An Eclipse of Love
In the Bible, the disciples of Jesus, and the gospel writers, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, describe the events of the day Jesus died on the cross. (Matthew 27:45; Mark 15:33; Luke 23:44).
Mark 15:33 At noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon.
1 Corinthians 15:3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,
Philippians 2:5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
7 rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
8 And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
As you personally marvel at this year’s solar eclipse, remember another time the sun was darkened on the day that Jesus died for our sins.
Solar Eclipse
Many of the television and streaming networks have pre-empted their normally scheduled programs on April 8, 2024, to accommodate the exciting and unusual viewing of one of God’s amazing splendors. One gentleman I saw on the news was extremely excited to be viewing his thirteenth eclipse. He is 105 years old. A few people I know personally have made their own distant treks for a place nearer to the sun’s predicted pathway just to see this one for themselves.
(Caution: do not look directly at the sun during this eclipse or you may damage your precious eyes. Almost every store in every town has special glasses available exclusively for that purpose).
“Sky-gazers across North America are in for a treat when a total solar eclipse will pass over Mexico, the United States and Canada.
The event will be visible to millions — including 32 million people in the US alone — who live along the route the moon’s shadow will travel during the eclipse, known as the path of totality. For those in the areas experiencing totality, the moon will appear to completely cover the sun. Those along the very center line of the path will see an eclipse that lasts between 3½ and 4 minutes, according to NASA.
The next total solar eclipse won’t be visible across the contiguous United States again until August 2044. (It’s been nearly seven years since the “Great American Eclipse” of 2017.) And an annular eclipse won’t appear across this part of the world again until 2046.
What is a total solar eclipse?
A total solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between Earth and the sun, completely blocking the sun’s face.
Those within the path of totality will see a total solar eclipse. People outside the path of totality will still be able to see a partial solar eclipse, where the moon only blocks part of the sun’s face.
During a total solar eclipse, the sky will darken as it would at dawn or dusk, and there are several phases for sky-gazers to anticipate.
The moon doesn’t suddenly appear between Earth and the sun — the event begins with a partial eclipse in which it looks like the moon is taking a “bite” out of the sun, causing the sun to resemble a crescent. Depending on your location, the partial eclipse can last between 70 and 80 minutes, according to NASA.
When the moon begins to cross in front of the sun, the star’s rays will shine around valleys on the moon’s horizon, creating glowing drops of light around the moon in a phenomenon called Baily’s beads.” [i]
Baily's beads are one of the last, quick phases of an eclipse before totality occurs. Heinz-Peter Bader/Reuters
Blessings,
Sandra
[i] Excerpts from CNN report Also see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_System