Pope Francis, 89 this year, in hospital with pneumonia in both lungs may well be facing tough decisions about whether to resign like his predecessor Pope Benedict.
He was elected on 13 March 2013 at 7.06 pm in Rome, with a Pisces Sun which is about to catch the transiting Saturn conjunction towards the end of this March. There is also a socially influential Jupiterian yod inconjunct Saturn sextile Pluto which is about to catch the tr Saturn square the focal point Solar Arc Jupiter also this March. So a downbeat time.
His birth chart of 17 December 1936 9pm Buenos Aires, Argentina, is also under Saturnine stars with tr Saturn square his focal point Sagittarius North Node and Sun late March and in April this year. Plus he has his Solar Arc Midheaven conjunct his Pluto at the moment which is blocked in terms of progress.
The Vatican, 7 June 1929 11am Rome, is uncertain at the moment with tr Neptune square the Vatican Saturn and tr Saturn square the Vatican Mercury. The first half of June this year will be a time of upheaval, perhaps some relief but also high anxiety with tr Uranus conjunct the Jupiter Midheaven and square Neptune. Which could coincide with a scandal or two emerging given Jupiter Neptune’s inclinations.
Juno is considered one of the four major asteroids and named after the Roman goddess of marriage and queen of the gods. In addition to commitment, fairness, love and relationships and wealth her meaning also encompasses betrayal through infidelity. She is deemed a protector of women, especially during childbirth. She is often fused with the Greek goddess Hera, although Hera was more actively jealous and vengeful. Juno was loyal and stayed in an unfaithful marriage to Jupiter – making the most of her connections.
A new book on JUNO, More Than Meets the Eye by Lianne McCafferty breaks new ground by covering Juno in depth with mythological background and multiple chart examples both personal and mundane as well as in synastry.
As an ingenue to the world of asteroids I am still struggling to grasp the impact of Juno in signs and houses. So this is open forum for other more informed comments.
Juno was discovered 1 September 1804 10.12 pm Lilienthal, Germany at 2 degrees Aries in a Cardinal Grand Cross involving Chiron, Saturn and Mars – all of which will be impacted by the transiting Neptune Saturn conjunction in Aries over the next three years and by tr Uranus square the Pluto opposition Sun in 2028 – so arguably our understanding of its meaning may undergo adjustments before the end of the decade.
Madame Pompadour is highlighted in Lianne McCafferty’s book, the influential mistress of King Louis XV and patroness of the arts. Born 29 December 1721 10.15 am Paris, she has Juno in Pisces in her 1st house conjunct Chiron and Ceres.
On a quick flip through the astro-archives – Imelda Marcos, Jackie Kennedy, Sarah Ferguson (Duchess of York), Zsa Zsa Gabor all have Juno either in their 1st or conjunct their Ascendant – so a high profile marriage plus making the most of your connections seems to work.
But Rosa Parks, civil right activist and Betty Freidan, feminist civil rights activist also have Juno in their 1st, and close to the Ascendant. Which may point to Juno’s insistence on fairness.
Prince William also has Juno in his 1st.
Donald Trump has his Juno conjunct Chiron conjunct his 2nd house Jupiter – for a wealth connection. Several charts I looked at had Juno conjunct Chiron which appears to indicate a deep emotional need for healing and growth within partnerships and committed relationships. In Trump’s case definitely – responsibility where money commitments are concerned needs worked at.
The EU has moved into paralysis zone with the not-unexpected Trump withdrawal from Ukraine support. The Solar Arc Pluto has now moved onto the exact degree in opposition to the EU 8th house Moon and square Uranus and will stay in effect throughout 2025. Blocked, stuck, in turmoil as it faces the cost of filling the gap left by USA finances and weaponry.
Tr Uranus square the 12th house EU Pluto from mid 2026 onwards into 2027 at the same time as a devastating financial meltdown from tr Pluto square the 2nd house Neptune in 2026/27 suggest that dither and indecision amidst great confusion are more likely than incisive decisions and action in the time ahead.
Both Ukraine charts – 24 August 1991 2.31pm Kiev and 22 January 1918 9.54pm Khrakov, are facing an uphill struggle ahead. The 1918 chart has tr Pluto conjunct its Aquarius Sun this year and moving on to oppose the Neptune Saturn from 2026 onwards. Plus their Cardinal T square of Pluto opposition Mercury square Mars is feeling the brunt of the tr Saturn Neptune hard aspects from mid 2025 on for several years, suggesting disappointment and losses.
