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There are a number of theories as to why Christmas (originally the Mass of Christ) is celebrated but it is almost certain that Dec. 25 is not the actual day. Among other factors, the nights at that time of year often get overly cold and snowy, and it was not the tradition of Jewish shepherds to have their flocks in the field in the winter months. But again, why Dec. 25? Many have pointed out that that date was when the Romans celebrated the pagan festivals of Saturnalia and Dies Natalis Solis Invicti. One prominent theory holds that that date...
Revelation. It is not only the final book of the Bible but it is also a very descriptive word for the entirety of God’s Word, wherein He continuously reveals Himself and His love for us. Its Latin origin has two meanings: it is both something that reveals things that were heretofore hidden but also places some things behind a veil. The languages of the original texts are mostly Hebrew for the Old Testament and Greek for the New Testament. Throughout both, there has always been an understanding that the words of man are not commensurate to c...
Shibui and Shibusa are related Japanese terms that are not easily definable, but basically describe something that is outwardly very simple, basic and beautiful in perception/appearance, but within which lie subtle but increasing complexities that are only appreciated and perceived over time, giving a “depth” that cannot be seen or known at first glance. To some, God’s Word may appear to be similar to any other book, with black letters printed on white paper. But when we realize Who the author is, and that these are not just a collection of wor...
As of this reading, the Fourth of July will by now have passed. Many others have written far better than I can hope to about the meaning and relevance of this and other holidays in modern day America but still I couldn’t help but think of how surprisingly similar some aspects were even in the years not too far passed in our country’s birth, especially with respect to those who were part of it. Two of the signers of the Declaration of Independence were Benjamin Rush and John Adams, who had a deep friendship. In just over three decades after that...
Richard Hext was born into an impoverished family with crippled hands and feet. After four years and 10 surgeries, he was eventually able to stand upright but unfortunately was never able to use his hands. However, a nurse had taught him to use his mouth to write and from this he developed a love for art as well. After attending an academy for seven years, he was able to fulfill his dream of becoming a painter. Such was his skill and love for his work that he gained a notable place in the world of English art, with some of his paintings...
The commonly recognized symbol for the medical and health professions is a staff with two snakes entwined about it, known as the “Caduceus.” This actually derives from modern misunderstandings that confused this symbol of the mythical Greek god Hermes with the original “Rod of Asclepius”, of the Greek god Asclepius, who was worshiped in his form of a serpent entwined around a staff. Devotees associated him with divine healing and medicine, establishing healing temples wherein patients would sleep on the floor of the sanctuary and numbers...
“You gave me these emotions, but didn’t tell me how to use them....What of my soul? Do I have one?...Who are these people of which I am comprised? Good people...bad people? Did you know that I could play this (flute)? Does this knowledge reside in these hands...in this mind...in this heart? Who am I?” Usually when we hear the name “Frankenstein”, we think of a B movie and creature. Eighteen-year-old Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel spoke of far deeper things, intimated in the original subtitle: “or, The Modern Prometheus.” The 1994 cinema adaptati...
The city was surrounded...besieged by an army in order of magnitudes bigger than its own paltry defense. Below the city walls, the top general of Sennacharib’s conquering Assyrian army shouted at...and taunted...the king’s three emissaries above. This was the last city standing in all the country. Heretofore this king had been everything one would hope for. He was a humble yet strong man with an innate faith in God and His morality and righteousness. The people and kings before him had chosen a different path and upon his ascendance to the thr...
Technology - 1. the branch of knowledge that deals with the creation and use of technical means and their interrelation with life, society and the environment, drawing upon such subjects as industrial arts, engineering, applied science and pure science. 2. the application of this knowledge for practical ends. 3. the terminology of an art, science, etc.; technical nomenclature. 4. a scientific or industrial process, invention, method or the like. 5. the sum of the ways in which social groups provide themselves with the material objects of their...
“...be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Ephesians 5:18-20 Of the many gifts given to mankind, the ability to create is arguably one of the most beautiful. Music, among the panoply of these, can be evocative, inspirational, comforting or driving to multitudinous ends. For example, classical music has been repeatedly shown to have positive eff...
The term “parting shot,” to give someone a final riposte in an argument while departing, originated with ancient Iranian (Parthian) fast, light horsemen who would turn and shoot backward toward pursuing cavalry to lure them into an ambush of waiting heavy cavalry...a “Parthian shot.” Historians still debate as to who first used them but it is the simple invention of the stirrup that gave the armies of Genghis Khan, the Avars, Sarmatians, Scythians and Attila’s Huns the advantage in their conquests. Throughout history, similar basic advances...
“Ecce homo”...“Behold the man.” These are the words, in his native tongue, of Pontius Pilate, the Roman prefect of Judea, Israel during the trial of Jesus Christ. Jesus had been brought to the Romans with the hope that they would condemn and execute Him, rather than His enemies themselves doing it. But amid all of the other events surrounding His arrest, trial, persecution and eventual crucifixion, there was one particular interaction that occurred just prior to these words being spoken as Pilate presented a brutally beaten and scourge...
Admiral Horatio Nelson is one of England’s greatest heroes, yet his fame was gained not only due to his strengths, but arguably even more so from his weaknesses. Having lost his mother at the age of nine, he began his military career at the age of 13 as an ordinary seaman. From his first day at sea through the rest of his life, he would suffer from constant seasickness. His frailness also left him susceptible to other illnesses, contracting yellow fever, recurring bouts with malaria and an unidentified debilitating sickness in the West Indies....
“The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.” Isaiah 40:3 For a number of Christians, the period between this last Sunday and Christmas Day is celebrated and known as Advent. Named from the Latin verb “to come,” it is a time of special observation and preparation for the incarnation of Our Lord into human flesh at Christmas. Not only do we celebrate His coming to us that night as a newborn child in a manger but we also celebrate His coming to us in its entire...
