Musings of a Snickerdoodle

Marie Durand by Simonetta Carr is an interesting, though short, account of the Christian lady.   I didn't know anything about Marie before reading this biography, the name sounded familiar but didn't point to any substantive information in my mind. Now, I understand that she was a French lady living during the 1700s who was imprisoned on account of her brother's being a pastor.   She could have gotten out of prison by denying the faith but did not do so and stayed in in prison for 38 years.      There are interesting illustrations throughout, and also photographs of items and places from Durand's era.   At the end of the book there is a pronunciation key to help one read and pronounce the French words, a 'Did You Know?' section giving more information about the people and lifestyle of that era, and a letter from Marie to her niece Anne.   Also, I liked the Epilogue, where Carr gives an overview of what happened after Marie died. The 'Age of Reas...

The NIRV Study Bible for Kids is and interesting concept, but not as well executed as I think that it could have been.   First, there were unnecessary pictures.   I don’t understand why almost everyone has to depict Adam and Eve before the fall, without clothing? Yeah it was okay before the fall, but we live after the fall so to depict them in that way now is shameful. It wasn't as bad a it could be (there were the usual bushes) but was worse than some I've come across…they showed enough to make me more uncomfortable with them than I normally would be.   Wouldn't it be wrong to depict the nakedness of the father and mother of all human beings?   Displaying what is now their shame as art?   Should Christians actually promote this?    Also, they had depictions of Christ, and I still think that that type of thing may break (or at least be on the edge of breaking) the commandment to "not make any graven image" to worship. The NIrV translation itself...

"From one person God made all nations who live on earth, and he decided when and where every nation would be…" Acts 17:26 (Scripture quoted from the Contemporary English Version © 1991, 1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.)   It is fascinating to see the events that God had ordained to bring America onto the world scene as an independent nation in 1776.   Independence was not on everyone's mind when the American Revolution began.   Many Americans simply wanted to have adequate representation and influence in the British government of their land.   Whirlwind: The American Revolution and the War That Won It - by John Ferling highlights some of the thinking that was going on at the time, and some of the events and writings that sparked a change of thought in many people.   Ferling states in the preface that, "This book argues that the colonists were generally happy with the imperial relationship in the early 1760s, and for a conside...