The Ukraine 1991 chart is depressed and discouraged this year with tr Pluto conjunct the Saturn; jangled with tr Uranus square the Sun from mid 2025 into 2026; and mired in confusion in 2026 with Solar Arc Neptune square Pluto.
President Zelenzky, 25 January 1978 2pm Krivoj Rog, has an exact Solar Arc Saturn conjunct his Pluto now and through 2025 which suggests an insurmountable obstacle. Plus an undermining tr Neptune Saturn in late Pisces squaring his Jupiter denting his hopes; and tr Pluto continuing the long haul round his Mars in Leo opposition Sun Venus in Aquarius which has been putting him under immense pressure for the past two years and won’t give up until late 2027. Plus a jolting tr Uranus square his Saturn on and off till April 2026.
His Term chart 20 May 2019 10 am which started in a late Taurus Sun, Mercury, Algol will catch the unsettling destabilizing tr Uranus conjunction to those planets through this year as well from May onwards into 2026.
Of the other former Soviet satellite countries the start dates and times are not always certain. To a degree all look unsettled in the immediate few years especially Estonia and Bulgaria, Poland. But that could be for many different reasons.
The two Russia charts – 8 November 1917 2.12am Leningrad and 8 December 1991 7.45pm Moscow – both point to 2027 as a devastating time of confusion, indecision and meltdown. So I doubt it will be strutting around in domineering mood.
As the Trump Administration sets about upsetting the global world order and undercutting internal securities, several thoughts to ponder.
Common sense from William Hague: “If wars are settled in ways that reward lawless attacks, displace populations and leave a burning grievance for the future, then the result is usually more war.” “ A settlement with Russia that humiliates Ukraine will leave both sides incentivised to resume the war in the future — one to finish the invasion they got away with and the other to reverse it.”
“A solution to Gaza that removes the Palestinians will only enlarge the problem, destabilising Arab states and letting Israelis think they could do the same on the West Bank. In both cases, years of conflict would be turned into decades of struggle.”
A further minor though important point from James Marriott: “After more than two centuries of what seemed like progress, Texas is gripped by its worst measles outbreak this century — the state contains some of the least vaccinated areas of America.”
On the 2025 Inauguration chart, the start of Trump Term 11, April 25 to May 2 this year look mired in confusion and explosive with two different sets of influences running. The first is tr Saturn conjunct the Neptune which could be a minor blip of uncertainty except that the Inauguration chart has the Uranus/Pluto and Sun/Uranus midpoints exactly conjunct the Neptune catching the same tr Saturn conjunction. That adds up to stubbornness, hatred, under great pressure, separation through force majeure as well as blocked action, unexpected events involving water or flying. [These influences repeat late September to mid-October 2025 and second half of January 2026.]
At exactly the same time from April 27th to May 13 tr Uranus will be exactly conjunct Algol and setting off a firestorm on various charts including the term chart – as tr Uranus is conjunct the Mars/Neptune midpoint and the Mars/North Node midpoint – sudden disadvantages, illness, accident and forced or violent separation of a partnership.
Sometimes these influences pass by in a flurry of minor chaos and irritation but are not calamitous. However that 26 degree Tr Uranus shows up on various Trump and Netanyahu’s personal charts given their Mars at 26 Leo. And also on Trump’s relationship chart with Saudi’s Mohammed bin Salman which would point to a Middle Eastern red alert. Trump’s relationship chart with Putin (assuming VP’s 1952 birth data) will be rattled exactly at that point as well and immediately after throughout the rest of May repeating again January to mid March 2026.
A high-risk, extremely agitated phase.
Trump’s relationship chart with the USA is also panicked during those April 27th to May 13th days; with a drop in mutual confidence as tr Neptune moves into Aries in April, which may be a financial reality hitting home, which will worsen from July 2025 into and throughout 2026.
On the USA chart itself, the Solar Arc Saturn square SA Sun are crashing and banging their way in hard aspect to the USA Mars square Neptune this year, in 2026 and 2027 so the turbulence is unlikely to settle anytime soon. Trump’s Gemini Sun North Node opposition Sagittarius Moon sits on top of that USA Mars square Neptune/SA Sun square SA Saturn – and they will all catch the tr Saturn hard aspects through this March for some discouraging moments.
