(Image found here)
It is enough to know a little about mythology to understand that the names of the planets in the solar system are based on the deities of the Roman Empire, with each planet having a Roman name that refers to some intrinsic characteristic of it.
However, the planets did not always have their current names: before the nomenclature they have today, the names of Greek deities were used: Hermes, Aphrodite, Zeus… and even before that, the names of Sumerian deities were used – the people who built the foundations of Western astrology.
But, for some reason, these names were not adapted to the names of Catholic saints during the Middle Ages — something that would be expected, since Christianity has always adapted elements of pagan cultures into its own culture, Christianizing them, so to speak.
Perhaps it is because, little by little, the Church has distanced itself from traditional astrology – something that has occurred at least since Saint Augustine. I don’t know if there is an answer for why these names have remained intact, but the fact is that the planets continued to have their Roman nomenclature even after the predominance of the Christian faith in the West.
As an object of study, I decided to relate the planets from traditional astrology to seven great saints from the beginning of Christianity based on the characteristics that draw the most attention in both.
I gave preference to saints who lived directly with Jesus Christ or who, at least, are presented in the New Testament. That way, we have a symbology that is valid for the Church at all times in its history.
Mercury — Saint John the Baptist
Mercury (Hermes, in Greek mythology) is the messenger of the gods, the one who makes known the plans of Zeus. Likewise, Saint John the Baptist was the last prophet before Christ, the one who was supposed to come to foretell the arrival of the Messiah.
The figure of Saint John the Baptist makes sense as the first planet in the solar system, because he came first to prepare the people of God for the arrival of the true Savior – that is, for what would come after him.
The correlation here is clear: he came as a messenger of Jesus, preparing the chosen people for the New Covenant with God. He came, preaching and making himself known, all this to direct his message to the true Messiah: Jesus Christ, his cousin.
John the Baptist was a silent messenger, who died for remaining firm in the faith in a way that was humiliating for many, but who served to water the seeds of faith with his blood.
In the past, his figure was extremely important in Christianity, but over time his importance diminished, giving more space to other saints and devotions within the Church – showing that the best messenger is the one who does not attract attention to himself, but rather to the message.
Venus — Saint Mary Magdalene
Venus is a typically feminine planet, being related to the goddess of love, fertility, and sexual relations, and is known as Aphrodite in Greek mythology.
Initially, it seemed difficult to find an appropriate correlation between a saint and this planet, due to its symbolism more focused on Eros, passionate love. One possibility would be Saint John the Evangelist, the “beloved disciple”, who presents love as charity in a very prominent way in his Epistles – and who, in addition, was faithful to Christ until the moment of his crucifixion.
However, as a feminine planet, this comparison would be imperfect. Furthermore, there is someone much more suitable for comparison – someone who also stayed with Christ while he agonized on the cross: Saint Mary Magdalene.
Here, we see the image of a love that transforms: Mary Magdalene, who is associated with the adulterous woman in the Gospels, left her past life behind and decided to transform her life into an act of following in the Christ’s footsteps, fighting against her inclinations and acquiring a new attitude towards life.
It is worth making a brief observation regarding the figure of Saint Mary Magdalene: although she is associated with the adulterous woman who was almost stoned because of her infidelity, there is no biblical account that states that these two women were the same person. On the contrary: it is imagined that Mary Magdalene was a wealthy woman who helped Jesus financially in his mission.
However, the analogy still holds true as a symbol, even if it lacks historical veracity.
Moon — Our Lady
The Moon usually presents a feminine symbolism, related to the figure of the mother, maternal love and wife, always being the companion of the Sun. These maternal aspects refer directly to the mother of Christ: the Virgin Mary.
She is the one who is at the Sun’s side in everything, acting in a less visible and even less important way, but also fundamental to a life of faith – just like the Moon, even though it is much smaller in size when compared to the Sun, it is still essential to reflect sunlight.
The reference to Our Lady is very evident even considering subtle elements, such as the white and blue robes with which she is commonly depicted – both associated with the Moon, a white planet with a blue glow.
The Virgin Mary has several titles related to her holiness. For this comparison, it is worth highlighting the title of “star of the ocean”: the Moon, according to the conception of traditional astrology, is a star (as are the other planets in the solar system), and it is the one that regulates the tides, making the symbolism of the colors white and blue even clearer.
Sun — Jesus Christ
In most Latin languages, the days of the week are related to the planets of Traditional Astrology: there are seven planets, one for each day of the week. Sunday is the day related to the Sun and, at the very beginning of Christian history, it replaced Saturday as the day of rest, clearly demonstrating the direct relationship presented here.
