IUFOPRA Information Network Newsletter Xmas Edition 1999

Magazine Overview

This is the Special Christmas Edition of the JUFOPRA Information Network: Research & Investigations Bureau Newsletter, dated 1999. It opens with Christmas greetings to its members and anticipation for the new millennium. The issue features two main articles: "The Star of Bethlehem" by Anthony F. Aveni, and "Starchild" by Kathy A. Crinion.

"The Star of Bethlehem" by Anthony F. Aveni

Anthony F. Aveni, Russell B. Colgate Professor of Anthropology at Colgate University, explores the mystery surrounding the Star of Bethlehem. He presents a multitude of explanations proposed over centuries, ranging from natural astronomical phenomena to supernatural interpretations.

Astronomical Explanations:

• Aveni lists various celestial events that have been nominated as the Star of Bethlehem. These include:
• Single Celestial Bodies: a bright star, a supernova, a recurrent supernova, a bright comet (like Halley's), or a fireball.
• Constellations and Planetary Phenomena: a constellation, two comets, a meteor shower, the aurora borealis, Venus hovering over the horizon or transiting the sun, conjunctions of planets (e.g., Saturn and Jupiter), planetary conjunctions combined with comets, or eclipses.
• UFOs: The possibility of a UFO being the star is also mentioned.

Supernatural and Symbolic Explanations:

A second category of explanations avoids scientific accountability by positing a theophany (divine light) or supernatural radiance. A third category suggests the star is not literal or chronological, serving a symbolic purpose or being "just a story."

Aveni notes that the interpretation often depends on the inquirer's background – astronomer, theologian, or historian. Scientists tend to seek explanations within natural law, using astronomical software and planetary tables to fit scriptural descriptions like "long seen" and "in the East."

Historical and Religious Interpretations:

The article traces historical attempts to explain the star, starting with the third-century gnostic Origen, who classed it with comets or meteors. Shakespeare's Calpurnia is quoted referencing comets appearing at the death of princes. Classicist John Ramsay and physicist Lewis Licht documented a portent in Roman skies in 44 B.C., the year of Caesar's assassination, which was taken as an evil omen.

Modern proponents of natural explanations include astronomical historian David Hughes. Hughes favors a scenario involving a triple conjunction of Saturn and Jupiter in the constellation of Pisces in 7 B.C., placing Jesus' birth around October of that year. He suggests the Magi, skilled astrologers, would have recognized this event. This aligns with Zoroastrian millennial cosmology, which saw celestial events as indicators of world history.

Other scholars suggest that after Christianity's rise, a celestial event was sought to legitimize Christ's birth, similar to relating Comet Hale-Bopp to Princess Diana's death. Johannes Kepler, a pioneer of modern astronomy, back-calculated the 7 B.C. conjunction and later, in 1604, proposed a supernova as the grandest celestial phenomenon to announce the Savior's birth.

A Jewish astrologer from Baghdad, Masha-allah, had anticipated Kepler's discovery centuries earlier. The article also mentions comets in 5 B.C. and 12 B.C. as potential explanations.

Aveni discusses the uncertainty in dating Christ's birth (between 7 B.C. and A.D. 4) and how historical events like Herod's death and Augustus' tax decree fall within a wide time band, making it difficult to tie the birth to a specific celestial event. A Venus-Jupiter conjunction in 3-2 B.C. is also compatible.

The article touches upon the philosophical debate of whether God would create a miracle or use existing cosmic arrangements. It quotes theologian Martin Buber, who suggests that dismantling an omen to find its cause can lead to losing its intended meaning for the believer. The narrative of Christ's infancy is presented as a story conveying salvation, not necessarily historical literalism.

Conclusion on the Star of Bethlehem:

Aveni concludes that the quest for the Star of Bethlehem may reveal more about human nature and our search for meaning than about the star itself. He suggests that for those who followed the Way, the event became a foundational pillar of their identity.

"Starchild" by Kathy A. Crinion

This article investigates the mystery of the "Starchild" skull, a unique cranial specimen discovered approximately sixty to seventy years prior in a rural village southwest of Chihuahua, Mexico.

Discovery and Initial Findings:

A young woman exploring forbidden caves and tunnels found a human skeleton lying supine, with a malformed skeletal hand wrapped around its upper arm bone. Beside it, she uncovered a smaller, malformed buried skeleton. She kept both skulls, which were later passed on to an American couple who now own them. The couple noted that the rear part of the human skull was stained, while the malformed skull was stained to varying degrees.

Physical Characteristics and Comparisons:

The Starchild skull is described as "malformed" in many ways, with few comparisons to a normal human skull. It possesses the same number and types of cranial bones as a human, but their shape and position differ significantly. Despite similarities in bone extrusions, muscle attachments, and openings for veins and arteries, the majority of comparisons show extensive deviations from the human norm, suggesting a "foetal 'monster' incompatible with life."

However, the cranial outline is hauntingly similar to the "Grey" alien type described in Whitely Streiber's book "Communion." Apart from differences in eye sockets, the Starchild skull appears to fit within the head of a Grey alien. The researchers are confident that DNA testing will reveal if it is a pure Grey alien, a Gray-human hybrid, or a bizarre human deformity.

Expert Opinions and Challenges:

Experts who examined the skull and photographs consistently suggested it was the result of human "pathology" or cranial binding. When pressed for specific pathologies, genetic disorders were often cited. However, these explanations struggled to account for the skull's symmetry, lack of synostosis (fusion of cranial bones), and massive reconfiguration in eight areas of cranial morphology. The skull's features suggest it should have been DOA, yet it survived.

