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    The Heavens Declare
    The Heavens Declare
    The Heavens Declare
    Ebook132 pages2 hours

    The Heavens Declare

    By Prof. Maurice Thaddeus Brackbill

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    If you thrill at the sight of the heavenly blue backdrop with innumerable silver stars twinkling at you so far below on the spinning earth, come, draw up your chair and share this book. This book is written to give the reader a greater appreciation of the stars in the heavens, and of the God who created them.

    “With humor and whimsy and inspiration, and with scientific acceptability that heightens these other qualities, Maurice T. Brackbill shares his viewpoint of the heavens in this delightful series of essays. Through everything he writes shines his deep feeling for the eternal and universal meanings behind the sensible reality.

    “Professor Brackbill’s book is in your hands. You will read it, and will reread it to others, and you’ll reread it to yourself, time and time again. Preachers will find in this volume the texts for many sermons, kindergarten teachers will discover that the thinking fits into the capability of the youngest mind, and the student will recognize the sound science which mantles every vivid paragraph. Everyone who reads will sense and approve the deep spiritual motivation which underlies the science.”—ARMAND N. SPITZ
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPapamoa Press
    Release dateDec 1, 2018
    ISBN9781789124545
    The Heavens Declare
    Author

    Prof. Maurice Thaddeus Brackbill

    Maurice T. Brackbill (1891-1962) was a Professor of Mathematics at Eastern Mennonite College, a private Mennonite liberal arts university in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Born on May 11, 1891, near Lancaster, Pennsylvania, the son of Aldus and Lizzie Brackbill, he received a BA at Hesston College and a BS and MA in Astronomy at the University of Virginia. He also undertook graduate work in Astronomy at the Universities of Kansas and Michigan. Prof. Brackbill joined the faculty of Eastern Mennonite College in 1919. He taught a wide variety of courses ranging from Agriculture to Zoology in the fledgling institution. He was appointed head of the department which he designated Physastromath and was Chairman of the Division of Natural Sciences until he suffered a stroke in January 1956, which ended his teaching career. He joined the American Scientific Affiliation (ASA) in 1949 and later was elected to the grade of fellow. He served as host to the 9th convention which met on the EMC campus in 1954. Although most of his education was in mathematics and astronomy, he held a special interest in literature and became a writer, publishing Heaven and the Glory of the Sunset (1924) and The Heavens Declare (1959), as well as a number of articles for the Youth’s Christian Companion (YCC). Prof. Brackbill was married to Ruth Mininger (1906-1962) in 1932. The couple had no children. He passed away in Harrisonburg City, Virginia on September 18, 1962, aged 71.

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      Book preview

      The Heavens Declare - Prof. Maurice Thaddeus Brackbill

      This edition is published by Muriwai Books – www.pp-publishing.com

      To join our mailing list for new titles or for issues with our books – muriwaibooks@gmail.com

      Or on Facebook

      Text originally published in 1959 under the same title.

      © Muriwai Books 2018, all rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted by any means, electrical, mechanical or otherwise without the written permission of the copyright holder.

      Publisher’s Note

      Although in most cases we have retained the Author’s original spelling and grammar to authentically reproduce the work of the Author and the original intent of such material, some additional notes and clarifications have been added for the modern reader’s benefit.

      We have also made every effort to include all maps and illustrations of the original edition the limitations of formatting do not allow of including larger maps, we will upload as many of these maps as possible.

