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Firmament
In biblical cosmology, the firmament is the vast solid dome created by God during his creation of the world to divide the primal sea into upper and lower portions so that the dry land could appear. The concept was adopted into the subsequent Classical/Medieval model of heavenly spheres, but was dropped with advances in astronomy in the 16th and 17th centuries. Today it survives as a synonym for "sky" or "heaven". Etymology In English, the word "firmament" is recorded as early as 1250, in the ''Middle English Story of Genesis and Exodus''. It later appeared in the King James Bible. The same word is found in French and German Bible translations, all from Latin '' firmamentum'' (a firm object), used in the Vulgate (4th century). This in turn is a calque of the Greek (), also meaning a solid or firm structure (Greek = rigid), which appears in the Septuagint, the Greek translation made by Jewish scholars around 200 BCE. These words all translate the Biblical Hebrew word ''rā ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Genesis Creation Narrative
The Genesis creation narrative is the creation myth of both Judaism and Christianity. The narrative is made up of two stories, roughly equivalent to the first two chapters of the Book of Genesis. In the first, Elohim (the Hebrew generic word for God) creates the heavens and the Earth in six days, then rests on, blesses, and sanctifies the seventh (i.e. the Biblical Sabbath). In the second story God (now referred to by the personal name Yahweh) creates Adam, the first man, from dust and places him in the Garden of Eden. There he is given dominion over the animals. Eve, the first woman, is created from Adam’s rib as his companion. The Hebrew creation narrative borrowed themes from Mesopotamian mythology, but adapted them to their unique belief in one God. The first major comprehensive draft of the Pentateuch (the series of five books which begins with Genesis and ends with Deuteronomy) is thought to have been composed in the late 7th or the 6th century BCE (the Jahwist sour ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Biblical Cosmology
Biblical cosmology is the biblical writers' conception of the cosmos as an organised, structured entity, including its origin, order, meaning and destiny. The Bible was formed over many centuries, involving many authors, and reflects shifting patterns of religious belief; consequently, its cosmology is not always consistent. Nor do the biblical texts necessarily represent the beliefs of all Jews or Christians at the time they were put into writing: the majority of the texts making up the Hebrew Bible or Old Testament in particular represent the beliefs of only a small segment of the ancient Israelite community, the members of a late Judean religious tradition centered in Jerusalem and devoted to the exclusive worship of Yahweh. The ancient Israelites envisaged the universe as a flat disc-shaped Earth floating on water, heaven above, underworld below. Humans inhabited Earth during life and the underworld after death; there was no way that mortals could enter heaven, and the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heaven
Heaven or the heavens, is a common religious cosmological or transcendent supernatural place where beings such as deities, angels, souls, saints, or venerated ancestors are said to originate, be enthroned, or reside. According to the beliefs of some religions, heavenly beings can descend to Earth or incarnate and earthly beings can ascend to Heaven in the afterlife or, in exceptional cases, enter Heaven alive. Heaven is often described as a "highest place", the holiest place, a Paradise, in contrast to hell or the Underworld or the "low places" and universally or conditionally accessible by earthly beings according to various standards of divinity, goodness, piety, faith, or other virtues or right beliefs or simply divine will. Some believe in the possibility of a heaven on Earth in a ''world to come''. Another belief is in an axis mundi or world tree which connects the heavens, the terrestrial world, and the underworld. In Indian religions, heaven is considered a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Middle English Story Of Genesis And Exodus
The ''Middle English Story of Genesis and Exodus'' is an anonymous English vernacular poem written around 1250 in Norfolk. In 4162 lines of verse it runs from the creation of the world until the death of Moses Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu (Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pro .... There is a modern critical edition by Arngart. The 19th-century edition by Morris is available on Project Guttenberg. Text sample The following passage is interesting for containing the earliest reference to the Firmament of Heaven in the English language. References Sources * * * {{Cite book, title=The story of Genesis and Exodus, an early English song, about A.D. 1250, last=Morris, first=Richard, publisher=Trübner & Co., year=1865, location=London, series=Publications of the Early English Text Society; oProject ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heaven In Judaism
''Shamayim'' ( he, ''šāmayīm, heavens') is the dwelling place of God and other heavenly beings according to the Bible. It is one of three components of the biblical cosmology. There are two other ones. ''Eretz,'' the earth, home of the living; and ''sheol,'' the common grave, the realm of the deadincluding, according to post Hebrew-Bible literature, the abode of the righteous dead. Etymology The Hebrew word ''shamayim'' is a dual or plural form related to the proto-semitic root "*šamāy-". A reinterpretation constructs it as a compound of a hypothetical ''sham'' ( (loaned from Akkadian ''samu'' meaning "sky" or "lofty"), and ''mayim'' ( meaning "waters". Ambiguity of the Jewish afterlife It is important to note the lack of consensus on the contents, existence, or substance of what is known in English as "heaven" in Judaism. Many hold references to what would be called "heaven" as allegorical, detailing a story or proposition rather than concrete conclusion or absolute. A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Augustine
Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berbers, Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia (Roman province), Numidia, Roman North Africa. His writings influenced the development of Western philosophy and Western Christianity, and he is viewed as one of the most important Latin Church Fathers, Church Fathers of the Latin Church in the Patristic Period. His many important works include ''The City of God'', ''De Doctrina Christiana, On Christian Doctrine'', and ''Confessions (Augustine), Confessions''. According to his contemporary, Jerome, Augustine "established anew the ancient Faith". In his youth he was drawn to the eclectic Manichaeism, Manichaean faith, and later to the Hellenistic philosophy of Neoplatonism. After his conversion to Christianity and baptism in 386, Augustine developed his own approach to philosophy and theology, accom ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Empyrean
