From the recording We Are Born Blind

About 20 years ago I read an article by the reknown science fiction writer Isaac Asimov. In it he wrote about the star of Bethlehem in scientific terms - particularly about the light from the star and where it would be today. I liked the idea of the light from the star spreading out across the entire universe, and wondered if it would announce the same thing on a planet - if there were intelligent life - 2,000 light years away. Would God send heavenly messengers to them to announce the birth of His son? So I wrote a song about it.

Lyrics

THE ASTRONOMERS CAROL
Scott J. Smith

Star light – Star bright
First star I see in the sky to night
I wish that I may – I wish that I might
See my Savior born this night

Where is the light – that shone from that star
Where has it gone – how fast and how far
Is it as bright - as it was that first day
Do wise men still see it – does it still guide their way?

CHORUS

And the star is still shining today
More than two thousand light years away
As the scene is rehearsed – cross the whole universe
Jesus is born to day

SPOKEN

Did you ever look up into the night sky and wonder
what happened to the star of Bethlehem?
Is it still up there? Does it still shine?

Scientists say there are more than 80 million stars within
2,000 light years of earth, which is about the same time
when the star first appeared.
That means that the light from the star of Bethlehem
has reached them all by now.

How many planets are there circling those 80 million stars?
And how many people live on those planets?
I don’t know. But God does - because He made them all.

The closest star to us is 4.3 light years away.
That’s more than 25 trillion miles.
If you got in your car travelling at 60 miles an hour
it would take you 48 million years to get there -
with no McDonald’s along the way.

Now light travels at 186,000 miles a second.
It never slows down.
It just keeps going on forever until it hits something –
like a planet.

So the way I figure, that same light that led the wise men
to Bethlehem and the Christ child is still out there travelling
across the universe - and will to do so forever.

Imagine on some far distant planet where the light from
the star is now approaching. There might be wise men looking
up into a night sky with three blue moons.
They see a new star appear and they get on purple camels with
four humps and six legs and follow it –

Maybe there are Sheppard there watching green sheep.
Maybe the shepherds are green too….
We don’t know -

And then an Angel appears and tells them about a Savior
born on a planet far away called earth.

The point is that somewhere out there it may be Christmas
just like the very first Christmas on earth.
Before TV and IPODs, Xboxs
Before Walmart and Black Friday and Cyber Monday –
before all that stuff

Why, with all that light spreading out across the universe
it could be Christmas every second of every minute of every day
with angels flying to countless worlds making the announcement
that a child is born - Peace and good will towards men!

I’m just saying ---

CHORUS

And the star is still shining today
More than two thousand light years away
As the scene is rehearsed – cross the whole universe
Jesus is born – Jesus is born
Jesus is born to day –