      THE HEAVENS DECLARE

      BY

      MAURICE THADDEUS BRACKBILL

      Professor Emeritus, Eastern Mennonite College

      Harrisonburg, Virginia

      TABLE OF CONTENTS

      Contents

      TABLE OF CONTENTS 4

      DEDICATION 5

      INTRODUCTION 6

      THE HEAVENS DECLARE 9

      THE BIBLE AND PHYSICAL SCIENCE 13

      SEASONAL SKYSCAPE 17

      IF THE STARS SHONE ONLY ONE NIGHT EVERY THOUSAND YEARS 19

      EARTH’S POWERHOUSE IN THE SKY 24

      FINGERPRINTING THE STARS 34

      EXPLODING STARS—(Nature’s Greatest Cataclysms) 39

      CONCERNING A STAR AND ME 43

      BETHLEHEM STAR 45

      JESUS AND THE NIGHT 49

      DAY AND NIGHT OF THE GOSPEL 53

      THE HOLY PLACE IN THE SKY 54

      A PHILOSOPHICAL TIME WITH TIME 55

      THE GOOD EARTH 58

      SEEING GOD IN NATURE—(THE HEAVENS) 62

      WE’RE ON THE MOVE! 74

      THE TABERNACLE OF GOD IS WITH MEN 76

      REQUEST FROM THE PUBLISHER 79

      DEDICATION

      To

      Esther Ruth

      my wife

      I have felt at times the spell of evening as of a holy hour, felt the call to worship as night lights up her evening lamps like jets of incense flame on a celestial altar.

      INTRODUCTION

      OCCASIONALLY there takes place, in the normal sequence of natural phenomena, an event which by itself is simply evidence of basic laws at work, but which because of an unusual combination of circumstances, has a more than average significance to the collective observer. It might be an eclipse, a fireball, a comet, an auroral display, an earthquake, or the first jonquil in the spring.

      For one reason or another, usually external to the event itself, this particular phenomenon is viewed with special interest; its significance is more intense than that of countless other similar phenomena. From heightened awareness of this single instance may come heightened awareness of and appreciation for a new category of human experiences.

      Thus the mind of man continuously reaches toward a comprehension of the cosmos. Thus the infinite gains meaning, because some simple spur to inspiration has been experienced. Sometimes this compels awareness while the process is going on; more frequently, perhaps, the effect is achieved without consciousness of the cause.

      Since early man, first becoming conscious of the stars, shared his wonderings with his mates, to the most modern, most highly technical dissertation in astrophysics or astronautics, to the most dramatic presentation under the man-made skies of a planetarium, or the most popular program on television, there have been teachers, interpreters and inspirers who, perhaps no more scientifically sophisticated than dozens or scores of their colleagues, have had an impact which is extraordinary, and whose influence far transcends that which would be expected under relatively normal circumstances.

      For lo, these many centuries there have been teachers of astronomy. For lo, these many decades the direction of astronomical teaching has been to help the layman to understand something of the significance of man with relation to the universe of which he and his solar system are a part. For lo, these many years there has been a near avalanche of public interest. As we approach the latter part of the twentieth century more people know more about the heavens above, the earth beneath, and their scientific background and their spiritual significance than ever before in human history.

      And this is not only because there are more people on earth to learn than there have been before, nor because the teaching techniques are better. It also happens that there are more and better teachers, and the influence of each of these spreads outward and interlaces, ripple-like, with the influence of his colleagues. Sometimes there is a more obvious ripple. Trace it back, and it will be found that the cause is a teacher of unusual inspiration.

      Such a teacher is the author of this book. He is a quiet, unassuming individual, in a quiet, unassuming college, representing a quiet, unassuming faith, in a quiet, unassuming community. Yet his influence has spread throughout the years. The student society which he formed has alumni throughout the world—star-gazers, some of them, but star-minded men and women, all of them. The star-finder he invented, the Astra-Guide, was one of the earliest and most accurate of the teaching aids which have been growing ever more numerous in recent years. The Vesper Heights Observatory and Planetarium which he founded and directed has been a mecca for untold thousands who have come there not only to learn about the stars. Starrywood, his home, has been a place of dedication and inspiration. His publications, lectures, poems, broadcasts, and conferences have had their immediate effect—but this is slight in comparison with the influence he has exerted, and will continue to exert, upon all who have or will have heard his voice or read his writings.

      With humor and whimsy and inspiration, and with scientific acceptability that heightens these other qualities, Maurice T. Brackbill shares his viewpoint of the heavens in this delightful series of essays. Through everything he writes shines his deep feeling for the eternal and universal meanings behind the sensible reality.

