Interestingly, both John Kennedy and Franklin Roosevelt were born under Saturn-Neptune conjunctions (Roosevelt was born under the conjunction of 1882 and Kennedy under the subsequent conjunction of 1917) and both died under Saturn square Neptune alignments. Both presidents’ passings were more than the death of individual presidents, but their demise was symbolic of an end to an era of optimism and hope in the evolution of United States’ history. The death of FDR represented the end of an era of progressive idealism that would give way to an age of strained international relations characterized by McCarthyism and the beginning of the Cold War. Kennedy’s assassination symbolized the end of Camelot, the closest analogue America would enjoy of royalty. Kennedy’s America was a shimmering, bright, and ideal symbol of true change and advancement. The extinguishment of the brief candle that was Kennedy’s regime signaled the end of America’s brief romantic flirtation with a regal sovereign.

In both presidents’ legacy and life, we see the possibilities of the Saturn-Neptune complex enacted. In their own personal lives, Kennedy and Roosevelt faced what for lack of a better term might be called spiritual trial, or a crisis of faith. Roosevelt’s crippling polio (or what many contemporary researchers are now calling Guillain-Barre syndrome), contracted at the early age of 39, did not deter the future president but created a resiliency and moral fiber that would be needed to assist America in a time of scarcity and turmoil. John F. Kennedy also suffered from early physical setbacks; jaundice, osteoporosis, and colitis beset the president at a young age. It can be assumed in both cases that the early testing and limiting they incurred encouraged both men to develop a greater-than-usual fortitude and strength in difficult personal situations. Thus, the physical challenges forged a faith in darkness that allowed them the ability to become resiliant to collective difficulties as president.

But we can also see the Saturn-Neptune complex manifest in the collective response to their deaths. As so much faith and hope had been invested in the ideals these men symbolized, their demise meant the ending of major dreams and aspirations of the American people. Just as these presidents were challenged by setbacks in their early life, so too were the American people called to struggle with significant deterrents to their ideals and hopes. The deaths of FDR and Kennedy were times that called upon America to strengthen their resolve in faith through Saturn’s most notorioius experiential quality—lack.