On the USA chart as well tr Neptune after mid 2025 joined by tr Saturn in Aries in 2026 will be square the USA financial Venus, Jupiter and eventually Cancer Sun – so the USA will be facing disappointment, lack of confidence and less economic progress for some years to come.
All countries go through phases of internal crisis from which they eventually recover but rarely do their spasms extend out quite so far as this one. Trump is managing simultaneously to withdraw from previous global responsibilities summarily and at the same time to throw his weight around like a preening dictator, just because he can.
ADD ON: The Trump/Musk gauging-out of the US government is being likened to the Red Revolution in China in the mid 1960s when Mao Tse Tung’s henchmen ran amok for a destructive decade following. There are not too many similarities except from Algol. The Cultural Revolution started in May 1966 when the revolutionary, rebellious, status-quo-upending Uranus Pluto were together in Virgo. The one point of note is that the China 1 January 1912 chart has Mars Moon Algol conjunct in last decan Taurus and the transiting North Node in late Taurus was crossing the China Mars and Algol when it started. The USA has nothing like those influences.
ADD ON 2: Previous occurrences of the Solar Arc Saturn square Solar Arc Sun colliding with the USA Mars square Neptune:
1846 to 1848: The Mexican–American War ran from 1846 to 1848.
1936 to 1938: A run of climate disasters with Pittsburgh’s worst ever flood. A Mississippi tornado kills 216. A major heat wave and thousands die. The worst school disaster in USA history with a catastrophic natural gas explosion, killing nearly 300 students and teachers in Texas. The Hindenburg disaster. In 1938 with WW11 approaching President Franklin D. Roosevelt declares the US will remain neutral. And the New England Hurricane kills 600 in total.
ADD ON 3: General Randy George, 1 November 1964, Iowa, is the US Army chief of staff since 21 September 2023. What is clear whether he stays in his position or not is that he has an aggravated relationship with Trump with a composite Mars Pluto Venus conjunction – which has the potential to turn hostile. It is being rattled in that explosive patch mid May 2025 for a few weeks and again in early 2026. July 2025 onwards could see eruptions and separations with tr Uranus square the composite Sun. His own chart will be in high alert, facing military action or considerable setbacks in May/June which could hint at escalating situations elsewhere breaking out into violence.
George’s Term chart has been undermined through this month with more uncertainty thereafter into early 2026.
Bo Burnham is an American satirist, stand-up comedian, musician, actor and filmmaker who came to success early at 16 on YouTube. In 2016 he described Trump as ‘joke proof’ and says he prefers to avoid politics, taking aim instead at cultural attitudes in general. Though his ‘That Funny Feeling’ – a litany of anxiety and dread – became a TikTok hit after the recent 2024 election.
He was born 21 August 1990 at 2.10pm Hamilton, Massachusetts, and has a knowledgeable 9th house Leo Sun with Venus, South Node and Jupiter also in Leo in his communicative 9th. His chart is dominated by an Earth Grand Trine with Mercury in Virgo in his 10th trine Saturn in Capricorn trine Mars in Taurus – and that is formed into a Kite by Mars opposition a 12th house Pluto. Making Pluto, which plumbs subterranean depths in the 12th his driving planet. A more heavyweight chart than might be expected but all about getting a message across with a punch. Plus an Aquarius North Node in his chatty 3rd which will demand a cause to focus his attention and energy.
When he became an overnight success in 2006 aged 16 his Solar Arc Jupiter was square his focal point Pluto with tr Jupiter conjunct his Pluto – giving him a tremendous boost. His Solar Arc Sun was also exactly conjunct his Moon for a new beginning and his Progressed Mars was sitting on his Descendant exactly moving him in an upward direction – though none too tactfully.
His early satire was sometimes misjudged for which he has apologised. He described it as “shock-jock offensive comedy done by a 16-year-old without any tact”.
He’s one of the triple conjunction in Capricorn generation so very much at home across the social media. His chart is unlike earlier satirists Librans Oscar Wilde and Gore Vidal but with marginal similarities to Virgoan Dorothy Parker.
Quotes:
“I would say don’t take advice from people like me who have gotten very lucky. We’re very biased. You know, like Taylor Swift telling you to follow your dreams is like a lottery winner telling you, ‘Liquidize your assets; buy Powerball tickets – it works!”
“Being famous is complete luck, and that’s something you can’t bank on.”
“Your hard work and talent will not pay off.”
“I like to joke about being gay because it’s something teenagers would never joke about.”
