Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 13, 1979)
Page 8 Portland Observer Decem ber 13. 1979 Testimony due Portland Meadows The N atio na l Com m ission on Social Security will hold a hearing at the Portland H ilton Hotel in Port land, Oregon on Wednesday, January 16, 1980 at 9:00 a.m. The purpose o f the hearing w ill be to so licit a broad range o f p ublic opinion on the old-age, survivors, d is a b ility and health insurance programs authorized by titles II and X V III o f the Social Security Act in order to aid the Commission in its review and appraisal o f these programs. Providence M edical Center employees Alice Jarell, LPN and Loyola B row n, enjoy a visit w ith Tiffany Brane. 7, of V a n c o u v e r. W a s h in g to n , the U nited W a y ’s 1979 P oster C hild T iffa n y w as the special guest at the hospital's Thank Y ou /V icto ry luncheon held last w e e k in a p p re c ia tio n of th e h o s p ita l’s U nited W ay cam p ag in coordinators H osp ital e m ployees donated nearly $11,000 to the United W ay. Glass-Enclosed Comfort! FREE GRANDSTAND ADMISSION Bring this ad to Portland Meadows For Free Admission on Fridays, December 7 and 14,1979 -, Portland Meadows If you or your organization would be interested in testifying , please n o tify M elanie W . M c C lin to c k , Public In fo rm a tio n O ffic e r, N atio na l Com m ission on Social Security, 440 G Street, N.W ., Room 126, W ashington, D.C. 20218 by Monday, December 17. Requests to testify should include: a) your name; b) business address; c) business phone; d) capacity in which presen tation w ill be made, i.e., public o f ficial, organization presentation, or private citizen; e) summary o f prin cipal issues to be discussed and positions on them. A copy o f your written testimony should be sent to the Comission then (10) days before the hearing. POST TIMES: Saturdays, Sundays & Holidays 1:30 pm Fridays Pm □ o c o n / o tin n s American State Bank “ The Bank that integration b u ift” 2737 N .E . U n io n The Christmas Star revisited By Rita C. Bobowski Smithsonian News Service Nearly 2,(MX) years ago, the three wise men saw a lighl in the heavens, signaling to them an event o f the ut most importance In the words o f the book o f Matthew: "1 here came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, saying, where is he that is born King ol the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east, and have come to worship him .’ * I he briet mention ol the Star of Bethlehem has intrigued scientists, historicans and theologian for hun dreds o f years because, other than descriptions in the New Testament, there are no other known accounts documenting this apparently short term celestial phenomenon. Much speculation exists over whether there really was such a star, according to Von Del Chamberlain, an astronomer at the Smithsonian Institution’s National A ir and Space Museum. In an annual public lec ture, Chamberlain traces the various theories advanced to explain the Star ot Bethlehem. “ Most o f us assume that the (hristinas star was an extraordinary sight to behold," he says. " I t may not have been so spectacular. A c tually, it may have been an event which only professional star-ga/ers- such as the Magi would even have noticed. And. perhaps what the wise men saw was not really a single star at a ll.” One theory holds that the Christ mas star was a comet. Early records kept by the Chinese mention a comet without a tail visible in the spring o f 4 B.C., a date which fits the most recent estimates o f the year in which Jesus was born. (Scholars believe that Jesus was born between 8 and 4 B.C. since our present calendar system was not instituted until the 6th century A .D ., more than 500 years a fte r Ins b irth , errors in calculation are possible.) But comets move slow ly from night to night through the starry sky. Moreover, comets were believed by the ancients to be omens o f impen ding doom, not harbingers o f glad tidings. Another theory has it that the star might have been an unusually bright meteor, called a fireball. As fireballs flash through the atmosphere, they burn with an intense but fleeting lig h t. But ancient records and modern knowledge indicate that fireballs are larily commonplace oc curences lasting only a few seconds. A th ird and more tenable ex planation is that the Star o f Bethlehem was a "n o v a ,” which means literally "new star." Actually, novas are not new but old stars that have reached the end o f their evolution and have become unstable. These exploding stars abruptly rise to great brilliance, then lose their lumi nance slowly over a period o f weeks. “ This theory has p o te n tia l,” Chamberlain says. " A nova could be bright enough and last long enough to lead the wise men on a long jo u r ney to Bethlehem.” “ In addition,” he continues, “ a nova would certainly be the most dramatic explanation. What could be more exciting than to have a ‘ new star’ appear on the night that Christ was born;” One recent study o f ancient Chinese and Korean records in dicates that a nova may have ap peared in 5 B.C., but there is no definitive account that such an event took place. The theory most widely accepted by astronomers today was put forth in the 1600s by German astronomer Johannes Kepler. Kepler suggested that the Christmas star was really a "co nju nctio n" o f planets. A conjunction occurs when two or more planets appear to pass by each other in the sky. Using ancient sky records, astronomers have verified that the planets Jupiter and Saturn appeared in conjunction not once but three times between 7 and 6 B.C.--a relatively rare phenomenon. A conjunction would explain the lack o f other records, since it most Poinsettias can be year-long house plants Poinsettias can be more than just Christmas holiday plants. They can be kept through the year and made to bloom again in December. "T h e booming interest in indoor plants has brought an increase in the number o f people who keep their ( hristinas poinsettias growing all r Building Material CLOSEOUTS 3 '/j" R-1 1 In su l.................................... 13' S.F 6 R 19 In s u l........................................ 23* S.F. U - P A K “ PETE” Stainless S in k s ........... ............................ ’ 2 9 ” A RM STRO NG Ceramic Tile 4 " ............................................ 5' CEILING TILE GRENOBLE PATTERN 12 - 12 25 :< each 2 0 % OFF Toilets W h .................................................. ’ 39'° Desk Tops ............................................... ‘25°* W indows Odd .................................. '5 -'2 5 W asherless Faucets ............ Formico Pre-Formed Counter T o p s .......... ?**.’ ? * * " . SH° 2 0 % OFF 2 0 % OFF Energy Savers by G E.............................. ’7” Formica C u t o u t s ........... .......................... 50' M edicine C abinets ........... Bath V a n itie s ........... ................. HC OOO»1 2” UV K OOOtS 29" SU U I «All MO" »4SS46I IOC VI MEYER BRAND BLOW-IN INSU LA TIO N 40 lb < « * 4 9 bag h w u«e e l « w r b le w « r BANK CARDS WELCOME „M- Tour Check, Too: U-PAK BUILDING MATERIALS INC OPEN Man. Sat ( ta S Northiide Southside 52 7 N E U nio n I S123 SE McLaughlin 2 8 4 -9 9 38 M ilw a u k io year lo n g ,” says Ray M cN eilan, Oregon State University Extension home gardening coordinator. In a natural o u td o o r setting, flowers begin to form on poinsettias when the nights get longer in the fall, the days shorter. However, w ith lights inside the home, a poinsettia may not receive a long enough period o f darkness to start the blooming process. Even a small amount of ar tificial light will inhibit the plant from producing (lowers. Io overcome the problem o f in door light, poinsettias need to be given at least 14 hours o f uninterrup ted darkness each day until redness starts to develop on the top leaves or bracts. The follow ing is a general time schedule for forcing poinsettias to bloom indoors by Christmas. Early Octobei: bring the plant in side and place in a draft-free area where the temperature does not drop below 60 degrees F. Begin giving the plant long nights (darkness from 5 p.m. to 8 a.tn.). Mid-November: Color should be showing in the bracts. Early December: Bract color should be almost complete; plant can be brought into ordinary light. During this bloom-forcing period, keep the daytime temperature at 68 degrees F or higher. Nighttime tem peratures should stay between 50 to 65 degrees F. Night temperatures above 65 degrees F may prevent the plant from setting flower buds. The plant should receive at least four hours o f direct sunlight during the day. Reduce fe rtiliz e r applications during this tune. The plant will be m aking less grow th w hile in the house If possible, avoid spraying the plant with chemicals after the bracts begin to develop color. likely would have gone unnoticed ex cept by those, like the Magi, who were trained to watch the sky. A conjunction takes on even more significance when viewed from an astrological standpoint. The ancient astrologers would have considered conjunctions to be highly symbolic events. To them, conjunctions o f Jupiter and Saturn held special significance-Jupiter, symbolic o f the king o f the gods, and Saturn, said to be the protector o f the peoples o f the eastern Mediterranean. In 6 B.C., the planet Mars joined Jupiter and Saturn fo llo w in g the third conjunction, according to the records. A ll three planets appeared in the constellation o f Pices (the fishes), which signified to the astrologers the House o f the Hebrews. W hile the triple conjunction is the most widely accepted theory, it is unlikely that we w ill ever know for certain what produced the Christmas “ sta r.” But whether the star was supernatural or part o f the natural order o f things, the story o f the Star o f Bethlehem has endured as a sym bol o f Christinas. r 282 2216 WAREHOUSE SALE!! NEW RECLINERS & SWIVEL ROCKERS MANY VINYLS & FABRICS Values io 5289 YOURS $ Z f t FROM O / NEW COCKTAIL TABLES. COMMODES & LAMP TABLES B.P. JOHNS...............$iw,otua *69” ROYER...................... J169 value ‘64” 5-pc smoked gloss, chrome S Herculon Bookcases ,oiue»»rom sh vvsi from‘89” Oak & pine highback rockers Dinette sets (Prices 1 ,5 m $ 1 4 9 ) . .......... ......................................... VALUE $429 ‘89” $O Q Q NOW da aT aF R E N T A L R E T U R N F U R N IT U R E ASSORTED FROM ASSORTED from O FFEE T A B L E S . * 5 95 S O F A S ............ »7 9°° C ASSORTED L O V E S E A T S . »6 9°° E N D T A B L E S ___ * 5 ” UPHOLSTERED QUEEN-SIZE C H A IR S ..........»2 9°° B E D S ...................... * 7 4 * * V IN Y L FULL-SIZE R E C L IN E R S . . ’ 5 9 ° ° B E D S ...................... * 5 9 95 SPECIAL: New hideabeds, assorted fabrics, from *199° We Hava Quality Furniture far Ivaryona. _____ rwc FURNITURE r u n m i u n e SOUrfCE S U U rfU t THE Visa ENERGY. We can't afford to waste it. iorënfco M a s te r C h arg e and Fo rentco revolving c re d it plan 3 1 s t A N.E. S a n d y 4 PURF n t u r i SALIS Fred Meyer S h o p p in g C e n te rs f OONMOWU 10AM - earn We.fcOwy» Phon« 2 3 3 -1 6 2 2 f Super Shopping Centers Help Lower Your Cost of Living . . . Your nearby Fred Meyer Super Shopping Center is filled with "People Pleasing" services to make your shopping more pleasant. Wide, spacious aisles, friendly helpful clerks and un dercover parcel loading are just some of the "People Pleasing" services to you. Plus everyday low prices on thousands of items you use ano need everyday help lower your cost of living. Because we re open 9 a m. to 10 p.m. daily, including Sunday, you can shop when you WANT to, not when you HAVE to. Come in anytime and "funshop” in a pleasant, relaxed atmosphere. • W alnut Park N.E. Killingaworth at Union • Interstate „ lomb.,d • Peninsula 6860 N. Lombard P le n t y o f F re e a n d E a s y P a r k in g O p e n 9 a m to 10 p m d a ily , in c lu d in g S u n d a y . *)
