Write Lightning is a blog from writer Deb Thompson.
Everyone is welcome here.
(Some links or topics may not be completely kid-appropriate.)
Everyone is welcome here.
(Some links or topics may not be completely kid-appropriate.)
Fri, Mar 02 2007
Eclipses and a red moon
I hope the weather will let Americans on the East Coast enjoy the total lunar eclipse this weekend. We won't really get to see much on the West Coast. The very best viewing of all would be more over toward Africa. Europeans should also get a good show this time. We'll have a better seat this August, when another eclipse will occur.
Many wonder if the reddish hue that sometimes comes with a lunar eclipse around dusk has anything to do with Revelation 6:12. Joel 2 also refers to the moon turning into blood. Speculation over these verses ranges from literal to symbolic, and even among those who insist that the verse is symbolic, there is a wide range of interpretation as to what the blood-red moon actually represents. The expression could be both literal and symbolic, since the moon has appeared to be red many times. But the color red could be taken from a rose, a cardinal bird, a tomato, an autumn leaf or some other red spot of nature. Using the term "blood" gives the whole passage a particularly serious overtone. And was this blood-red moon a once-in-the-universe kind of event, or was it supposed to happen again and again, as an ongoing reminder to people? Sunsets often have a lot of red in them, depending on cloud cover and your viewing location. Was the moon mentioned because the red appearance occurs less often than it does with a sunset?
Wherever your study of such things takes you, it's easy to see that we're all very drawn toward the mysterious hues of a lunar eclipse. No matter where you live on the planet, chances are that you'll see at least one lunar eclipse in your lifetime. It might be that it does become something important if you decide to study and find out for yourself. And what about those pillars of smoke in Joel 2:30? Check it out, if you never have. It's fascinating reading.
posted at: 14:02 | category: /Religious and Spiritual | link to this entry
I hope the weather will let Americans on the East Coast enjoy the total lunar eclipse this weekend. We won't really get to see much on the West Coast. The very best viewing of all would be more over toward Africa. Europeans should also get a good show this time. We'll have a better seat this August, when another eclipse will occur.
Many wonder if the reddish hue that sometimes comes with a lunar eclipse around dusk has anything to do with Revelation 6:12. Joel 2 also refers to the moon turning into blood. Speculation over these verses ranges from literal to symbolic, and even among those who insist that the verse is symbolic, there is a wide range of interpretation as to what the blood-red moon actually represents. The expression could be both literal and symbolic, since the moon has appeared to be red many times. But the color red could be taken from a rose, a cardinal bird, a tomato, an autumn leaf or some other red spot of nature. Using the term "blood" gives the whole passage a particularly serious overtone. And was this blood-red moon a once-in-the-universe kind of event, or was it supposed to happen again and again, as an ongoing reminder to people? Sunsets often have a lot of red in them, depending on cloud cover and your viewing location. Was the moon mentioned because the red appearance occurs less often than it does with a sunset?
Wherever your study of such things takes you, it's easy to see that we're all very drawn toward the mysterious hues of a lunar eclipse. No matter where you live on the planet, chances are that you'll see at least one lunar eclipse in your lifetime. It might be that it does become something important if you decide to study and find out for yourself. And what about those pillars of smoke in Joel 2:30? Check it out, if you never have. It's fascinating reading.
posted at: 14:02 | category: /Religious and Spiritual | link to this entry