“Uncharted territory is a good place to be in.”
“I fully embrace myself as a hypocrite.”
“I do weird things, and people watch.”
“It’s all about surprising people, and you’re not surprising people if you’re making them laugh every five seconds.”
The gales of laughter which met the first Bridget Jones movie in the midst of the deadening Saturn opposition Pluto of 2001 are being revived as No 4 Mad about the Boy hits the screens in the UK to appreciative audiences. Coincidentally Jupiter has returned to Gemini for where it was for the first BJ Diary. The fourquel has just earned the best box office opening ever for a romantic comedy in the UK and Ireland, with top rankings in Poland, the Netherlands and Norway. The USA missed out since it appears not to be to the American taste and over there is going straight to streaming.
The Bridget world appears to have moved on from the alcohol-fuelled, chaotic world of publishing of number one movie to a tale of a widowed single mother, navigating the challenges of parenthood, work and modern dating. Hugh Grant and Emma Thompson reappear, Colin Firth briefly as the deceased spouse, with two new love interests including Chiwetel Ejiofor, who was memorable in the TV Dancing on the Edge drama series – and voicing Scar in the Lion King. He also has Jupiter in Gemini.
Novelist Helen Fielding, 19 February 1958, whose creation it was from the start, has a creative New Moon in Pisces in a determined opposition to Pluto and in an ambitious, optimistic trine to Jupiter, North Node and Neptune in Scorpio; which latter trio are further emphasized being on the focal point of a Fixed T Square to Venus opposition Uranus.
Renee Zellweger, 25 April 1969 2.41pm Houston, Texas, is a different temperament though she acts the shambolic, accident-prone heroine well. She has an emphasized Saturn in final degree Aries conjunct a Taurus Sun on the focal point of a yod inconjunct Neptune sextile Uranus, Virgo South Node, Jupiter (Pluto) – she lacks Helen Fielding’s optimism with her heavy Saturn. Her Fire Grand Trine should give her a lift of faith and confidence except her Leo Moon sits in the 12th trine a 4th house Mars trine an 8th house Venus in Aries -so it may take a while through life before she frees up her inspirational streak.
Her Midheaven in Gemini is appreciating tr Jupiter moving through her 10th as it did for the first BJ movie.
Chiwetel Ejiofor, 10 July 1977, London, with a stream of awards behind him for stage and screen work, is a Sun Cancer square Pluto; with a disciplined, hard-edged Saturn in Leo square Mars in Taurus and Jupiter in Gemini. He’s on his Jupiter Return this year as is the Bridget Jones movie phenomenon.
A piece of flim flam is a welcome relief in all the swirling uncertainty and fear.
Black Moon Lilith represents the wild feminine that does not want to be tamed and in mythology was cast out of paradise. It ‘represents the untame-able, feral spirit of those who’ve been exiled from dominant social structures. The outsiders, the outcasts, and the marginalized who flourish in our culture’s figurative underground. The people who refuse to sand down their sharper edges or submit to systems of supremacy — even when that defiance comes at a cost. Lilith is at home in the stories that have been silenced, the redacted parts of the text, and the facets of life that we suppress. Lilith is as ungovernable as the dirt, the shadows, and the wild Earth itself.’
What is confusing (!) is that Black Moon is not a planet and can mean several things. It is a symbolic, bodiless point in our skies.
It is best identified in a personal chart via the free calculator which gives four different placings.
It gives the Mean and the True Lilith which can be at different degrees as well as the Asteroid Lilith and Waldemath Dark Moon.
Marilyn Monroe is most often mentioned in relation to Lilith – 1 June 1926 9.30 am Los Angeles, California – though I am not sure she represents the anti-patriarchal streak associated with the concept.
Her True Lilith Black Moon is conjunct her Ascendant and the Asteroid Lilith is in her 10th. (That curious four pronged fork on my software).
Germaine Greer has her True Lilith in her 1st and Mean Lilith in her 12th also in Aquarius. But neither Betty Friedan or Gloria Steinem have much of note.
It all seems too confused to be a point (whichever) I would use as a guide. But all comments welcome.
‘Tradwives’ are a money-making bandwagon for social media influencers keen to promote ‘the feminine urge to take care of your husband’ – dressed in floral, baking cakes and slapping on the makeup before the ‘provider man’ comes home from his day’s labours. They have struck a chord amongst some fans of the ‘traditional’ marriage which is submissive and in line with Biblical mores. The movement has been linked to the alt-right movement though the views of supporters of the concept range from the moderate to the extreme.
