Late on this Christmas day, I offer a Pic of the Day taken nearly 13 years ago. It is in the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, a 5th century basilica (over a 4th century basilica) built over the grotto identified by ancient Christians and revered today, as the birthplace of Jesus. Church of the … Continue reading Pic of the Day: Christmas 2018
Author: ancientdan
Continuing and concluding my series on the Winter Solstice, we now turn to the question of its relation to the date for Christmas. The moment of the Winter Solstice generally occurs on 20-21 December in our current Gregorian Calendar. With Christmas set at 25 December, the relation between the two would appear merely coincidental. But … Continue reading The Winter Solstice and Christmas, Or: How I Stopped Worrying [about How to Express Christmas Greetings] and Love the Season*
So today (still, barely, as I write this), 21 December 2018, is the Winter Solstice, making it first day of winter; and tomorrow is a full moon. Though we refer to them in terms of full days, both the solstice and full moons are momentary events: when the sun is at its southernmost point in … Continue reading The Winter Solstice and Halcyon Days
Today (21 December 2018) the Winter Solstice will occur at 16:23 (4:23pm) CST (22:23 UTC) . . . as usual, Ancient Dan focuses on the ancient and weird connections (and a three-part series is anticipated).
A brief mention of “wondrous” landscapes in my graduate Geography seminar last night and tonight's episode of a daring Bible study series at University Baptist Church have inspired me to return to my recently neglected blog with this Pic of the Day (actually several pics) installment; which also clearly rates cross-listing as a You Don't … Continue reading Pic of the Day 2018-10-03: Sela and “The Rock”
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