Hello? Right on! (HRO) is up and running. I backfilled all of the weekly emails - filed under “Weekly Jib Jab”. The cool thing is that you can comment on them. So comment away…

Hello,

I read the short book of Ruth this week. In that book we see the concept of the redeemer, that was prevalent in the OT, lived out. According to the law, the nearest male blood relative was responsible for taking care of the misfortunes of his relatives. These responsibilities included avenging the death of a relative (Numbers 35:19-21), buying back family property that was used to pay debts (Leviticus 25:25), buying a relative who sold himself/herself into slavery to pay debts (Leviticus 25:47-49), and marrying the widow of a deceased relative (Deuteronomy 25:5-10). (Read on …)

Hi.

I finished reading The Da Vinci Code and there is much that needs to be said.

The main thesis of the book is that Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene and had a child with her. Mary represents the “sacred feminine” and should be worshipped as a god. Leonardo Da Vinci (and many other influential people over the centuries) knew about all this and became part of secret societies to protect this information. Da Vinci hid this information in his art. We see, like in the previous book, Angels & Demons, the debate between religion (the Catholic Church) and those who possess the “real” truth. There are murders, lying, twists and turns. There are secret societies - Opus Dei and the Priory of Sion. In the end we find out that… well, I won’t spoil it. (Read on …)

Hello.

In May, The Da Vinci Code, starring Tom Hanks, will be released in theatres. The movie is based on Dan Brown’s book of the same title - a book swamped in controversy. This book has become very popular across the world and the release of a major motion picture will aid in the popularity. An issue we need to be aware of is that many people who read the book, see the movie, or do both will take what they read as factual. Given the amount of controversy surrounding the book, I decided to read the book. I am often asked my opinion about such things and I would like to actually know what I am talking about. (Read on …)

Hi everyone.

Being a shepherd in the Old Testament was a tireless job. There were no set hours for the job and shepherds would often spend days or weeks out in the hills with their sheep. During the warmer months, a shepherd would sleep outdoors with his animals. The sleep would be a light doze - the shepherd would have to be ready and able to wake up immediately and defend the sheep from other men who would steal the sheep or other animals that would eat the sheep. During colder months, the shepherd would sleep in a nearby cave - always close to his animals. Shepherds would eat simple meals of bread, cheese and olives. They would carry some of their food with them and family members or servants would deliver fresh food on occasion. Shepherds would carry large studded clubs and slings to defend against predators. They would also use the slings to accurately throw rocks in front of wayward sheep to divert them back on track. The shepherd’s staff had two distinct ends for two distinct purposes - the curved end was to carefully lift sheep out of crevices or caves while the straight end was to prod the sheep along. Being a shepherd was a tireless and thankless job. (Read on …)

Hi.

I went to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo this past weekend. It is a very remarkable zoo. Humans are allowed to get much closer to the animals than I have seen at other zoos. The giraffe exhibit is amazing. For $1 you get four crackers that you can hand-feed to the giraffes. As you walk along an elevated walkway, they simply approach you, some even allowing you to pet them. (On most days, the giraffes are visible on this camera: < http://www.cmzoo.org/zoocam.html>.) (Read on …)