A new internet home for online exegesis!

Back in March, a wonderful online resource for biblical Greek, zhubert.com, was shut down because of copyright issues with the German Bible Society. I was deeply disappointed because Zack Hubert had put together a great online study-help for reading the Greek New Testament and the Septuagint. It was an interactive library with mouse-over parsing, word searches, vocabulary lists, and more. When it went down, it was a loss of a great tool.

But just this past week I stumbled upon a new resource that is on its way to being just has helpful! The Greek & Hebrew Reader's Bible lacks the Septuagint, but it offers the Greek New Testament (based on Tischendorf's text) and the Hebrew Old Testament. Mouse-over parsing is active for most words (though not all), and there are many ways to filter the amount of information you need to assist you in reading.

As of yet, there isn't a way to perform word searches, or to create custom vocabulary lists, but, much like the Reader's Greek New Testament and Reader's Hebrew Old Testament books, words appearing x-amount of times or less are give beneath the text. The benefit of this website is that the reader can determine that frequency number between 10 and 100 times.

Overall, it looks to be a handy tool. I'm sure it will continue to grow and evolve over time. Three cheers for the Open Source movement!

A Nun and Her 'Habit'

After work today I stopped in at Superstore in Moose Jaw for a couple of things. On my way out, I saw a most curious sight: a nun purchasing lottery tickets. I found this to be very surprising, because, I suppose, gambling is usually frowned upon in moral circles, and a gambling nun sounds like an oxymoron. Perhaps if I would have asked her why she was buying them, she may have said, "To give the money to those who need it," or, "our chapel really needs a new paint job!" But I didn't ask her... Instead, when I got home, I looked up what Vatican II has to say about gambling.

According to Catholics United for the Faith, "Gambling is not intrinsically evil and can be a legitimate form of entertainment so long as it is kept within the confines of virtuous conduct. Given the tragic consequences of habitual or excessive gambling, one should exercise caution and vigilance in this area."

According to this statement, if the nun was gambling to improve the chapel or whatever else, this would be allowed: "Since bingo and other forms of gambling are not intrinsically evil, they maybe used as a means of raising money for parishes."

And even if she were gambling for only her own gain, she'd still be within her right, as long as she does so for entertainment, and exercises discretion and moderation.

So then, based on CUF's interpretation of Vatican II, it would seem that a nun can gamble as long as it doesn't become an unhealthy habit.

Life is Good in Caronport

Yesterday Jenn and I enjoyed a funny evening with my little sisters. We had a scrumptious meal of chicken tacos and super soggy salad (it was soggy, but it was super!), played some volleyball, had a roaring bonfire complete with marshmellows, smores, banana boats, and impromptu song composition (always a favorite on these sorts of nights). It struck both me and Jenn how much my three little sisters have grown up. All my life, or perhaps more accurately, all their lives, I've referred to these three as "the little girls." But that seems to be less and less accurate as time goes on. They are now funny, witty, skillful, intelligent, grown-up young woman. Who would have guessed this could happen in such a short time! The great thing is, even as everybody gets older and figures out what they want from life, we can still sit around a fire and sing about silly things like a smore named Jim who just wants to swim, or a songful salute to "counsellors and supporting staff" at camp. Life is good in Caronport.