Preaching gospel with astronomy
Published 26 October, 2007, 06:23
An amateur astronomer from the Russian Republic of Adygea has built his own planetarium out of locally available materials. Victor Matyushin, a Baptist priest, explains the structure of the universe to his visitors, including from a religious point of view.
He made a model of the solar system himself using aluminium wire and tennis balls. In his private planetarium, he’s the only staff member – astronomer, tour guide and technician.
Viktor lives in Krasnooktyabrsky, a tiny village on the outskirts of Maikop, the capital of Adygea. This southern Russian republic has a predominantly Muslim population, but its people, and the republic’s government are tolerant towards other religions, including Baptists.
It took several years for the Matyushin family to build this wonder in the middle of the village. They decided to stick to ancient architectural methods instead of modern hi-tech design.
The dome of this planetarium has been built using ancient Russian technology. It’s made of wooden blocks, wooden nails and glue. All the work has been done by Viktor and his three sons.
When the lights go off, the mystery of space unfolds. Using home-made projection devices, Matyushin shows his visitors Saturn and its rings, the sun and the stars.
He says some guests are so fascinated that they come back several times.
The place is open to everyone and free for all.
The village astronomer has many plans. At 76, Viktor is full of hope that someday he’ll be able to save money for modern astronomy equipment.
So he can share with his guests – young and old – even more secrets of the universe.
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