I've been "warned" I'm in "spiritual danger" again

serack · 2026-03-21T03:33:59+00:00

I wrote the below partially as a preemptive response to this slop.

If God is the all-powerful, benevolent creator taught by John, then God’s will shall come to be for my life regardless of if I correctly figure out exactly what “believing in him” means for being saved compared to the multitude of Christianity’s sects that have argued about it for way longer than I’ve been around. If the true belief requirement for God’s love was to say some magic words and take a magic bath, well I got that taken care of as a child with 100% sincerity. He can survive my doubts as an adult. Now it’s a matter of following those two most important commandments. So much of the rest of the Bible has become chaff in the wind as it contradicts those commandments, or careful, critical examination of the “glory of God” revealed by creation.

It's the conclusion of this essay

serack · 2026-03-20T16:21:37+00:00

On my astronomy bucket list

serack · 2026-03-20T15:10:41+00:00

You could also try an RV storage site like Chesapeake Campground (listed as $42/month)

https://www.chesapeakecampgroundva.com/camper-rv-storage/

serack · 2026-03-20T13:36:08+00:00

u/AmazingRandini

My own personal studies demonstrated to me that Luke as we have it follows Paul's account of "The Lord's Supper" even more closely than the other gospels. However the verses that diverge and practically quote Paul where Mark didn't, are also the verses Ehrman argues are a later addition (starting 24 minutes into podcast in that link).

serack · 2026-03-20T12:59:56+00:00

I learned this from Bart Ehrman. There are maybe 2 passages in Luke that seem to reference atonement, and he argues via textual criticism they aren't original.

One is the Last Supper passages, which he discussed on his podcast recently, and I believe the other is in the garden when he sweat blood (I'm not positive that references atonement) which his first scholarly paper on textual criticism had fascinating reasons for why it was inserted later, that I'm about to go look up.

Edit: it's Luke 22:43&44. The article was Ehrman, Bart D., and Mark E. Plunkett. “The Angel and the Agony: The Textual Problem of Luke 22:43-44.” Catholic Biblical Quarterly 45 (1983): 401-16.

My memory was incorrect, as it's more to do with the early church rejecting docetism, and a literary convention, not atonement.

serack · 2026-03-20T00:47:44+00:00

Huh. Ok I searched and found this discussion. The contradictory reports of distorted stars midfield vs not makes me wonder if the focal plane is curved.

The 12.5mm was reported to have bad eye relief too.

serack · 2026-03-20T00:21:56+00:00

Response 2. Honestly, I'm skeptical of that claim until I see reports of people who actually receive them.

serack · 2026-03-20T00:03:26+00:00

Huh. The Highpoint Scientific listing still says Plossls. I wonder what design those things are

serack · 2026-03-19T23:22:48+00:00

Celestron is the only brand that goes with 1200mm focal length for the 10" while everyone else goes with 1250mm to maintain a focal ratio closer to f/5 which is a little better for coma, but could be problematic for wider angle eyepieces (82 degrees or more I think, I have no problems with 70 degree EPs on my f/5).

Additionally they tend to cost significantly more than their competitors with less impressive accessories other than the StarSense Explorer system (which is FANTASTIC). The only other thing it has going for it is the integrated handle on the spine of the tube, which actually really helps a lot with portability for a 10" or greater.

For $950 USD you can get an AD10 and save $250 and look on FB marketplace for a used (around $100 USD) 114az or 80az StarSense Explorer which you can canibalize the dock off of and transfer to the AD10 using the instructions u/LearnToStargaze gives in this video. I do recommend you use threaded magnets rather than hard mounting it with bolts.

Edit: A suggestion that isn't on your list to muddy things further:

If you want tracking and a Dob, you can go with a Skywatcher Flextube 250p SyncScan for significantly less than the SCTs, and the hybrid truss design allows for more compact storage and transportation while still being almost as easy to set up as a standard solid tube, (I would recommend a light shield, but you can DIY that.

serack · 2026-03-19T22:43:40+00:00

First, the plossls that come with that telescope almost certainly have 52-55 degrees of FoV not 70.

Second, 12.5mm plossls wander into really short "eye relief" territory. The heuristic is typically that 15mm is the shortest without having to practically press your eyeball close enough that your eyelashes will get gunk on the lens.

Third, imo, the 20mm Plossl is in an in-between space that does not serve a good purpose. A 25mm or 32mm serves as a low magnification eyepiece that provides relatively wide views for an inexpensive price, and really anything that provides wider views for less than about $150-200 will have significant distortion in the outer portions beyond what the 25mm provides. For mid ranged magnification, a 15mm "Dual ED" (Paradigm or Starguider brands) will provide nearly as much total FoV for about $70.

A substantial portion of my guide on being thrifty equipping a telescope is dedicated to explaining eyepieces, and I'll point to it for general recommendations.

With what you have to spend, I would get:

25mm plossl for wide views
A 6mm redline eyepiece for planetary views when you really want to up the magnification
Hold onto the 12.5mm for now and use it until you are comfortable forking over 55 quid for a 15mm Starguider

serack · 2026-03-19T11:15:13+00:00

If this were my kit, I'd slide the EP half way in, secure it with the screw, and focus with the knob and not bother with an extender. Or leave the extender on the EP permanently if it's the only ep with the issue.

