Weekend Entertainment Guide 4/26/24

Jupiter conjunct Uranus brings religious conflict with a bizarre flavor — and more.

The April 20 Jupiter-Uranus conjunction continues to dominate astrological conversation. Better yet, it also explains the strange stories about cows suddenly appearing in the non-astrological press!

Jupiter conjunct Uranus in Taurus in the news

The red heifer saga continues

In the 3/29/24 edition of Weekend Entertainment Guide, I connected the Jupiter-Uranus conjunction in Taurus to the threat of a controversial red heifer sacrifice in Jerusalem. The sign of Taurus is symbolized by the bull, and a red heifer is a type of cow. Jupiter, the planet of inflation, and Uranus, the planet of shocking and bizarre activities, then bring the circus to the venue of Taurus.

My understanding is that an extremist group of Jews wants the red heifer sacrifice in order to rebuild the Jewish temple, and an extremist group of Christians wants the red heifer sacrifice in order to bring about the second coming of Christ. So far, these two groups appear to be using each other to reach the common goal of making the sacrifice happen. They then want very different results from it, though, so I’m not sure how they plan to handle that transition.   

Meanwhile, the proposed sacrifice would take place at the present location of Al-Aqsa Mosque, sparking conflict with Muslims. I’m waiting for the plot twist where the Hindus, who oppose the killing of cows altogether, join the fray.

Some online chatter claimed that the red heifer sacrifice was going to take place at the Jewish holiday of Passover, which is observed April 22-30 this year. The New Arab reports that there were incidents of Israeli extremists storming Al-Aqsa and performing rituals this past week, but the account does not specifically mention red heifers.

Jupiter is associated with organized religion, so a flare-up of conflict between religions makes sense as a manifestation of a Jupiter-Uranus conjunction. That said, I really enjoyed this music video about Passover that came up in my YouTube feed, and it’s probably more representative of the average Passover observance than any of the red heifer stuff.

Cows become vectors of bird flu

One mass hysteria focused on cows would have been striking enough for the Jupiter-Uranus conjunction in Taurus. Now, however, there are two.

Yesterday, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration announced that 1 in 5 samples of cow’s milk sold in the United States tested positive for fragments of the bird flu virus. The announcement went on to say, “based on the information currently available, our commercial milk supply is safe because of these two reasons: 1) the pasteurization process and 2) the diversion or destruction of milk from sick cows.”

NBC News elaborated, “As of Thursday, bird flu had been detected in 33 herds [of dairy cows] in eight states: Idaho, Kansas, Michigan, New Mexico, North Carolina, South Dakota, Ohio and Texas.” Keep an eye on this developing story.

Videos about the Jupiter-Uranus conjunction

Chris Brennan interviews Richard Tarnas, author of Cosmos and Psyche, about the Jupiter-Uranus conjunction. Using a 15° orb, Tarnas takes the influence of the Jupiter-Uranus conjunction all the way back to the uproar over the Barbie movie in summer 2023.

Georgia Stathis continues her three-part series on the Jupiter-Uranus conjunction. Highlights of Part 2, linked above, include a look at how the 2010 Jupiter-Uranus conjunction at 0° Aries interacts with the charts of various mass shootings that have taken place since then. Stathis also provides case studies of scientist Barbara McClintock, innovator Steve Jobs, and explorer Thor Heyerdahl.

The series is intended as a fundraiser for the Alexandria iBase Project. Stathis is the author of Pushing through Time, and a portion of the proceeds from that book also supports the Alexandria iBase Project’s efforts to preserve astrological literature.

Hot on Substack

Anita Chauhan via

Astrologers' Co-Op

, Jupiter-Uranus Conjunction: What It Means To Be Human

Chauhan provides an overview of the Jupiter-Uranus conjunction that took place on April 20, 2024. She compares it to the last time Jupiter and Uranus met in the sign of Taurus, which was in 1941.

Cynthia Giles

, 4.21.2024

Giles shares how to lure ChatGPT into supplying Tarot readings. There’s a block of text that you paste in.

Michelle Corbesier

, Jack Parsons

Corbesier analyzes the chart of Jack Parsons, a rocket engineer and occultist who was born in 1914 with Jupiter and Uranus conjunct in Aquarius.

Dr Marcus Morris

, Lessons in narcissism – from Tesla?

Morris, not an astrologer to my knowledge, is a clinical psychologist specializing in narcissism and personality disorders. However, his analysis of Tesla’s Cybertruck may remind astrologers of the shadow side of Uranus.

As an astrologer, I think there is not just one narcissism but multiple narcissisms. For example, the solar form of narcissism would be the in-your-face bombastic Donald Trump type, while the lunar form of narcissism would be someone more covertly controlling.

The Saturnian flavor of narcissism would be the sort of person who insists that their children embody some rigidly conservative ideal on the grounds that whatever their children do is a reflection on them. Many people who receive that type of upbringing rebel against it by moving to my home state of Oregon and flipping to the opposite extreme, the Uranian flavor of narcissism. Like the Cybertruck, the Uranian flavor of narcissism innovates and breaks boundaries compulsively.

Abigail Joy

, Herbal Contraception (Unfortunately)

Living in Oregon drives me insane sometimes. I unload on this theme in my essay “Rules of Combat” in Impossible Dreams: Hopes, Fears, and Expectations for Saturn in Pisces. A culture that regularly combines Uranian narcissism and Neptunian emotional manipulation can be a special kind of hell. (Oregon, established on February 14, 1859, has Chiron, the Sun, and the North Node broadly conjunct in Aquarius, with Uranus at 29° Taurus tightly square the North Node. Meanwhile, the state’s natal Neptune is strong in Pisces.)

Joy, however, provides a useful reminder that Oregon gets a few things right. After Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, each state wound up with more power to define its own approach to abortion. Oregon took the opportunity to strengthen legal protections for abortion and other freedoms related to gender and sexuality.

Meanwhile, the legislature of Iowa, where Joy lives, implemented a six-week abortion ban, which is currently on hold pending a ruling from the Iowa Supreme Court. Understandably, Joy is afraid of what comes next.

It makes complete sense that people would want to move to Oregon from other states on account of this kind of problem, and many have done that over the years. Unfortunately, we can barely house the people we already have. Earlier this year, Oregon governor Tina Kotek showed excellent leadership in convincing the state legislature to approve a one-time exemption to rigid urban growth boundaries implemented in 1973, but members of her own party made it a hard fight for her.

When liberals of an older generation hear “urban growth boundary,” they seem to hear, “We’re protecting nature.” When I hear “urban growth boundary,” I hear someone who got here before I did saying, “I’ve got mine” — perhaps the definitional phrase of Uranian narcissism.

Life would be much more affordable for me if I moved to Iowa, but then I’d have all of Iowa’s problems. I hope the legislators of Oregon think about the experiences of people like me and people like Joy as they continue their efforts to address Oregon’s housing crisis.