Reading is Good For You

but don't forget to have some fun.

So I finished Salvation is From the Jews by Roy Schoeman. I can readily recommend it. The author considers a wide range of issues vis-a-vis Catholicism, Anti-Semitism and Judaism. A tiny detail that intrigued and delighted me was the story about the Miracle of the Scarlet Thread.

Once a year the High Priest would enter the Holy of Holies to offer Atonement for the sins of the people (Yom Kippur). The Talmud relates that a thread, normally scarlet, would change to white if the sin offering was accepted. The thread, whether changed or not, would be fastened to the outside of the Temple door for all to see. The Talmud relates that starting forty years before the destruction of the Temple (A.D. 70 minus 40 = A.D. 30) the thread stayed scarlet. Thus Jewish tradition is that the sins of the Jewish people weren't forgiven for the last forty years of the Temple. The traditional date for Jesus' death is A.D. 30. Fascinating.

Then I picked up Inside Islam: A Guide for Catholics by Daniel Ali & Robert Spencer. This has a question and answer format, so you don't necessarily need to read it straight through. But that's what I did. This book has a specifically Christian and Catholic perspective, so ideas for evangelizing Moslems (and the pitfalls thereof) are sprinkled throughout. It's a good book, overall.

Now, however, I'm less intellectual in my reading: the Combat Mission: Beyond Overlord manual (CMBO for the gamers). The game, from 2000, was on sale for US$15, shipping included. Yikes! The shipping costs took the bulk of the $15. You can't get a better deal. So I'm ready to start battling the Germans across France and Germany, June 1944 to May 1945. Incoming!