Extracting a common thread from the charts of the notable Tradwives influencers is risky since some may just have jumped on a commercially attractive ploy – and in any event are a contradiction in terms since they are working hard independently.
But the first two I looked at had strong Mars Saturn aspects – which can be a masochistic trait, a learnt response to a difficult childhood where their identity was denied. Mars = I want, I will do, I am. Being blocked by Saturn it has to submit to The Other.
Estee Williams, 28 December 1998, Virginia, is a Sun Capricorn with a leadership Leo North Node so hardly a shrinking violet. Though her Pluto conjunct Lilith may be a clue.
Hannah Neeleman, 25 June 1990, is a Sun Cancer with her Saturn square Mars and Mars inconjunct Pluto. Her Venus opposes her BML. Huge anger issues.
Cynthia Loewen, 13 November 1993, is a controlled and controlling Sun Pluto (Moon) in Scorpio square Saturn – very battened down.
Nara Smith, 27 September 2001, a Sun Libra trine Neptune. Her Mars is square her Sun and inconjunct her Saturn.
Alena Pettitt, 19 November 1985, is another late Sun Scorpio conjunct Saturn with her Pluto South Node opposition her BML.
No great conclusions since Tradwife is way off my personal radar though I confess these social/cultural fads and manias do get wearing.
I would also have to confess to being judgemental about women who (in my view) sell their souls out of laziness/cowardice and leave the heavy lifting to the husband. Not that bringing up children is easy but it does seem to be an opt out in a good many cases.
Brad Kochunas’ reflections on astrology, soul, myth and imagination are gathered together in his latest book Dark Skies.
Thought-provoking and mystical in approach, his insights and attitudes are informed by his work for three decades in prison mental health. He puts forward the idea of ‘therapeutic astrology’ rather than psychological astrology which latter he says is about “striving for personal growth, self-improvement, actualization of potential and/or making out lives better.” He does not do predictions at all and says the focus should be not what we want out of life but what life wants of us.
‘Therapeutic astrology dedicated to exploring and discovering what psyche and soul desire, rather than ego, brings us to a different understanding of what is means to be human.”
I struggle with some of his concepts and outlook but what made sense on second reading was his notion of sitting with the darkness – in prison with men guilty of horrific crimes for whom there was no redemptive healing and no future as we understand it bar an acceptance of soul. Which he relates in ordinary life to a state in which ‘each carry the underworld as a constant companion.’ And quotes Jung as saying: “The serious problems in life are never fully solved. — The meaning and purpose of a problem seem to lie not in its solution but in our working at it incessantly.”
While it can sound nihilistic, especially as he points out in an American culture so geared towards optimism, sitting under a dark sky and being with the shadow can feel strangely reassuring. He quotes Thomas Moore in the Dark Nights of the Soul, “Many people claim to have integrated their shadow sides but that effort is itself a work against the dark. The real task is to live in, and with, the darkness, appreciating its unredeemed value and loving its irreversible qualities.”
And W.B. Yeats: “Who can distinguish darkness from the soul?”
He regards the 4th, 8th and 12th house as the carriers of the shadow with the houses that follow being the houses of identity – 1st, 5th, 9th.
There are chart examples and interpretations of prison inmates and their counsellors, of the latter many have Pluto in the 12th. As well as of Christopher Reeve and Michael Fox struck down by physical disabilities; David Bowie and other creative celebrities as well as notable criminals; and Ralph Waldo Emerson.
In troubled times where there is no escape from anxiety, uncertainty and fear, a zen-like attitude can be helpful. It is also true in his words that “Reluctance to engage darkness, silence and emptiness are symptoms of a diminished cultural soul and an arid spirituality.”
My Earth, Air, Cardinal and Jupiterian temperament baulks at the passivity of some of his ideas if taken to extreme. But it is a constructive antidote to a striving, got-to-get-better approach. When you can’t fix it, sit with it.
One other perceptive insight on Neptune which has been degraded in recent times by conspiracy theories, delusions and the like.
‘In Neptune’s association with Pisces, we can never overlook that Pisces is the matrix out of which something new arises to birth. It is the fecund chaos present at the creation of the world. It is the massa confuse of alchemy. The Piscean moment before manifestation, before birth, is the ultimate uncertainty and it is potent.”