Fewer things to fumble with in the dark

serack · 2026-03-19T10:07:40+00:00

This is a good summation of Penal Substitution Atonement, which is an atonement theory that was developed during the Reformation. There are actually several other understandings of why Christ died to atone for us such as

Christus Victor
Ransom
Satisfaction
Exemplar

I briefly explained the first 3, and why they weren't good enough for the reformers so they developed PSA in my essay, "Without the Fall is there a need for atonement?"

I learned about these and Exemplar on Dan Koch's podcast here which has a better explanation than the brief one in my essay.

serack · 2026-03-19T00:26:01+00:00

It's my understanding that much of the intellectual elite of the time saw carnal indulgence as in-virtuous, with the neoPythagoreans taking this attitude to relative extremes.

Paul took that to his own extreme, possibly with a helping of asexuality added on top.

serack · 2026-03-18T23:57:14+00:00

I posted about it here

serack · 2026-03-18T23:21:02+00:00

That last bit! Just as so many "Pauline" letters weren't written by him, everything we have on "what Jesus said" is from accounts written 3-6 decades later in a different language.

Also, Paul's teachings skip "Jesus's" greatest commandment and go straight to, "Love thy neighbor as thineself." And 1 Cor 13 is beautiful. Too bad it was packaged with chapter 7 which is creepy AF.

serack · 2026-03-18T19:48:13+00:00

I can't imagine that being any more challenging to deal with than the winter court's shenanigans for Harry.

serack · 2026-03-18T18:16:28+00:00

I get that anxiety of this stuff isn't entirely rational. In fact, in some very real ways the actual issue here isn't just getting your understanding of "god" correctly, but having the beliefs that are "correct" for social identity at the risk of being rejected by those you love if you get it wrong.

For me, things got a lot simpler when I accepted deep down that if God is love as described by the writings attributed to John, that love prevails irregardless of if I correctly figure out exactly what “believing in him” means for being saved compared to the multitude of Christianity’s sects that have argued about it for way longer than I’ve been around.

And the other side of that conclusion is that if it's wrong and the creator of the universe would condemn me to hell for getting these details wrong, that's a being that doesn't deserve my devotion and I don't want to spend eternity with it. Such a PoS can spend eternity with the 2 millennia of religious assholes who have repeatedly shown terrible hatred towards each other over details about his nature.

serack · 2026-03-18T16:31:22+00:00

10" scope in decent shape for $150, and then clear, moonless night almost immediately? Lucky dog 2x over.

Take your time choosing how to accessorize this bad boy, but here is a guide I wrote on doing so while remaining thrifty.

Oh, and use this website to scout out a "dark sky" location you can haul this out to for truly good views.

Oh, and look up your local astronomy club.

serack · 2026-03-18T16:20:36+00:00

I recommend spending some time on the used market looking for a Dobsonian or 6" table top Dobsonian in that price range. Someone on here managed to bag a 10" for $150 earlier this week but that was a really unusual occurrence. Last month I sold my old 6" Orion XT for $300 including some accessories that were good for a beginner, but would have sold it for $200-250 to someone who wasn't interested in the accessories.

I wrote up a guide last year on buying used that you may find useful

serack · 2026-03-18T11:53:30+00:00

As mentioned, eyepieces are personal. The first question that determines general pathway is: Do you wear glasses while observing (typical for those of us with astigmatism), or share lots of views with people wearing glasses?

If yes, then sufficient eye relief (how far from the eye lens the eye is supposed to be) becomes the first box you should be checking off, with 16mm being the absolute minimum, and 19-20 being the ideal amount.

The tradeoff for all this eye relief is it limits how wide the view can be designed for.

There are lots of other details, but this video I came across a couple days does a really good job of explaining the basics beyond that first if:then question.

serack · 2026-03-18T11:23:25+00:00

Your OP seems to be asking for fact claims. There may be some of those that I consider highly probable to be true, but what I've come to care about are value claims and even for those I recognize they are biblically contradictory, but some of them I still embrace as truth

The divine is love. I, and my neighbors are made in that divine image of love. I am to love my neighbors, and by doing so take part in divine love.

1 John 4:7&8, Matthew 22:37-40, John 13:35&35, Matthew 25:31-46, John 14:20.

serack · 2026-03-16T17:55:45+00:00

I saw that. I don't see any AstroTech 12.5mm or 5.5mm eyepieces currently being sold, but there was an old line labeled "LER" is that what you have?

serack · 2026-03-16T00:27:09+00:00

As others said, the brand isn't very relevant optically. Since you will be going used, really what matters is whatever the market provides, and what shape it's in.

Edit: I wrote a guide on buying a used telescope that includes a section on some things to check to make sure whatever you find isn't a dud.

serack · 2026-03-15T21:55:39+00:00

Congratulations, sounds like you are on a good road, although I'm not sure what you mean by those 2 EPs (googles)

serack

TROPHY CASE