Age and Dental Evidence:

Initially, the Starchild was believed to be a child due to a detached piece of maxilla with two small teeth (a bicuspid and a molar) and indications of developing permanent teeth. Dentists consulted initially estimated the child's age at five or six. However, further analysis of the teeth revealed unusual wear and "crazing" (cracking of enamel), suggesting an age closer to 10-12 years old, or even older, given the wear patterns.

An alternative possibility is that the visible teeth are secondary (permanent) teeth in an unusually small mouth, and the impacted teeth are from a third set. The lack of frontal sinuses is noted as a rare condition, but not impossible in humans or primates.

Suturing and Age Reassessment:

The skull exhibits extensive, high-quality suturing, particularly between the parietal and occipital bones, with "islands" of bone filling gaps. This advanced suturing has led some experts to question the initial age estimate, suggesting a late teen or early adult age. This reassessment challenges the "child" designation and the reliance on "Star Being Legends" of South America, which describe Star Beings impregnating human women to produce "Starchildren" raised until age five to eight before being taken away.

Possible Scenario: Murder-Suicide?

The positions of the two skeletons (human on the ground, smaller one buried beside it) led to a hypothesis of a murder-suicide. The human may have killed the Starchild to prevent it from being taken away by Star Beings, and then committed suicide. The human's teeth showed extreme wear, estimated by dentists to indicate an age of late twenties to thirty, attributed to a diet of corn ground on abrasive stones.

Recurring Themes and Editorial Stance

The newsletter focuses on the intersection of unexplained phenomena, ancient mysteries, and scientific inquiry. It presents detailed investigations into topics like the Star of Bethlehem and the Starchild skull, encouraging readers to consider various perspectives from astronomy, history, theology, and anthropology. The editorial stance appears to be one of open-minded investigation into anomalous subjects, presenting evidence and expert opinions without necessarily reaching definitive conclusions, particularly in cases like the Starchild where definitive answers are still sought.

This issue of UFO Nachrichten, dated 1999, focuses heavily on the analysis of the 'Starchild' skull. The publication, compiled and edited by Anne Griffin with cover design and layout by Pat Delaney, delves into the unique anatomical features of the skull and its potential implications for understanding human evolution, alien encounters, and ancient civilizations.

Analysis of the Starchild Skull

The article begins by addressing the age and sex of the Starchild, noting that initial assessments of it being a female child of five are now doubted. Experts suggest it could be a male around 45 years old, or a late teen to seasoned adult, citing features like its gracile mastoid process and smaller neck size. The possibility of it being a male is considered, despite its smaller size, due to certain features that might be more characteristic of females.

The skull's most striking feature is its 'wall-to-wall' brain, which, if it represents a brain gain of 200 cc, could classify it as a new species, potentially a rare or extinct hominid species like Homo Habilis, Homo Erectus, or Homo Archaic. Normal human eye sockets are conical and recessed about 2 inches, while the Starchild's are scalloped, teardrop-shaped, and only about 1 inch deep. The placement of the optic nerves and fissures is also noted as being moved down and away to the inner bottom, differing significantly from human anatomy. The symmetry of these features suggests they are not the result of deformity.

Further analysis highlights that the Starchild's eyes would likely have 'bulged out' to some degree, and while their shape might differ from the typical 'wraparound' eyes of Grays, they could be protective lenses or adapted for night vision. The ear canals are slightly larger and deeper than normal human ears, but the presence of external ears is unknown. The foramen magnum, the hole connecting the skull to the spinal column, is shifted to a central point under the cranium, providing better balance. The absence of an inner occipital protuberance suggests a potential lack of a cerebellum, supporting the idea of a non-human brain structure, possibly indicating an alien or alien-human hybrid.

The skull also shows a drastic reduction in muscle attachment areas for both the neck and chewing muscles, estimated to be about 1/2 to 1/3 that of a normal human. This reduced attachment area is consistent with descriptions of Grays and their hybrids, and it implies a smaller mandible and a reduced lower face area.

The Cholula Connection

A significant part of the issue explores a potential correlation between the Starchild and alien Gray types, based on a new piece of evidence involving photographs taken in 1975 at the temple complex of Cholula, Mexico. According to local legends, two 'gods', a male and a female, were brought to Earth by other gods around 300-900 A.D. to teach the natives. These 'gods' were eventually killed in a conflict, and their bodies were buried near the main pyramid. Later, an Aztec-inspired temple was built over the burial spot. In modern times, someone decided to exhume the bodies and display them. A photograph of this display shows skulls and body bones of two beings, one smaller and one larger. Both skulls reportedly have upper heads astonishingly like the Starchild, and intact upper and lower jaws. However, the bones in the back of the eye sockets were damaged, making direct comparison difficult. The temple areas of these skulls also appear to have a similar reduction in chewing muscles, and their heads are described as 'flat'.

Implications and Conclusion

If the Cholula 'gods' can be physiologically linked to the Starchild, it suggests they might be part of an entirely new species of hominid, which could be aliens, alien-human hybrids, or even 'gods'. The article concludes that regardless of whether the Starchild proves to be a deformed human or something else, the Starchild Project is making history, potentially as a significant physical anomaly akin to the Elephant Man.

The issue provides contact information for The Starchild Project via the Internet for those wishing to donate or assist in research. The copyright for the newsletter is held by IUFOPRA, 1999.

Recurring Themes and Editorial Stance

The recurring themes in this issue are the scientific analysis of anomalous human-like skulls, the potential for new hominid species or alien-human hybrids, and the connection between modern findings and ancient myths or legends. The editorial stance appears to be one of open inquiry, presenting the evidence and expert opinions while acknowledging the speculative nature of the conclusions. The publication seems to support the Starchild Project's efforts to investigate these extraordinary findings.