Stephanie Landsem's Blog, page 16
March 12, 2013
Yays, Nays, and LOL tweets from The Bible episode 2
As I mentioned in last week’s post, I give The Bible miniseries on the History Channel an enthusiastic thumbs up. It’s not perfect, but it’s beautiful and moving and far better than the other choices on prime time TV.And so, last Sunday night found me watching the second episode while keeping an eye on Twitter’s hashtag #TheBible. Over the two hour program, I came to several highly unscientific conclusions:
Samson and his mother (Photo Credit: Joe Alblas)
Tweets about The Bible were overwhelmin...
March 5, 2013
5 ways The Bible wins and 5 . . . well, not so much
In which I interrupt my previously scheduled blog post to say a few words about The Bible.
The Warrior Angel during destruction of Sodom. (Photo Credit: Joe Alblas)
How many of you watched the premier of The Bible, the ten hour miniseries on the History Channel Sunday night? No doubt some viewers have strong opinions of the choices that the filmmakers made. But positive, negative, or—like mine—a little bit of both, The Bible was an undertaking on an epic scale. Here are my impressions of the fi...
February 27, 2013
Regina Jennings: Vegetable Hater
Regina Jennings. Isn’t she beautiful? Go to her website.
I love that quote by C.S. Lewis, and it comes to my mind when I think of Regina Jennings: kindred spirit, historical romance phenomenon, and vegetable hater.
I’m pretty sure that God knew what He was doing when He threw Regina and I together at the 2010 ACFW conference. We were both nervous newbies but within minutes, I knew I...
February 19, 2013
Wine in Ancient Israel
photo courtesy of Freefoto
The word wine is mentioned over 200 times in the Bible, either in a real or symbolic sense.
Take, for example, Isaiah 5:11
Woe to those who rise early in the morning,
that they may run after strong drink,
who tarry late into the evening as wine inflames them!
Or from Isaiah 25:6
On this mountain the Lord of hosts
will provide for all peoples
a feast of rich food and choice wines,
juicy, rich food and pure, choice wines.
Whether you are a teetotaler or a wine connoisseur, there...
Ten Tidbits on Wine in Ancient Israel
photo courtesy of Freefoto
The word wine is mentioned over 200 times in the Bible, either in a real or symbolic sense.
Take, for example, Isaiah 5:11
Woe to those who rise early in the morning,
that they may run after strong drink,
who tarry late into the evening as wine inflames them!
Or from Isaiah 25:6
On this mountain the Lord of hosts
will provide for all peoples
a feast of rich food and choice wines,
juicy, rich food and pure, choice wines.
Whether you are a teetotaler or a wine connoisseur, there...
February 12, 2013
Engagements and Weddings in Biblical Israel
With Valentines Day approaching, romance is in the air. Romance leads to love and —sometimes—love leads to weddings. Who doesn’t love a wedding?
What were weddings like in Biblical Israel? Surely they couldn’t have been as elaborate as today’s affairs, with their magazines, wedding planners, to-do lists and five-figure price tags
Yet, in at least two ways, Biblical weddings were even more elaborate—some might even say better—than modern nuptials.
The betrothal was a serious affair for the bride...
February 5, 2013
What did the people of ancient Israel call their homeland?
Trail in Upper Galilee, photo by Leonid Spektor
It lies between the Arabian Desert and the blue waters of the Mediterranean. A small chunk of land, not much bigger than Belgium, but one of immense spiritual and historical importance to people all over the world
We call it Palestine, Israel, or the Holy Land but what did the Jews of the first century call the land of milk and honey? The land they had fought for, lost, regained, and lost again? The land that had been promised to them by their God...
February 3, 2013
How your family dinner can be like first century Jerusalem
Not long ago, as my family of six sat down to dinner, I had a bright idea. “Tonight is ‘no English’ night.” I said. The kids looked at me as if I’d grown an extra nose. “Any language but English during dinner,” I explained. “Let’s see what happens.”
What happened can only be described as chaotic. My husband and I spoke French and German, while the two older kids did pretty well in Spanish. The younger two chimed in with Swedish Chef and Wookie.We managed to pass the potatoes, but any attempt a...
January 17, 2013
Where to Find Your Bliss if You Love Ancient History
Photo from: Stephanie Landsem
I love old things. If you’re reading this blog, chances are you do too.
A shimmering skyscraper leaves me dizzy but unimpressed. The ruins of the Forum in Rome, however, leave me speechless. I’m happy to sit for hours on a bench near the House of the Vestal Virgins, soaking up history—preferably with gelato in hand.
When I travel, there is always more to do than time allows. So my travel plans often hinge on age. The Eiffel Tower, built for the 1889 World’s Fair, is...
How the Biblical Diet Was Anything But Dull
Barley, goats’ milk, pomegranates, almonds . . . it sounds like the newest health food craze—and with good reason. The diet of most people in Holy Land during the biblical times was low in fat, high in fiber, and rich in what we now know to be antioxidants.
Historical sources tell us that Jews of the first century—no doubt including Jesus and his disciples—broke their fast in the morning with stone ground bread, perhaps dipped in goat’s milk, or with a handful of fruit. Lunch was another round...