      Read Concerning a Star and Me. Learn how wonderful a star is, and then chuckle with: Stars don’t know anything. They don’t even know they are stars. No star ever had an idea about anything, not even about themselves. A star is an idea-less thing. Not so I. I have ideas. Really. You are reading some right now. A star couldn’t read my manuscript despite its billion years.

      Or turn to the little gem called The Holy Place in the Sky, describing the constellation of Cygnus, the Swan, better known as the Northern Cross: It is the most precious to me of all the constellations. It is the clear evening’s vesper call. Some people wear a gold cross at their necks, some place it on their mantels or under their pillows and some place it on their church steeples and altars; but it is enough for me to see this blessed insignia of our Lord, the crucifix carved in starlight, whenever at dusk the temple curtains of the sky are drawn aside from the holy place in the heavens where God has placed it.

      But why select just a few examples of the whole? Professor Brackbill’s book is in your hands. You will read it, and will reread it to others, and you’ll reread it to yourself, time and time again. Preachers will find in this volume the texts for many sermons, kindergarten teachers will discover that the thinking fits into the capability of the youngest mind, and the student will recognize the sound science which mantles every vivid paragraph. Everyone who reads will sense and approve the deep spiritual motivation which underlies the science.

      Throughout his active and productive life, Maurice Brackbill has had one goal, summed up in the final words of every speech or piece of writing. There can be no better way to acknowledge his inspiration than to use that phrase here:

      AD ASTRA!

      ARMAND N. SPITZ

      Director of Spitz Laboratories, Inc.,

      author of The Pinpoint Planetarium, A Start in Meteorology and Dictionary of Astronomy and Astronautics.

      Yorklyn, Delaware

      March, 1959

      THE HEAVENS DECLARE

      Psalm 19

      OUT ON THE HILLS of Palestine some shepherds were keeping guard over their sheep as they lay corralled for the night, and the stars were brightly shining. All through the summer and the autumn, Cygnus, the swan, high in the sky was flying from Cepheus, the King, toward Sagittarius, the Bowman, which is in the direction of the center of our galaxy. And close by was Aquila, the eagle, king of birds, falling to earth, the victim of an arrow. And there was Hercules, crushing with his foot the head of Draco, and Ophiucus wrestling with Serpens which was sticking out its tongue in contempt at Corona, the crown. And there was Perseus, the deliverer, and Andromeda, the saved, all full of gospel significance. And in the early evening of the first Christmastide, as on every Christmas Eve since, Cygnus, the cross, stood upright above the western horizon; while in the early morning, Virgo, the virgin, rose in the east following the lion, Leo Major, Lion of the tribe of Judah. These all were highly significant that night of the tremendously important event about to take place, but doubtless meant nothing to the shepherds as they watched the sky, dozed, or listened to the howl of some distant jackal.

      But suddenly, prematurely, day seemed to dawn and the sky was full of angels and the air was resonant with choric speaking: Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace, good will to men! Yes, just yonder, in the little nearby town of Bethlehem, in the stable of the village khan, a little Child was born, and cradled in the hay blossoms of a donkey’s feed box, or on the soft fleece of an obliging lamb, a little Child destined for great things: Messiah, Redeemer, Saviour, Lord, Prince, King, King of kings and Lord of lords. Glory to God in the highest! For this little Babe, angelic hosts are praising God and a star shines out splendidly in far eastern countries. Yes, the heavens ever since they were made have glorified their Creator and published to all who could read them, the glad tidings written by the hand of God on the blue parchment of the skies.

      *****

      Out on the hills of Palestine, surrounded by his father’s sheep, and the quiet beauty of earth and sky, a shepherd poet was thrilled with thoughts that three thousand years since are among the best known lines of the world’s literature. He did not turn a dial to get some current musical program, or some exciting newscast. No, in a more mysterious manner he tuned in on Nature’s broadcast, and via the ether waves, or some even more ethereal medium, came an oratorio of praise of the glory of the poet’s God.

      During the day the sun had shone magnificently, sharing his warm life-giving rays with all living

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