It’s debatable whether The Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles boasts a better view of the houses of the stars of Hollywood or of the homes of millions of stars in the addresses of the galaxies.
Fittingly, the late Star Trek icon Leonid Nimoy is the host of the film that introduces visitors to the observatory in a theatre appropriately named in his honor.
Mr. Spock and his companions were just a few of the stars journeying through the stars exploring the final frontier. And did the fictional excursions lead them to a new home or did most of the plots suggest a just-passing-through portrayal?
In real life, the Soviets and Americans battled for supremacy in this wild west of space. Decades later, the idea of colonization would be better served through urban gentrification.
Shakespeare was right when he implied that destiny and destination lies “not in our stars, but in ourselves.” Even so, people look up and wonder if our final home could be on that planet or star named in our honor that a loved one kindly bought for us on our birthdays. And it is unlikely Hollywood will discontinue tempting us with less fantasies now that computer graphics have hit their stride.
Places like The Griffith Observatory or our backyards on a starry night draw us out of Hollywood and into the real-life drama of the frontier of our souls.
The stars are but a path to His steps that beckon us not to stop there but to ring the front doorbell.
PORTAL TO HEAVEN: The stars and sky are among the most obvious portals to heaven. They invite us to look up so that we might look within so that we might know the maker of both.
When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers--the moon and the stars you set in place-- what are mere mortals that you should think about them, human beings that you should care for them?…They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator--who is forever praised…
Psalm 8:3 ESV, Romans 1:25 NIV