wicked heretics as Pharaoh and Herod. When the early Christians were trying to fix the date of Christ’s birth, many of the Church Fathers considered it sacrilegious . . . They proclaimed that there should be no attempt to celebrate it, as this was an impious pagan custom.”