The Glass Tabernacle, the Circle of the Earth & the Dark Side of the Moon

Then God said, “Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.” Thus God made the firmament, and divided the waters which [ were ] under the firmament from the waters which [ were ] above the firmament; and it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven. So the evening and the morning were the second day.

Genesis 1:6-8

Was Christopher Columbus right in the first place, or is the earthly actually flat like was the prevailing notion in his day? Even today, though modern science has proven the flat earth theory to be wrong & shown us that we are living on a sphere, some among us are convinced that we are living on a flat earth, or even further, a concave earth! This belief/theory goes something like this; the globe, as we are used to seeing it, is actually inside out, or, too be precise, outside in! The 'outer heavens' that we are viewing ( Sun, Moon ( ? ), planets, stars, etc. ) are the sphere! From the model I saw, this 'concave earth' is separated from the heavenly sphere by two different 'glass tabernacles', one for the sun & one for the moon. In the case of events like that recorded in Joshua 10, this would actually almost seem to make more sense than what we have traditionally been taught over the years!

The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork.
Day unto day utters speech, and night unto night reveals knowledge.
^[There is ] no speech nor language [ where ] their voice is not heard.
Their line^[a] has gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.
In them He has set a tabernacle for the sun, which [ is] like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,
[And ] rejoices like a strong man to run its race. 
 Its rising is from one end of heaven, and its circuit to the other end;
And there is nothing hidden from its heat.
Psalm 19:1-6

This theory, that of a 'concave earth', almost seems to make sense, especially if you are naturally inclined to believe that everything the government has told us ( been telling us for hundreds of years )to the contrary is a lie! Scripture does seem to describe the courses of the sun, moon & stars ( funny, no planets are mentioned ) in such a way as to make this theory more or less believable, but the question is, 'does it really matter to how we live our life?' If we live inside the crust of the earth rather than outside, as has been traditionally taught, what effect does that have on how we treat our neighbor? Must this of necessity have any effect on how we love our Creator God, our Abba Father?? If the Sun, moon & stars in their course above are really inside the circle of the earth, how should we then live?

Much of the idiosyncratic language of Scripture has, of course, been explained, so that we westerners can understand it, by Covenant Creation! Scripture, as we have noted, is a Book of Covenant, a book of metaphorical language describing aspects, both of the natural ( material ) creation & that which is spiritual ( immaterial ). The History of Israel, as given in the Scriptures, is a record of the Covenant that the Creator established with His Creation. He instituted & ordered it that He might be known to it & bless it through relationship, through Communion!

Is it so hard to believe that the Creator of the Universe ( or Multiverse, for that matter ) might have, rather than hanging the Sun, Moon, Stars & Planets in some sort of Eternal Axis around each other ( not to mention orbits within orbits ), established a nice, neat & tidy little model like this 'concave earth' that are hearing about? On the other hand, does it make a difference, theologically speaking if our Heavenly Father has hung the aforementioned rocks ( or balls of gas ) on nothing, spun them on orbits around each other & thus instituted the Natural Law of Gravity ( among others )? Can we still treat others as we would like to be treated if we are really all living inside this concave earth ( universe, really )?? Really, in a certain manner of speaking, one might think that this would bring us closer together, so to speak, as a people!

So then, while it is interesting to discuss these possibilities, it really has mo bearing on how we live our lives! History has proven that governments come & governments go! One thing that has always been the same, though, especially in the past 6,000 years or so, is how people treat each other! Whether you believe the Story laid out for us in Scripture or not, the past many thousands of years have shown us that man ( kind ) is not naturally very kind to those who disagree with him ( or her )! Religion has been much of that problem; religion has been at the root of every war that has ever been fought, religion has been the culprit in pretty much every disagreement between creatures of all sizes, colors & shapes! Now, before you tune me out, I'm not saying that religion, which is simply what one believes, is necessarily a bad thing! If one believes wrongly & thus acts wrongly, it is a very bad thing but it is good to know what is right & to act rightly! Our natural inclination, when someone disagrees with us ( some have stronger inclinations than others ) is to distance ourselves from them & fellowship with those who agree with us. This is not necessarily a bad thing, especially if one's inclination is to punch the one who disagrees with them in the throat, but it kinda puts a damper on their relationship & hinders their fellowship ( communion )!

If one believes, therefore, that the earth is flat, as used to be taught as gospel, or that, as science has now proven, we inhabit a Living Planet, precariously spinning on an Eternal Axis in the middle of an Infinite Universe ( or Multiverse ), even that it's all been a pack of lies force-fed to us over the centuries & that all this time & that we're really looking at all of this beauty from the inside, looking............................further in; it should really have no impact on how we treat each other! When we allow our beliefs ( religion ) to dictate how we treat others, in essence, if we use our religion as an excuse to treat others badly, then we should examine the religion that Jesus taught His followers to pursue! It is important that one believes rightly, but we should never use our right beliefs as an excuse to act wrongly!

In conclusion & to reiterate the point, while it is profitable, to whatever extent, to explore all the fascinating possibilities, if this exploration takes or keeps us away from the Table, from that necessary Communion with our Creator & His Creation, then it has become unprofitable & should be abandoned! To the point where we can discuss these issues without interrupting Communion, it is a somewhat worthy & entertaining endeavor, but when that boundary is crossed, then we must seek Communion rather than Disunion; we cannot really live without it!

Charles Haddon Shank