Theory as an obstacle to astronomy

The oldest and highest form of astronomy, one that was practiced in antiquity, was taking notice of the daily/seasonal cycles and how they were referred to the celestial arena -

"Knowest thou the ordinances of heaven? canst thou set the dominion thereof in the earth?" Book of Job

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage...38&version=KJV

That statement is preceded by a description of a star (Mazzaroth) coming in season which is a more accurate and productive way to make use of the background stars close to the orbital plane as they move from left to right of the Sun each orbit and emerge in season due to the orbital motion of the Earth -

"Canst thou bring forth Mazzaroth in his season? or canst thou guide Arcturus with his sons?" Book of Job

The theorists owe their existence to a different perspective where the Sun moves through the Zodiac but compounded further by RA/Dec that the Sun move in a wave motion ( crossing the celestial equator). The original Sun centered astronomers were reliant on the Ptolemaic observations but these did not contain the Sun moving South or North against the field of stars along with the planets -

"Moreover, we see the other five planets also retrograde at times, and
stationary at either end [of the regression]. And whereas the sun
always advances along its own direct path, they wander in various
ways, straying sometimes to the south and sometimes to the north; that
is why they are called "planets" [wanderers]. Copernicus

The theorists and their celestial sphere colleagues begin with experiments and ponder the celestial arena with fairly exotic notions whereas higher reasoning goes for cause and effect. When the Ra/Dec enthusiasts bypassed the Sun for daily and annual motions and reached for a rotating dome of stars they lost the use of cause and effect for a rotating framework which doesn't have cause and effect.

The story of Job is the story for all ages insofar as it addresses a point in a person's existence where all the outward forms of success in themselves don't define a person. Even in the most successful and self-absorbed life there comes a moment when people realize that influence and money cannot buy a person 5 minutes extra on this planet so these people turn to more creative and more mindful endeavors.

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage...38&version=KJV

Perhaps because the passage relates to astronomical and terrestrial experiences more than any other work that it resonates so strongly - the poetic author not condemning wealth but presenting the reader with a more richer experience of a passage through life with all its sorrow along with all its joy. The mediocre life is to avoid one thereby denying themselves the other while the more expansive of heart absorb the highs and lows and convert them into creative sensual narratives. The telescope and the microscope may open up new worlds to the human observer but all they do is add to the great inspirational experience which most know as spirituality.