In ancient cosmologies, the Empyrean Heaven, or simply the Empyrean, was the place in the highest heaven, which was supposed to be occupied by the element of fire (or aether in Aristotle's natural philosophy). The word derives from the Medieval Latin ''empyreus'', an adaptation of the Ancient Greek ''empyros'' (), meaning "in or on the fire (''pyr'')". The Empyrean was thus used as a name for the incorporeal "heaven of the first day", and in Christian literature for the dwelling-place of God, the blessed, celestial beings so divine they are made of pure light, and the source of light and creation. Notably, at the very end of Dante's '' Paradiso'', Dante visits God in the Empyrean. The word is used both as a noun and as an adjective, but ''empyreal'' is an alternate adjective form. The scientific words ''empyreuma'' and ''empyreumatic'', applied to the characteristic smell of the burning or charring of vegetable or animal matter, have the same Greek origin. See also *Atziluth ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pietro D'Abano
Pietro d'Abano, also known as Petrus de Apono, Petrus Aponensis or Peter of Abano (Premuda, Loris. "Abano, Pietro D'." in ''Dictionary of Scientific Biography.'' (1970). New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. Vol. 1: p.4-5.1316), was an Italian philosopher, astrologer, and professor of medicine in Padua. He was born in the Italian town from which he takes his name, now Abano Terme. He gained fame by writing ''Conciliator Differentiarum, quae inter Philosophos et Medicos Versantur''. He was eventually accused of heresy and atheism, and came before the Inquisition. He died in prison in 1315 (some sources say 1316) before the end of his trial. Biography He lived in Greece for a period of time before he moved and commenced his studies for a long time at Constantinople (between 1270 and 1290). Around 1300 he moved to Paris, where he was promoted to the degrees of doctor in philosophy and medicine, in the practice of which he was very successful, but his fees were remarkably high. In Paris ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ambrose
Ambrose of Milan ( la, Aurelius Ambrosius; ), venerated as Saint Ambrose, ; lmo, Sant Ambroeus . was a theologian and statesman who served as Bishop of Milan from 374 to 397. He expressed himself prominently as a public figure, fiercely promoting the Christian faith against Arianism and paganism. He left a substantial collection of writings, of which the best known include the ethical commentary ''De officiis ministrorum'' (377–391), and the exegetical (386–390). His preachings, his actions and his literary works, in addition to his innovative musical hymnography, made him one of the most influential ecclesiastical figures of the 4th century. Ambrose was serving as the Roman governor of Aemilia-Liguria in Milan when he was unexpectedly made Bishop of Milan in 374 by popular acclamation. As bishop, he took a firm position against Arianism and attempted to mediate the conflict between the emperors Theodosius I and Magnus Maximus. Tradition credits Ambrose with developing ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hexaemeron
The term Hexameron (Greek: Ἡ Ἑξαήμερος Δημιουργία ''Hē Hexaēmeros Dēmiourgia'') refers either to the genre of theological treatise that describes God's work on the six days of creation or to the six days of creation themselves. Most often these theological works take the form of commentaries on Genesis. As a genre, hexameral literature was popular in the early church and medieval periods. The word derives its name from the Greek roots ''hexa-'', meaning "six", and ''hemer-'', meaning "day". The order of creation in Genesis (1,1 to 2,3) is: # ''Light'' - first day. # ''A vault between the waters, to separate water from water'' called ''the heavens'' - second day. # ''The water ... gathered ... so that dry land may appear ... and ... growing things, ... plants that bear seed, and trees bearing fruit each with its own kind of seed'' - third day. # ''Lights in the vault of the heavens'' - fourth day: sun, moon, and stars. # "''Let the water teem with living cr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Saint Basil
Basil of Caesarea, also called Saint Basil the Great ( grc, Ἅγιος Βασίλειος ὁ Μέγας, ''Hágios Basíleios ho Mégas''; cop, Ⲡⲓⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ Ⲃⲁⲥⲓⲗⲓⲟⲥ; 330 – January 1 or 2, 379), was a bishop of Caesarea Mazaca in Cappadocia, Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey). He was an influential theologian who supported the Nicene Creed and opposed the heresies of the early Christian church, fighting against both Arianism and the followers of Apollinaris of Laodicea. His ability to balance his theological convictions with his political connections made Basil a powerful advocate for the Nicene position. In addition to his work as a theologian, Basil was known for his care of the poor and underprivileged. Basil established guidelines for monastic life which focus on community life, liturgical prayer, and manual labor. Together with Pachomius, he is remembered as a father of communal monasticism in Eastern Christianity. He is considered a saint by th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bede
Bede ( ; ang, Bǣda , ; 672/326 May 735), also known as Saint Bede, The Venerable Bede, and Bede the Venerable ( la, Beda Venerabilis), was an English monk at the monastery of St Peter and its companion monastery of St Paul in the Kingdom of Northumbria of the Angles (contemporarily Monkwearmouth–Jarrow Abbey in Tyne and Wear, England). Born on lands belonging to the twin monastery of Monkwearmouth–Jarrow in present-day Tyne and Wear, Bede was sent to Monkwearmouth at the age of seven and later joined Abbot Ceolfrith at Jarrow. Both of them survived a plague that struck in 686 and killed a majority of the population there. While Bede spent most of his life in the monastery, he travelled to several abbeys and monasteries across the British Isles, even visiting the archbishop of York and King Ceolwulf of Northumbria. He was an author, teacher (Alcuin was a student of one of his pupils), and scholar, and his most famous work, ''Ecclesiastical History of the English People ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
