Dead Sea Scrolls in the News

The Dead Sea Scrolls will be digitized in an agreement between the Israeli government and Google. This is great news!

The scrolls were found between 1946-1956 in caves just north of the Dead Sea in what is now Israel. It's a dramatic story, and the scrolls' discovery has added a whole new dimension to Biblical scholarship. They are like a message in a bottle across the ages.

The trouble has been getting access to the texts. My awesome cousin was able to see an exhibit of 15 of the scrolls in St Paul, MN recently, but that has been one of the few opportunities the public has had to see these scrolls at all. In a few months, we will all be able to see them, and scholars can go to work.

For a glimpse into some of the information from the scrolls, and what kinds of conclusions can be drawn about Biblical times, I recommend the PBS Frontline video "From Jesus to Christ".

Good stuff to remember down the pike

A FB friend just shared this article from the NYT with me, and I thought I'd re-post the list of stuff to remember when the going gets tough:

1 . Teenagers need to make dumb mistakes to get smart.
2 . Be ALERT but not ALARMED.
3 . Be compassionate and concerned but not enmeshed.
4 . Love them but do not worship them like idols or despise them when they let you down.
5 . Be observant without spying or prying.
6 . Pretend you have seven kids: Dopey, Bashful, Sleepy, Grumpy, Doc (the “know it all”), Sneezy (Does he have a learning disability? An undiagnosed handicap of some kind?), Happy (Is he too laid back? Where is his passion, focus, ambition and drive?) and that which ever of these seven appear in your child’s form on any given day, they are all just going through a phase
7 . When they come to you in distress, resist responding like a concierge, talent agent or the secret police. Assume that they are capable of figuring out — through trial and error — how to solve their own problems.
8 . Be forewarned that the college Common Application asks about “paid” employment with the word “paid” in bold. Remind yourself that ordinary chores and nonfancy paid jobs provide a great education in ordinary but vital life skills.
9 . Remind yourself that watching dumb YouTube videos is a healthful form of decompression and entertainment for teenagers.
10 .Remind yourself that they are unlikely to fulfill all of your dreams or all of your nightmares.
11. Remember that a snapshot of your teenager today is not the epic movie of her life.
12. Recognize that once they get to college, FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) laws don’t allow parents to see their child’s grades so it’s a good idea for students to learn the relationship between effort and outcome long before they go.
13. Plan parental obsolescence, raise them to leave you. The Talmud requires that parents teach their child how to swim.
14. Put the oxygen mask on yourself before you put it on your child.
15. Find support in other adults instead of letting shame or fear about your teenager’s twisting path cause you to isolate yourself.

It helped me to see this.

Newsy Bits

Lots of news in my life:

My Godson is officially adopted into the family, as of Easter Monday!

Neighbor Ed just got tenure!

My friend Charlotte just got back from Istanbul and posted some of her amazing photos on Facebook. I'm really hoping she might be a guest blogger here and talk about her travels and the religious art she saw there. One of her stops was the Hagia Sophia (picture on left).

I'm trying to plan an academic path to a Master's degree for myself. I have a meeting with an advisor this afternoon!

And finally, this isn't in the news of the me, rather the news of the "we" but - I am so proud of our President and First Lady. Out planting trees:

Newsy Mid-Week Items

First off, Angie is engaged! Congratulations Angie & Neil. I get to do some of the wedding planning. I'm stoked.

If you want to take a peek at her engagement ring, you can find it under her pseudonym at her jeweler's website: Lorinczi. Look at "Collections," under "Bridal," Angie's is the last dot in the bunch. Absolutely BEAUTIFUL work, Stacey. You Rock! [get it?]

Also, today is my grandmother, Helen's birthday, she would have been 99 years old today. I am thinking of her favorite yellow cake with mocha icing that my mom used to make for her. I miss Grandma.

I didn't get a job I'd applied for with a great organization, which is a bummer. But, onward and upward, as I always say.

And, now, in Philadelphia, there is WEEKLY CURBSIDE RECYCLING! Yee Haw! I am so HAPPY!

Happy Epiphany, All!