The Sun, being the most important star in astrology, deserves the most direct relationship with Our Lord Jesus Christ. It is the Sun that makes our life possible, renews our energies and that appears each day after a long night.
Likewise, Christ gives us the energies we need each day through His Grace – not because we deserve it, but because of His pure mercy. God’s grace is like the sun’s rays, which rise in the morning for both the just and the unjust.
Earth — Saint Peter
Saint Peter is the rock on which the Church was built, on which it stands. Planet Earth is where we live, where we step every day and with which we sustain ourselves. In the same way that Saint Peter is, as the first pope, our institutional foundation as a religion, the Earth functions as our material foundation.
Peter was a fisherman, a humble man with simple work. He made mistakes during the time he learned from Jesus directly, but even so he was called to repent and to feed Christ’s sheep. Saint Peter represents our daily call to live the holiness of our daily lives here on Earth, always adjusting the path as necessary.
Mars — Saint Michael the Archagel
The Church has had several warrior saints throughout its history. To name a few: Saint Sebastian, Saint George, Saint Expeditus… but, of all of them, the one who deserves the most attention is certainly Saint Michael the Archangel.
Saint Michael is the prince of the heavenly militia: he is the one who, despite being the second lowest level within the hierarchy of angels, commands the angelic army against the forces of evil and steps on the head of the devil at the end of the battle.
Saint Michael is presented in the Apocalypse and, as such, is the one most closely related to biblical accounts. In addition, he is the patron saint of the entire Catholic Church, which highlights his importance over other warrior saints.
While Mars (Ares) commands wars in his own favor and that of his favorites, Saint Michael commands the army of angels in a spiritual battle in which victory is certain thanks to God’s mercy.
Jupiter — Saint Paul
Jupiter (Zeus) is the head of Olympus, the leader of the gods. Although this figure is more directly related to God the Father – and, consequently, to Jesus Christ, his Son –, it seems that the symbolism is also directly related to Saint Paul.
Even if Christ is the Messiah and has redeemed us, or if Saint Peter is the new pope and has exercised institutional leadership of the Church, there is no denying that he was the most important theologian in the history of Christianity, directly influencing countless Christian communities since the first centuries – a feat that made him the author with the most written works in the New Testament.
In addition, Saint Paul was a tireless preacher, having founded several communities in the nascent Christianity in the first century, which made it possible to spread the Good News to various corners of the planet. Jupiter is a gaseous planet and gas is the state of matter that diffuses most easily under normal conditions, thus showing the relationship between the figure of Paul and the physical-chemical characteristics of the planet.
Interestingly, the name “Paul” means small. At the same time, Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system. This curious comparison shows that even a small, hardened and persecuting man can become a great saint, taking the word of Christ to the whole world and becoming one of the greatest names in the Christian faith through his spiritual greatness.
Saturn — Saint Joseph
Saturn (Cronus, in Greek mythology), was the Titan who fathered Zeus and his brothers. He is related to the figure of man as a father, as a figure of authority. Instead of being the man as a king, dominating, he is that older man, who has reached wisdom and rules through advice rather than power.
The most evident father figure in the New Testament – apart from God the Father Himself – is Saint Joseph, father of the Holy Family who cared for Jesus until his death, before the beginning of His public preaching.
Saint Joseph, who, despite being the smallest of the Holy Family, was entrusted with caring for them, and did so until the last days of his life. He certainly educated Jesus in the principles of the Jewish faith and shared his days with Christ, teaching Him through diligent work, patience with his clients, family relationships and countless other everyday circumstances.
Conclusion
It seems very clear that it is possible to relate figures within Christianity to the planets of traditional astrology. There are also other possible relationships, considering other saints who have existed throughout the centuries and who also present the same archetypes as the planets studied.
It would be possible, for example, to make a correlation of this type only with saints described in the Roman canon (currently known as Eucharistic Prayer I), or only with important popes in history, or only with doctors of the Church…
There are many comparisons, but for practical purposes and universal scope, it is preferable to use saints described in the New Testament, so that the archetypes achieve their goal of being as universal as possible.
As a friend of mine said when reading this text, it is not possible to directly compare mythological deities with saints, because the latter really existed and are not archetypal constructions – that is, they will never fit perfectly into the symbolisms linked to each planet. Even so, I believe it is an interesting comparison from a symbolic point of view.