Jesus & Copernicus
After years of neglect, I'm reviving my blog. How appropriate it is to begin where I left off in May, 2005 ~ pondering theology, astronomy, and... dust!
NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, peering into deep space, recently captured the image of a previously undetected galaxy (now registered as UDFj-39546284). The light from this compact swirl of hot blue stars traveled 13.2 billion years to reach Hubble's Wide Field Camera 3. This means that this ancient galaxy was born only 480 million years after the Big Bang. How wondrous it is that human eyes are just now seeing star birth that happened so close to "the beginning!" And how exciting it is that the James Webb Space Telescope (to be launched, hopefully, this decade) will enable scientists to see even farther across the universe, and to delve ever deeper into time.
When humankind contemplates such vast expanses of time and space, it's natural to wonder about our place in the cosmos.
The Incarnation assures us that we matter to God. We're beloved. But that's not to say that it's all about us! Indeed, our lives go terribly awry when we forget the shared insight of Jesus and Copernicus: we are not the center of the universe!
The discovery of UDFj-39546284 adds fresh perspective. It reminds me that I'm (literally) a speck of stardust, and to dust I shall return. But this is good news because it encourages me to relinquish my hubristic tendency to demand, grasp, and fret. And it invites me to step out of my little corner of the cosmos and into God's amazing, glorious, and ever-new creation. What a blessing it is to be both a witness and a participant.
NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, peering into deep space, recently captured the image of a previously undetected galaxy (now registered as UDFj-39546284). The light from this compact swirl of hot blue stars traveled 13.2 billion years to reach Hubble's Wide Field Camera 3. This means that this ancient galaxy was born only 480 million years after the Big Bang. How wondrous it is that human eyes are just now seeing star birth that happened so close to "the beginning!" And how exciting it is that the James Webb Space Telescope (to be launched, hopefully, this decade) will enable scientists to see even farther across the universe, and to delve ever deeper into time.
When humankind contemplates such vast expanses of time and space, it's natural to wonder about our place in the cosmos.
When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars you have set in their courses,
what are human beings that you are mindful of them,
mortals that you care for them? (Psalm 8:3-4)
the moon and the stars you have set in their courses,
what are human beings that you are mindful of them,
mortals that you care for them? (Psalm 8:3-4)
The Incarnation assures us that we matter to God. We're beloved. But that's not to say that it's all about us! Indeed, our lives go terribly awry when we forget the shared insight of Jesus and Copernicus: we are not the center of the universe!
The discovery of UDFj-39546284 adds fresh perspective. It reminds me that I'm (literally) a speck of stardust, and to dust I shall return. But this is good news because it encourages me to relinquish my hubristic tendency to demand, grasp, and fret. And it invites me to step out of my little corner of the cosmos and into God's amazing, glorious, and ever-new creation. What a blessing it is to be both a witness and a participant.
Nicolaus Copernicus
(1473-1543)
posted by Charlie Brumbaugh @ 1/28/2011
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