Letters On The Page

  Edmundson, Mark.   Why Teach?: In Defense of a Real Education . Bloomsbury, 2013.   Why Teach is the second in the “Why?” Trilogy.  It is just as engaging, informative, and plain-speaking as Why Read? and Why Write? . Professor Edmundson teaches English at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. In a series of essays, some of which were published elsewhere, Edmundson reports on the challenges of teaching in our contemporary setting.  For example, universities have become consumer and entertainment-oriented entities.  One symptom of this is the student evaluation. Edmundson’s discussion about the student evaluation and what it tends to report leads into a fruitful discussion of how the professor must give information in an engaging and entertaining way, but not expect too much retention or critical interaction from the students with the material presented. Instructors that expect students to actually, like, read the material, or who offer necessary candid correction or critici

  Emmaus Ev. Lutheran Church in South Bend, Indiana kindly gave me this print of "The Road to Emmaus." The painter is Robert Zund and he painted it in 1877.  The painting is based on Jesus' resurrection appearance to Cleopas and another disciple as they walked to Emmaus.  See Luke 24:13-35 for the Biblical passage that this picture is based upon.  I am grateful to Emmaus for allowing me to serve them as their vacancy pastor from September 2022 to January  26, 2023.   This is a gift to last a life time and I am delighted to hang it in our living room. 

2023-3-15 Vespers – Fourth Wednesday of Lent   Exodus 20:12-24      Matthew 15:1-20   We have two examples of good intentions going astray because of the pervasiveness of sin. The first is the Pharisees teaching on the washing of hands before eating.  The second is making a vow to God to fulfill sacrificial financial giving.    In 2023, when we hear of the Pharisees efforts to enforce a habit of handwashing, we automatically think of hygiene for the sake of physical health. However, personal hygiene to prevent bacteria and other challenges for our physical health is not the agenda for the Pharisees.  Their agenda is that the entire Jewish population become ritually and spiritually clean.  They want what is mandated for the priests in the temple to extend outward to every Jewish household.  In Exodus 30:17-21, God gives clear instructions for washing of hands and feet for the priests serving in the temple.  The washing of hands and feet help to ensure that they are ritually, spirituall

  Fox, Jessica A.   Three Things You Need to Know about Rockets: A REAL-LIFE Scottish Fairy Tale . New York, New York: Marble Arch Press, 2013.   Readers of Shaun Bythell’s books ( Diary of a Bookseller, Remainders of the Day ) will recall him writing about “Anna” from time to time.  Anna is Jessica A. Fox. She tells the reader what took her from America to Wigtown, Scotland.  She also introduces us to a side of Mr. Bythell that is not readily apparent in his recounting of daily life as a book shop owner and his caustic remarks about some of his customers and employees.   Ms. Fox focuses on her emotional and thought processes that enable her to leave a blooming career in the States and go to a remote book town on the coast of Scotland to work as a volunteer and to “write.” She also relates her joys and frustrations regarding her relationship with Shaun.  I never felt that she revealed unnecessarily intimate details about herself, Shaun, or their friends. This is not a kiss and tell boo

Ricks, Thomas E.   First Principles: What America's Founders Learned from the Greeks and Romans and How That Shaped Our Country . Harpers, 2020.   While reading Tracy Lee Simmons' book Climbing Parnassus  I learned that the first four Presidents of the U.S. were educated in the classics or were heavily influenced by the classical authors.  Simmons wrote most often about Thomas Jefferson. I wanted to learn more about the education that our Founding Fathers received and how it impacted their creation and development of the new American government.  Motivated by the surprise win of the 45th President, Ricks wanted to learn more about the country's founders. Specifically, he wanted to learn about their education and how it impacted their vision for a new America. George Washington, John Adams, James Madison, and Thomas Jefferson were indeed impacted by their reading and knowledge of Ancient Rome and Greece. Adams, Madison, and Jefferson read Latin.  Washington did not read Lati