Episode 50: Coming To Christ Through CC with Howard Hochhalter (Dads’ Series)

Summary

Ever wonder what the star of Bethlehem that led the wise men to Christ’s birth really looked like? In this episode, Robert talks to Howard Hochhalter, a marine turned astronomer and NASA Solar System Ambassador and an atheist turned Christian and Classical Conversations® dad. In this powerful conversation, Howard tells his incredible testimony of coming to know Jesus through a chance meeting with a homeschool family, being welcomed by the believers in his family’s Classical Conversations community, and studying the history and astronomy behind the real star of Bethlehem. He also shares what fascinates him about the night sky and what he does as a NASA Solar System Ambassador and director of a planetarium. In the “Current Events Discussion,” Robert considers the possibility of a secret government program monitoring UFOs and then wraps things up by explaining USDT (Tether) in “Classical Crypto.”

Quote

“There was a time when I couldn’t even say the word ‘God.’ I felt very disingenuous when I said it because I was a secular person . . . This last star of Bethlehem [project], of course, is the first one I ever did as a Christian . . . and I have no difficulty saying ‘God’ now. None at all.”

Howard Hochhalter

Topics

• Intro to Howard Hochhalter [1:06]
• From U.S. marine to astronomer [1:56]
• Howard’s first date with his future wife to a planetarium [3:40]
• What does a NASA Solar System Ambassador do? [5:28]
• A chance encounter with a homeschool family and getting introduced to CC [7:27]
• Studying the star of Bethlehem and discovering there is truth to biblical events [12:48]
• [16:30]
• Converting to Christianity [25:17]
• Both Howard and his wife came to know Christ separately, though during the same time [30:16]
• Howard’s family [32:00]
• What’s happening in astronomy that excites Howard the most [37:18]
• Would Howard go to space? [41:46]
• Farewell to Howard [43:28]
• “Current Events Discussion”: UFOs vs UAPs [46:17]
• Ad: Classical Learning Cohort [49:39]
• “Classical Crypto”: Tether (USDT) [51:14]
• Outro [55:39]

Mentions

• NASA Solar System Ambassadors | NASA
• Venice Planetarium | The Hollow for Kids
• The Bishop Museum of Science and Nature
• Gallery | James Webb Space Telescope
• Kennedy Space Center | NASA
• “Hochhalter: Some theories on the wondrous Star of Bethlehem” | Herald-Tribune
• 2024 Solar Eclipse: Where & When | NASA Solar System Exploration
• Mission Summary: Apollo 15
• James Irwin | Wikipedia
• “The Star of Kings and Magi” | HRH Astro | YouTube
• HRH Astro | YouTube
• “Pentagon denies secret UFO retrieval program after whistleblower bombshell” | Fox News
• “El Salvador’s Bitcoin Mining Industry Sees Tether Join its $1 Billion Venture” | CryptoNews
• Tether (USDT)