Missed the Transit

Well, I was hoping to go to a high place this morning, a place overlooking the eastern horizon, and watch the sunrise. This was the morning of the rarely seen transit of Venus, as that planet passes across the face of the sun. I even bought special eclipse-watching shades for everyone in my family, but unfortunately the morning was extremely foggy, with no sun visible. I knew it was a bad sign when, waking up at dawn, I heard the deep bass-notes of an oil tanker out in the fog. Oh well, they'll be another chance in eight years or so. After that, not again in our lifetime.

A couple of interesting posts that my readers might enjoy. First, Wayne at LifeStream compares settler theology to pioneer theology. I don't think this is necessarily the best way to look at theology (too condescending toward "settlers", in my opinion), but it's interesting. I mean, these supposedly all-inclusive oppositions (you know what I mean--"There are two kinds of people in the world, etc.") always tend to posit the choice with a clear preference for one or the other, ignoring the simple fact that all are fallen and equally prone to sin and pride. The dangers inherent in the attitude of the pioneer are not less than that of the settler, just different. Sin is really the great leveler. Nevertheless, this particular opposition is interesting and also humorous. Especially if you're a fan of old Westerns.

The other post I want to draw your attention to is from Porch Pondering. He suggests a way of studying the Bible that involves asking five questions of the text. He even provides a PDF of the questions, with space for notes. Very interesting, methinks.