‘Jesus’ crucifixion linked to lunar eclipse’: Day of death could be pinpointed

   / @golahura  
‘Jesus’ crucifixion linked to lunar eclipse’: Day of death could be pinpointed

A “jaw-dropping” discovery by NASA could lend credibility to the crucifixion of Jesus and the terrifying celestial spectacle that followed.

The space agency’s astronomical models show that a lunar eclipse turned the moon red over Jerusalem on Friday, April 3, 33 AD, a date that many scientists have linked to the death of Jesus.

“From noon until three in the afternoon there was darkness over the whole land,” reads one translation of Matthew 27:45, a Bible verse describing the surreal sky as Jesus hung on the cross.

ANCIENT ECLIPSE DETECTED

The eclipse theory, first put forward by Oxford University researchers Colin Humphreys and W. Graeme Waddington, is now catching fire on TikTok, the New York Post reported.

“Christian texts speak of the moon turning to blood after Jesus’ crucifixion. It is likely a reference to a lunar eclipse in which the moon took on a reddish hue,” NASA said, adding that its sky-monitoring technologies detected the ancient eclipse, which was visible in Jerusalem shortly after sunset.

For believers, it is a striking echo of prophetic passages in the Bible: “The sun will be turned into darkness and the moon into blood, before the great and dreadful day of the Lord comes.”

While some scholars argue that these verses foretell the second coming, others, such as Humphreys and Waddington, believe that they describe the terrifying events that took place on the day Jesus died.

“BIBLE IN CONFORMITY”

Their research points to another chilling verse from ancient Christian texts outside the biblical canon.
A passage from the Report of Pilate, part of the New Testament apocrypha, says: “When he was crucified, the sun was darkened; the stars appeared, and from the sixth hour onwards people lit lamps throughout the world until even, and the moon looked like blood.”

Humphreys and Waddington say this supports the idea that the lunar eclipse was the exact eclipse seen and recorded in ancient scripture.

They argue that Peter’s statement that “the sun will be turned into darkness” is a direct reference to Matthew 27:45 and is consistent with the three-hour break reported in the Gospels. They say NASA data helps put the pieces together.

One translation of Acts 2:20 reads: “The sun will be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and glorious day of the Lord comes.”
This passage, spoken by the Apostle Peter 50 days after the crucifixion, describes another Old Testament prediction of fire and brimstone, as warned by Joel 2:28-31.

MAKES YOU THINK TWICE

While the Bible and science don’t always agree, this rare overlap is enough to make believers and skeptics think twice. Especially on Good Friday, the day Christians commemorate the crucifixion of Jesus.

Good Friday always falls two days before Easter Sunday, and is determined by the first full moon after the first day of spring. This system is intended to align with Passover, the Jewish holiday on which Jesus is believed to have been crucified.

According to the Gospels, Jesus was resurrected on the Sunday after Passover, and early Christians tied the holiday not just to the Bible but to the moon itself, ensuring that Easter would always be the same.

This year, a celestial nudge from NASA has some wondering: Was the sky above Jerusalem telling the story all along?