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Early Israelite Monotheism
Last Updated on Saturday, 12 September 2009 22:09 Written by Greg Tuesday, 21 October 2008 12:12
I wrote this undergrad paper for an upper level OT class. I've made only small grammatical changes. Having gone back over it, I find that the research was much more valuable than the final product. The length of the paper did no justice to the complexity and breadth of material, and I wish I had been able to address many points in a less cursory fashion. I remember feeling this way when I wrote the paper. It was a wonderful exercise in sifting through unstandardized scholarly jargon to find functional terminology, and it opened my eyes to one of the fundamental background issue for OT studies--Israel's interface with Canaanite culture, especially as regards her covenant fidelity to Yahweh. Additionally, it was very enriching to delve into the work of William Albright , a modern legend in biblical studies. If I were to rewrite any of the existing parts, I would definitely nuance the bits about the historical reliabilty of the OT a bit.
Pop and Gram 2010
Written by Meg Sunday, 07 February 2010 13:44
What a wonderful 2 weeks. We had such a good time with Pop and Gram here, and I am so pleased with all that they got to do and see. More than anything, they spent two weeks of quality time with our girls. That makes me so happy. Also, I absolutely LOVED having free baby-sitting. Greg and I were able to do Bible studies and kids' events together because Mom and Dad watched the girls. That was so nice. I am really happy that they got to witness our fourth library inauguration. We visited with "President" Abraham the night before, and Abraham asked Dad to say a few words for the event. I thought that was neat.
This slideshow is LONG, but it doesn't even compare to the memories we now have. We love you Mom and Dad! We can't wait to see you again, whenever that will be.
Death by Caffeine
Written by Greg Saturday, 12 June 2010 12:47
¡Fiesta!
Last Updated on Sunday, 18 July 2010 16:03 Written by Meg Sunday, 18 July 2010 15:09
Maggie turns one on Tuesday, but we celebrated with our friends and family here on Saturday night. It was a blast, and it is the last huge birthday bash we are going to host for awhile. :) The theme was butterflies, and the party served as a great opportunity for us to invite just about all the contacts we have made in our family. It was quite an assortment of people, and most of them came. We tried to do some things like the culture suggests here for the party, but we definitely didn't do it all (like hire a clown and send cake home in boxes).
It was a special celebration because Maggie is our first Arequipeña. About a month ago, Greg and I asked Alfredo and Judith to be Maggie's godparents here. "Padrinos" is the word in Spanish. They graciously accepted and we talked about the significance of it for us. Godparents are huge in the Catholic faith and there is a large financial obligation. We explained to Alfredo and Judith that they would be under no such obligation but would be like a support to her in her life here. They still wanted to take part in providing something for her first birthday so they bought the most beautiful cake (it was hard to think about cutting it). They also asked for pictures of Maggie ahead of time and printed multiple copies to place in glass frames to give as a party favor to each family that came. It is a special relationship, and we look forward to growing our bond with them and raising our family with their emotional support here.
We served empanadas of cheese and meat and tamales (from the best little bocadita store in the city), Cheezitos (a Peruvian party favorite like Cheeto Puffs; also a Maggie favorite), popcorn, and candies. Greg grilled hamburgers and hotdogs and we served them with all of the fixings. I organized the activities. Rachel did a wonderful job face painting, the kids colored butterflies for "Pin the butterfly on the flower," and we had a ring toss and a game kind of like musical chairs. The interns and my gringo family helped so much--I couldn't have done it without them. Also, my friend Elizabeth made a butterfly cake (mostly cupcakes) for the kids. We explained to the Peruvians that in our tradition the first birthday is a time for the baby to taste cake for the first time in front of everyone. Maggie loved the frosting on her cupcake.
I hate that family from home can't be part of special events like this in person, but I wanted to give you a detailed post of what went on and lots of pictures to share with you. We missed having you here, but we are so blessed by the friends and family of God that we have here in Arequipa. Maggie has had a wonderful first year, and this party is a testimony of all the people God has blessed us with in that year.
Another Paper
Last Updated on Sunday, 03 May 2009 20:38 Written by Greg Monday, 29 December 2008 18:14
Here is my other synoptics undergrad paper. It was a very different experience, as the assignment was to write it without using commentaries, in order to demonstrate command of the synopsis and its uses. The paper is not very exciting, but there is a nugget of insight or two to be mined. If you have never really pondered the differences between the gospels, you might find the discussion interesting. Think about how the choices the writers make to leave out, add, change, or move material affect their meanings.
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